From Believing to Achieving
The Amazing Power of Believing in Yourself
I have heard comic actor Jim Carrey tell this story before on a talk show, but the account of it that I’ve included below is from Buzzle.com (By Gary Evans, 10/15/2007). It's a little story that illustrates the amazing power of believing in yourself; the truly awesome power of thinking positive thoughts.It is the story about how Carrey got himself to believe that he would one day earn enough money to write to himself (and make good on) a $10 million dollar check!
According to the Buzzle.com article, Carrey said,"I wrote myself a check for ten million dollars for acting services rendered and dated it Thanksgiving 1995. I put it in my wallet and it deteriorated. And then, just before Thanksgiving 1995, I found out I was going to make ten million dollars for Dumb & Dumber. I put that check in the casket with my father because it was our dream together."
Carrey’s story illustrates the miraculous power of believing and acting as though something is possible. Believing he'd one day be able to cash what was a worthless $10 million dollar check when he wrote it one day came true for him, as a $10 million dollar movie deal. And as is illustrated by Mr. Carrey's faith, I truly believe that if you believe you can do something, you can achieve it. I believe it is possible to turn negative thoughts and negative self-talk that might be keeping you from working to achieve, into positive thoughts, positive self-talk, and positive actions that can ultimately lead you to do the work that is necessary for you to accomplish your goals in life.
How to Get There From Here
Awareness is the first step. When you begin journaling, you will be preparing yourself to do something about the negative thoughts and negative self-talk that always accompanies feeling down and defeated. In fact, it is your ability to influence the direction of your self-talk that truly is your first line of defense against negative thinking. It’s the first step in “de-programming” negative self-talk as you get ready to change negative thoughts into positive thoughts and actions.
If you don't believe me, let me challenge you to begin keeping a journal listing the things you want to do or things you want to change in your life, that you now think you cannot do or cannot change. Now, on another page in your journal, after making your list, I want you to pick a few things from the list (the things you want to work on first), and then write down your thoughts about why you cannot do what you want to do, or change what you want to change. Then, on yet another page, I want you to write down what would have to happen, in order for you to be able to do what you want to do or change what you want to change. Now, after you finish writing that, I want you to tear out and put away the page that explains why you can't do what you want or change what you want, and I want you to keep the page that talks about what it will take in order for you to do what you want and change what you want.
Next, while studying the things that will have to occur in order for you to do or change things, write down one or two things you could do that might help. Every day, I want you to read what you wrote, and always feel free to add more things to that page as you begin to see other things, big or small, that you could do to help nudge the changes you want to see in your life. Don't hesitate to write down words of encouragement to yourself as you begin to think more and good thoughts, and I believe you will soon begin to act in ways that will cause you to eventually see the amazing and miraculous power of thinking positive thoughts.
Deprogramming/Reprogramming Your Thoughts
Leave the past behind. Be thankful for it, because it brought you to where you are now, but don’t dwell on it. It doesn’t matter what happened yesterday or what might happen tomorrow. In the here and now, you are focusing on the task at hand, and that task right now is to understand that deprogramming and re-programming your mind are processes, not instant cures. Most likely, you will not be able to stop all the negative thoughts and self-talk immediately. Some you will be able to stop instantly, while some could require more time and practice. Practice and more practice will get you to the point where your mind will begin to help you zero in on and then zap any negative thoughts that come, before they become loud, energy-zapping, self-defeating monologues in your mind.
In the beginning of the process, you will probably still find yourself thinking some negative thoughts and even engaging in some negative self-talk. But if you are aware and equipped, you will not listen to that voice of negativity. You will learn to turn down its volume, because it will only tell you to believe the negative thoughts. In time, you will learn to simply tell yourself “Yes I can,” every time your negative self-talk tries to tell you, “No you can’t.”
By becoming more alert and more aware of your habits, once you begin the negative thinking and talking, you will be able to zero in on it and then bring it to a halt. Pretty soon, you will learn to replace negative thinking immediately, with positive thoughts.
“Think like a man of action, and act like a man of thought.” ~Henri L. Bergson
Remember, it’s not just what you are saying internally to yourself. You also need to become more aware of what you are saying audibly, to you and about you. Talk to your friends and/or family. Ask them if they ever hear you saying negative things about you. Then, in your journal, write down what they tell you, and/or what you know about any negative thoughts you constantly are saying to you, about you. Afterward, replace each negative thought or idea, with something positive.
© 2012 Sallie B Middlebrook PhD