[The following is an excerpt from the motivational book, Believe. Do. And Follow Through!, that I co-wrote with Isaiah Whittaker]
Ch. 2
Do things from your past still hold you down? You don’t have to let them do that anymore! Sometimes, people get stuck in ruts, and they don’t even know it. They just keep getting up, doing the same thing – day after day – without so much as a second thought.
Ways you can mentally get rid of the past:
1. Write down what happened, and then burn the paper. …An amazing thing happens when you see those negative thoughts turn into ashes and go up in smoke!
2. Tell somebody else about it, and then tell yourself that what happened never has to happen again.
3. Envision a different past – one that you would have wanted to happen. …The subconscious mind is an incredible thing – you can dilute negative things with enough positive ones to heal damaged emotions, psyche, etc.
4. Wear a loose rubber band on your wrist. Whenever you start to tell yourself, “Yeah, but…” pull the rubber band, and let it snap you on the wrist. When it stings your wrist, tell yourself, “Yes, I can!” It’ll only take a few times before your subconscious mind will correct itself. It may take more than a few times… it may take a few days. But, it’ll be worth the change, in the long run.
NOTE: This exercise is not meant for self-abuse! It’s to be a brief correction for improving your attitudes in life.
5. Lastly, move on! Stop telling yourself those things from the past that keep trying to hold you down or hold you back. Just “Press Delete.”
Change your thinking.
Marty Reep 