How do you get excited?

Humans are emotional people. Our whole life revolves around our feelings. From the moment we wake up to the moment we go to sleep, we only focus on how we feel. We feel fresh or tired, excited or bored, happy or sad… Most of our thoughts have to do with our feelings.

Feelings are always positive or negative and guide our thinking accordingly. So obviously there are some constructive thought patterns and there are some counterproductive thought patterns. The constructive ones focus on abundance while the self-destructive ones focus on lack. What do you focus on?

Some examples of thoughts derived from negative emotions such as sadness, anger, hatred, jealousy, fear, helplessness, etc. would:

• No one understands me.
• Only I know what I’m going through.
• So many years of my life have been wasted.
• Other people are much luckier.
• Because I?
• Things will never go well for me.
• I wish people would cooperate more.
• When I’m right, why can’t others see it?
• Why do I have to fight/fight for everything I deserve in life?
• Life is not fair.

Do you notice a common thread between all these statements? You can also add a few more of your own and you’ll find the same common thread that ties them all together. It’s the thread called ‘self-pity’. Most of us love to indulge in self-pity and use our book of 1001 excuses to justify why we have a right to indulge. We let our negative emotions wash over us to such an extent that all of these thoughts seem extremely rational and practical. Anyone who says anything to the contrary actually knows less and understands less.

You have a choice. You have the choice to live with your ‘1001 Excuses’ book or rewrite a book called ‘1001 Solutions’. There is ‘NO PROBLEM’ in the world that doesn’t have a solution, but we usually end up focusing all our time and energies on the problem that we don’t have the strength to find solutions or implement them.

So how can you start writing this new book? It’s pretty simple. Simply do the opposite of the above. Focus on all the positive emotions you experience like happiness, love, excitement, enthusiasm, confidence, etc. You will notice that your thoughts will start to change to thoughts like:

• I am in control of my life and I can shape it.
• People will support me when I ask.
• I can overcome the challenges that life throws at me.
• I can always make a fresh start and make it big.
• Different opinions. I can always agree to disagree and let it go.
• I’m just as lucky as everyone else.
• If I keep this up, things will go my way.
• Life is just. It gives us all the ups and downs.

Sometimes negative emotions are more overwhelming than positive ones, so it can be difficult to experience those positive statements. Don’t be discouraged. Feelings follow thoughts as much as thoughts follow feelings. Choose your thoughts and repeat them… see how your feelings change.

As they say “we can’t change what life presents us with but we can change our response to what happens”. You have the power to let your thoughts control your feelings or be a slave to your feelings. Don’t waste time and energy wishing life was different or better… Do it.