Are you "What-iffing" yourself to failure?

Are You 'What-iffing' Yourself To Certain Failure?

Have you realized that many of your worries about the future begin with 'what-if?' "What if I fail?" "What if I get hurt by taking this risk?'

'What-iffing', as I like to call it, occurs when you make negative predictions about the future. One negative thought pops into your mind and before you know it, the negative thoughts have spiralled out of control. That's because negative thoughts, just like positive ones, feed off each other.

For example, you may be worried about loosing your job. Then you think "What if I loose my job?" That leads to another thought, "What if I can't find another job?" which leads to another what-if. And before long you've what-iffed yourself into living under a bridge.

So, how do you stop this negative spiral? A simple 3 step procedure is all that's needed.
Recognize the negative thought.
Replace it with a positive and empowering one.
Reinforce the positive thought to make it a habitual way of thinking.

Let's look at each step in a bit more detail:
Recognize: Keep a small notebook. each time you feel a 'what-if' coming on, write it down. This step alone will make you aware of your negative thoughts.

When you have some free time and you're in a relaxed mood open up the notebook and read the first 'what-if' thought. As you read it ask yourself "And what if that did happen? Then what would happen next?" Repeat this process until you've uncovered your core belief.

Replace:Once you've uncovered your core negative belief you need to decide what you want your new positive belief to be. The new belief should be a reflection of the life you want to create. Phrase these beliefs in the present tense and use "I" statements, keeping the focus on what you want.

Reinforce: Now that you've written down these positive beliefs you need to write them on index cards. Read this card each morning when you wake up and again at night when you go to bed. After a while these new beliefs will become second nature.