Think About It Archives - Page 64 of 64

You Always Have A Choice

Posted on January 17, 2020

No matter what the situation, you always have a choice. Now the best choice, from your perspective, may be obvious, or the idea of one of the choices may be revolting or incomprehensible, but it doesn’t mean you don’t have a choice. It simply means you have a preference for one of the options and are not interested in the other option.

Sometimes we hear the words, “I don’t have a choice”, or, “I didn’t have a choice”. It may feel, or seem, like our choices are limited to one, but it isn’t actually true. It’s just a story you tell yourself, and others, to try to rationalise or justify your decision and action.

For people who don’t like to take personal responsibility, who are often looking for someone else to blame, these kind of comments are perfect. They feel they can be absolved, as they didn’t have a choice. “The devil made me do it”, is a classic excuse to try to escape personal responsibility.

If you find yourself challenging the above idea, that we always have a choice, you may find success, and joy, are more elusive than you had hoped.

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How Important Is This?

Posted on January 16, 2020

If I want to gauge how important something is to me or to someone else, I put it through the same filter I have since I was in my teens. This filter I use is the following: Is the person using the care, diligence and urgency that I imagine a heart or brain surgeon would use on the country’s leader or that a Marine or SAS operative would use on a special mission?

These scenarios are life and death. Mistakes can cost lives, including your own, if you were the patient or the operative.

These people will be highly trained, well drilled, and focused on a successful outcome. They will confidently take action to achieve their desired result.

They probably don’t use phrases like, “I kinda feel like I can give it a try and then we will just see what happens.” Certainly words you do not want to hear from your heart surgeon as they are putting you under…

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You’re being brainwashed

Posted on January 13, 2020

Call it brainwashing or programming. Even influencing, education, training or encouraging.

We all choose to allow others to fill our minds with thoughts and ideas which lead to our basic, individual philosophy, which then leads to plans and actions.

We choose to tune in or tune out, to something or someone, at every second of the day. You’re listening to, or tuned into, your friends, radio, spouse, news outlet, social media feeds, your own mind and thoughts, children, parents, journalists, entertainers and tv.

Hence, we are all being brainwashed by others if we don’t stop and think about what we are letting our minds consume. Just as with food, our consumption habits will catch up with us and it will be obvious to others and eventually ourselves.

We tend to adopt the message and philosophy of the content creator, or we move on to something that appeals to us more in that moment. We will return to the content, and the content creator, that we enjoy, agree with, or that makes us feel comfortable, thereby reinforcing their message and adopting it within ourselves.

Of course if we don’t like certain content or the creator, or if we stop, think and recognise that it is not good for us, we can choose to simply ignore it. That’s right: it’s a choice.

Is all of your mental consumption making you a better, happier person, or should you consider switching out some content creators?

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Mind Power – Take Back Control

Posted on January 11, 2020

Many people tend to live on autopilot. It’s simple and easy. Consistent and comfortable. But it’s not ideal when you want to change something in your life.

You need to stop and think. Yes, think. You’ve got to switch off the autopilot and switch on the manual control.

You will have to puzzle over the item. See it from different perspectives, not just your usual one. And, it’s hard work if you are not in the habit of doing this. But it does get easier the more you do it and train your brain.

Relax. Try to see how things could be different if your thoughts shifted a little.

You’re in control.

Enjoy that feeling.