Happiness is available to you now.
Right this very moment, your thoughts are shaping your reality. What you think directly influences the emotions that you experience and the actions that you take.
Let me tell you a little story. For so long (especially while studying in the public relations department), I believed that you had to “get to the grind” and work as hard as possible to be successful. In my mind, this included managing your own business or starting a side hustle, continuously learning new skills, trying your hand at more hobbies and networking with the big names to push past your comfort zone.
This mindset of mine led to years of chronic stress, even when I had little to be stressed about. I thought that if I wasn’t consumed by scheduling endless tasks and striving for perfectionism, I was wasting my time.
So, what happened? My daily hike through the woods turned into a workout on the to-do list rather than exploring my surroundings and cultivating a mindset of curiosity. Dinner with a friend was replaced with a secondary job interview. Self-help podcasts were prioritized over catching up on my favourite Netflix shows.
I was so driven in my pursuit of “success” that I forgot how to slow down and truly live. Life passes us by no matter what we do, so why not have some fun along the way?
When you think, “I am stressed,” the cells in the human body listen to that thought and produce stress-related hormones. This is why meditation is so essential: It anchors our attention. We can decide what to think, when to think it and which light to frame it in. Is it a positive thought or a negative one?
Unfortunately, many of our thoughts are unconscious, and we do not realize the surmounting automatic negative thoughts that affect our minds and bodies. We repeat the same old story to ourselves day in, day out.
The solution to my dilemma was incredibly simple: I needed to change my mindset and think new thoughts. A few months ago, I began to visualize the words, “I am not stressed.” I meditated and repeated it as an affirmation to myself every single day, and at some point – without even realizing it – the stress melted away. Physical manifestations of worry and anxiety, such as shoulder pain or tension headaches, disappeared. I reacted to news and events differently. Life suddenly felt quite manageable – easy, even.
Buddha said, “What you think, you become.” Similarly, Rumi said, “What you seek is seeking you.”
My loves, what are you thinking? What are you seeking?
How are your thoughts shaping your reality? Do you see a connection between what you tell yourself each day and the events that are transpiring in your life? Are you ready to achieve happiness?
It is available to you right now.
