Changing your thinking changes everything.
The Bible says; As a man thinks in his heart, so is he….. (Proverbs 23:7)
We are also told to think on whatever is true, noble, right, pure, lovely and admirable. (Philippians 4:8)
What could be different if we intentionally changed our thinking?
How can coaching help?
There is a lot of undeniable evidence through neuroscience and many other disciplines that mindset has a great effect on our health, our success and the trajectory of our lives. What we have trained ourselves to think either consciously or sub-consciously matters. It affects what happens in our life, our relationships, our profession and all kinds of things.
How can we self-coach ourselves forward into more positive thinking and experience the real benefits of this?
It’s a hard truth to swallow that a lot of our anxiety, our circumstances, problems we have, reasons we have not progressed forward, our lifestyle, our choices of work, are results of our own thoughts and beliefs.
Wim Hoff, who has mastered the art of enduring extreme conditions, which were considered impossible for any human, says, ‘if you can feel you can do it you can do it.’
I can’t help thinking that there is something about that quote from Wim, that sounds like the scripture, ‘as a man thinks in his heart, so is he.’
Whether you are more inclined to believe Wim or Proverbs, either way, there is a truth and a deep wisdom here. Both tell us that we can change our thinking and therefore change everything.
If our thoughts actually create some kind of reality, then they are powerful. If our thoughts affect our heart, how we feel, and that in turn affects outcomes, wow; we can affect many things.
We know that the renewing of our mind is also a Biblical concept. We know that Christ does this for us, but we also have our part to play.
Recently, when I took some time out, as I often do to reflect on progress in recent months, I felt encouraged! I didn’t feel that way before the reflection exercise. I reflected in a disciplined way on whatever was true, noble, praiseworthy and admirable just like Philippians 4:8 tells us. Encouragement is important, it affects our motivation and our faith and belief in ourselves and God. It changes our thinking.
Try this self-coach exercise to change your thinking for the better.
STEP 1 – REFLECT POSITIVELY
To renew your mind and change your thinking try this reflective exercise which will force your mind to think of only what is good. It’s really important to focus on what is good, as some of us tend to reflect on things that are negative and end up being more discouraged.
Bearing in mind the guide of 6 types of things to think on, given in Philippians 4:8, (whatever is true, noble, right, pure, lovely and admirable), pick a timescale to reflect on (e.g., 1 week, 2 months or even 2 years for a longer exercise).
Ask yourself the following questions.
What has progressed in this timescale?
-What tasks I wanted to complete and have?
-What projects have moved forward?
-What skills have I gained?
-What good habits have I formed?
-What characteristics have grown in me?
-What relationships have grown stronger? And in what way?
If you can’t think of anything in these categories, ask God to show you something. Whatever pops into your mind that is good and encouraging, write it down.
Reflect on progress you have made, in your thinking, your goals, your plans, your structuring of your day, your life, your work.
Reflect on triumphs you have had; changes you have made and how you have adapted for the good!
Celebrate every positive change, however big or small, because you are moving forward!
STEP 2 – BECOME YOUR OWN BEST ENCOURAGER
Now look at all that is good, however small it seems, it is something!
You have made progress.
Here is a trick to help you engage. As you read what you have written, pretend for a moment that you are reading about someone else, a person that needs encouragement. Pretend you are reading about Jane or Jack.
Then ask yourself, if this was Jane, and she needed some encouragement, what would I say to her?
Now write down what you admire about Jane, how incredible you think she is to have grown in all the ways she has.
What do you believe for her for the future? If she has achieved this much, what could the future hold?
Then finally read what you have written and know that it is you not Jane or Jack!
STEP 3 – ASK GOD
Finally, ask God to confirm what you can now see and believe.
I love doing this, God really is our biggest supporter. Ask Him to encourage you and He will. I often say, ok God if this is really true please give me a confirmation in some way. Within a few days or so he does. This part really helps to tune you into the heartbeat of God. All of heaven encourages.
This exercise will build your faith and shift your thinking.
By discipling yourself to look for the good, it will help you reconceptualise the past and will shift your thinking for the future.
Try it and start to retrain your brain to take you forward to places you would never have dreamed of quickly.
This exercise will stop unbelief, discouragement and lies that the enemy has you thinking. It will stop, those thoughts that say, I haven’t done enough, it’s not happening right, I’m failing, I can’t do this ……
By changing our thinking, we can change whatever we want to. We can move into fulfilling our destiny, as God sees it.
CHRISTIAN COACHING
This reflection exercise is something that we as coaches do from time to time with our clients. Some people need the help of a coach to help them reconceptualise the past and the future. It helps them understand what they are flourishing in and can flourish in. It helps them know what is good and how to focus on these things going forward. It is an exercise that reverses limiting beliefs and helps Christians to step into their true identity as sons of God, as they find permission to live free and be their best selves. To find out more about getting coaching or learning to coach others bringing God into the process visit: