My friend, this past week I heard the most powerful analogy about the momentum of our thoughts, and I just knew I had to share it with you. I've written to you about the law of attraction before, but I'll quickly summarize here to give context to this analogy:
"That which is like unto itself, is drawn", in all things, in all ways. So with our thoughts, if we linger on one long enough, our brains will automatically start looking for proof to support that initial thought. Our brains are brilliant this way!
Linger in that particular 'thought space' long enough and you'll have plenty of proof for why your original thought must be true.
Now this can be good if your thoughts are in a wholesome space: if they are abundant, hopeful, positive, focused, kind, peaceful or empowered.
But what if we are talking about a negative or disempowering thought? Still, 'that which is like unto itself is drawn'. So, before you know it, you will have unconsciously attracted more thoughts that will serve as evidence that the negative thought also must be true.
SAN FRANCISCO STREETS
Here is the analogy I heard while listening to Abraham Hicks this week, that made this idea of the momentum of our thoughts crystal clear to me:
Imagine you take your car to the very top of one of those hilly roads in San Francisco. You put it in neutral, get out and nudge it from behind.
Yikes!
Now, if you run around to the front of the car immediately, you can probably stop it with just your own strength. It has not garnered momentum at this point.
This is when we decide to catch a disempowering thought the moment we think it and course correct, so it does not linger or attract evidence to support itself.
Now imagine, if you don't run around to the front of the car right away. Instead, you let it roll down that never ending hill. On and on it goes, until it has become an unstoppable force. Imagine trying to catch THAT car with just your own strength at the very bottom of that hill. The thought alone makes me shudder.
This is the effect of negative thoughts that go unattended in our minds.
We've all had this kind of day. It feels like its gone off the rails and in actuality, it has. We thought a thought that disempowered or undermined our best selves. Then we lingered in that space. While we lingered, more thoughts of like intent showed up to the party. Before long, this nasty collection of negative thoughts were like that out of control car, careening down the hill gaining strength and speed and feeling impossible to control.
But here is the exciting news: we can harness this momentum for our good! In three different ways:
1. Remember how hard it is to stop or reverse a thought when it's 'halfway down the hill'? Instead, the moment you think it and it registers as negative, catch it and rework it. Think about the situation differently. Find some angle that empowers you. Dwell on that thought.
Example: Negative thought: "The morning rush to school is SO stressful. I'm so disorganized and my kids are impossible to get out the door!' Change to: "I'm new to the morning rush of school days and its obvious my children are registering the difference as well. I'm going to take deep breaths and get us out the door as calmly as possible this morning. After drop off, I'm going to take 10 minutes on Pinterest to see what other mama's are doing to make this time more peaceful and efficient." < let THIS thought linger, and welcome evidence to support it.
2. Practice the powerful momentum of positive thoughts. Think an amazing thought, then nudge that thought over the hill. Stay in that space and welcome evidence to support it. Witness your mind going to work, combing through thoughts to find evidence to support this empowering thought. Harness this momentum and benefit from the affirming affect that deliberate thinking has on your wellbeing.
3. If you find yourself having a day that has, indeed, gone off the rails due to negative thinking (we have all been there and will be many times in the future ♥︎), do NOT try to catch that car at the bottom of the hill.
Instead, take your shoes for a walk and jump a couple streets over. Let that out of control train of thoughts find somewhere to crash unbeknownst to you, because you have decided to think about different things. Focus on something else in your life and aim for a neutral space mentally. It doesn't even have to be overwhelmingly positive. Just walk away from the negative momentum and take a few deep breaths. You can try that topic again tomorrow, when you've had a good rest and are more aware of what triggered it to turn negatively in the first place. Sometimes just releasing resistance and focusing our thoughts elsewhere is the very best thing we can do ♥︎
As with law of attraction, this idea of the momentum of our thoughts, is happening whether we are attuned to it or not. Because it is so powerful, I encourage you to tune in. Pay attention to what you are thinking and make this momentum work in your favour.
