We can’t just swap a thought that has a lifetime of momentum for the ideal thought we’d like to believe. If we practice saying things we don’t believe, it does NOT make us believe them. We can’t spend a lifetime feeling unhappy with our body – thinking thoughts that reinforce that unhappiness – then decide to shift thoughts and jump right to, “I’m so happy with my body!”
When we try, it kinda makes us cringe.
Our thoughts are what regulate our energy. Some thoughts drain our energy, and others refuel our energy supply. Thoughts we do NOT believe neither drain us, nor refuel us. Therefore, when we wish to shift from energy-draining to energy-increasing thoughts, it is important to choose thoughts we believe, thoughts that resonate for us personally. So thoughts that works for one person may not work for someone else.
If a thought feels good and it resonates for you, it is moving you in the right direction. If it makes you recoil, feels false, or gives you a twist in your solar plexus, don’t use it. Instead of moving guys toward our goal, it simply reinforces the current limiting belief.
Every thought is optional.
Some thoughts we think create emotions that feel icky.
Some thoughts we think create emotions that feel wonderful.
When your thoughts are feeling wonderful, I would encourage you to savor them! Write them down, read them again often. Touching base with this kind of vibration (energy frequency) will allow other thoughts that feel wonderful to be attracted to you. The more we practice these good feeling thoughts, the more things to feel good about we will attract into our experience!
When our thoughts are feeling icky, THAT is merely an indicator that we want to touch base again with thoughts that feel wonderful! This can be thought of as raising our vibration, or increasing the energy available to us. So when your thoughts feel icky, I would encourage you to set down those heavy, icky-feeling thoughts in favor of thoughts that create emotions like confidence, freedom, contentment, joy.
Since every thought is optional, why not choose ones that make us feel great?
Laddering Thoughts is a simple coaching tool.
Laddering thoughts are simply thoughts that bridge the gap from any current limiting beliefs to thoughts that better serve us, and lift our spirits.
- Our current limiting belief is at the bottom of the ladder.
- The ideal thought that we would LIKE to believe is at the top of the ladder.
- Laddering thoughts are thoughts we already BELIEVE that gently move us up toward the thought we would love to believe.
Example # 1 –
- Current limiting belief: I can’t/won’t give up sugar. (Dairy/wheat/alcohol – whatever you want to eliminate for health)
- Thought I might want to believe: Life without processed sugar is sweet.
- Thoughts that help me bridge the gap: When I binge on sugar, I feel sick. I don’t like feeling sick. I would love to feel healthy and vibrant every day! Lots of people live without processed sugars. Fruit tastes sweeter when I don’t eat sugary treats. I don’t need sugar, I just choose it because I like the way it tastes. I could choose to cut back on my sugar intake. Eating sugar is optional. I can experiment with snacks that don’t include processed sugar. If I look on Google, I can probably find hundreds of recipes for desserts that don’t need processed sugar. When I cut back on sugar in the past, I felt better. I’m willing to try 24 hours without sugar.
Example # 2 –
- Current limiting belief: I hate to exercise.
- Thought I might want to believe: I love the way I feel when I move my body!
- Thoughts that help me bridge the gap: Exercise does not mean I have to go to the gym. There are lots of ways to move a body that I haven’t tried yet. I used to enjoy dancing. I could try dancing for 3 to 5 minutes a day. I want to feel strong. If I think about moving my body I might be inspired to go for a walk. Exercise is good for my health. I want to take care of myself and feel healthy. I could choose something easy and start small. I can probably find something fun on YouTube that will inspire me to move. Some people love to exercise.
Example # 3 –
- Current limiting belief: I have to make the right choice.
- Thought I want to believe: I won’t miss anything that’s meant for me.
- Thoughts that help me bridge the gap:
Training Wheels
When we first begin shifting thoughts, it can be challenging to find those baby-step laddering thoughts we are reaching for. When that’s the case, training wheels can be helpful.
- I am learning to…
- I am getting better at…
- My intention is to…
- Won’t it be wonderful when…
- Why is it so easy to…
Let’s say the ideal thought we would like to believe is, “I voice my opinion with confidence.”If up until now we have believed that we have no right to speak up, training wheels can help a great deal.
- I am learning to speak my mind.
- I am getting better at speaking my mind.
- My intention is to speak my mind.
- Won’t it be wonderful when I feel free to speak my mind?
- Why is it so easy to speak my mind?
You get to choose the training wheels that work best for you. Choose ones that allow you to believe the thought, so when you think it, read it, practice it, you will move up the ladder toward where you want to be.
Choosing new thoughts that move us gently from the vibration we have been practicing, to the vibration to which we would LIKE to become accustomed is a process. It won’t happen overnight. It won’t happen at all if we don’t make time to practice. It takes intention to change the emotions we create.
I want each of you to know that we do not HAVE to stay in fear, anger, frustration, or self-doubt. There is a way to choose something that makes us feel better. We each get to decide if feeling better is worth our efforts.
Grow on!
What belief are you currently holding that you will benefit from changing?
Use the following template to play with new beliefs!
- Current limiting belief:
- Thought I want to believe:
- Thoughts that help me bridge the gap:
