The power of thought has a great influence on our feelings and our behavior. In this article you will learn what research says about it and how you can benefit from the power of thought.
In many cultures there are proverbs that make the power of thoughts clear. This Chinese proverb is just one example:
“Pay attention to your thoughts, because they become words. Watch your words, for they become actions. Pay attention to your actions because they become habits. Watch your habits, for they become your character. Watch your character, for it becomes your destiny.”
In this article we explain how your thoughts influence you and how you can use this effect positively for yourself.
The power of thoughts: how they influence perception and feelings
(Photo: CC0 / Pixabay / Free-Photos)
To understand the power of thoughts, you first need to understand how thoughts work and what impact they have on your life.
Yours subjective perception becomes strong through yours Experiences, feelings and thoughts embossed. These factors influence each other and result in your behavior. Various studies have shown how the power of thought manifests itself in everyday life:
- As part of a investigation students should remember situations in which they acted morally correct or unethically. Subjects who remembered a dubious act subsequently perceived the room darker than those who remembered good deeds.
- In a similar one attempt subjects should remember a moment when they felt socially excluded, others at a situation in which they were involved. Subsequently, members of the first group felt that the room was clear as the second group.
It is important to differentiate between feelings and emotions. According to the neuroscientist Antonio Damasio are emotions reactions of our body. They arise unconsciously, in response to external influences. For example, if you encounter a growling dog in a dark alley, your heart may start to beat faster while your hands become sweaty. The feeling of fear, however, only arises in the brain when it perceives the emotions.
So we cannot prevent the emotion itself. Of course, negative thoughts will always come up. But if you consciously perceive and think about it, you can influence your feelings and thus your behavior. If you recognize them as they are emerging, you should not fight them, but give them less importance. Then negative thoughts often resolve themselves.
Use the power of thought: therapy or exercises
(Photo: CC0 / Pixabay / lograstudio)
The cognitive behavioral therapy or “cognitive behavioral therapy” is a form of psychotherapy that works with the power of thought. This form of therapy assumes that the way we think determines how we feel and behave. In this way we should be able to influence our well-being through our thoughts.
According to meta studies, cognitive behavioral therapy is very efficient form of therapy. However, it needs to be examined more closely. There are missing e.g. Studies for treatments of children and the elderly.
Also without therapy you can use the power of thought for yourself. To do this, you have to recognize that you can direct your thoughts. Use them consciously as your tool instead of letting them control you.
There are several ways to become aware of your thoughts. These include, among others Mindfulness exercises and Breathing exercises. But it can also help certain yoga and yoga techniques To learn meditation.
A simple meditation technique works for example as follows:
- Find a quiet room and sit upright and comfortably.
- Concentrate on your breath.
- Was aware of thoughts. But don’t hold on to it, let it go.
If you observe your thoughts without any value, you can better decide how you react to them. You will also learn to understand yourself better.
Think positive: advantages and how you learn it
(Photo: CC0 / Pixabay / jarmoluk)
If you are aware of the power of thoughts, you can actively influence them. Because positive thoughts can improve your life on many levels.
A comprehensive one study The Boston University School of Medicine concluded that optimists live longer. To this end, the researchers evaluated and compared data from various long-term studies. They also came to the following conclusions:
- People with a positive mindset set more goals and have greater self-confidence.
- Optimists can better control their feelings and behavior even in difficult situations.
- They take better care of their health, smoke less and consume less alcohol.
Pessimists can also become optimists because: Think positive you can learn.
Language is an important tool for this. Researchers at the University of Vienna came to the conclusion that we can perceive the same event differently, depending on how we classify it linguistically and thus mentally.
With the help of positive affirmations or Auto suggestion you can establish new thought patterns. You repeat a positively phrased phrase over and over to restructure your subconscious and to polish positively. When you face a difficult task, sentences like “I can never do it” can hinder you. Instead, the following sentence can help, for example: “I grow with my tasks and can master any challenge.”
What negative thoughts can do
(Photo: CC0 / Pixabay / StockSnap)
It can often help to recognize negative thoughts and not to judge you for them. Instead of annoying yourself and reproaching yourself, you can say to yourself: “It’s okay to have negative thoughts sometimes.” Or: “I can get annoyed too.”
It is only important that you do not cling to negative feelings. It’s not about controlling your thoughts perfectly. Concentrate on your process: See small achievements as such, be aware of your own development and be proud of yourself.
This approach is important because: Even negative thoughts have power. A study with over 30,000 participants has shown that brooding, i.e. negative circles of thought, as well as self-reproach are the main causes of many mental illnesses. Depression or anxiety disorders are therefore not primarily caused by traumatic experiences. It is much more important how we deal with these experiences and how we classify them.
In the case of a serious mental illness, it is not enough to replace negative thoughts with positive thoughts that you yourself do not believe. People suffering from anxiety disorders or strong Self-doubt can suffer from positive affirmations vacuum feel set. First of all, you should seek professional help for yourself or an affected person. A therapist can find out what therapy a patient needs.
Read more on Techzle.com:
- Body positivity: 5 steps to more self-love
- Intuition: where the unconscious comes from and why it is important
- Law of Attraction: This is how it should work