Do you sometimes find yourself getting caught in a negative thinking loop - a negative focus that induces a state of stuckness and throws you into a downward emotional spiral?

I get it. I've been there.

And the big thing I've learnt is this: it doesn’t matter how justified we are in our negative thoughts, how valid and reasonable those negative thoughts are.

Negative thoughts are never going to be helpful to us.

Perhaps there’s something you dislike about yourself.

The more you focus on what you don’t like, the more your focus is on the negative, the more those thoughts will make you feel bad - frustrated, irritated, angry, ashamed, sad...

To stop the negative looping, SPIN:

S - Stop fueling the negative. Consciously get your attention off your failings and what you don't like in your life. Stop talking, thinking and ruminating about it. 

P - Positively focus on what’s good instead. What do you like? List those things - write them down, think about them, and allow yourself to feel better.

I - Invert. What’s the flip side, the opposite of what you don’t like? Label it in a positive way. (So, if you think you’ve been ‘mean’, the opposite could be ‘generous’.)

N - Nourish that new thought. Consciously seek out and focus on times when it was true. (When have you been generous in your life?) Write those times down, think about them - and now let them enrich your intentions and actions. 

Catch yourself whenever you have a negative focus and consciously spin.  

Want more? Why not arrange a free and informal chat with me? Let's talk.