When most people hear the words “toxic” or “pollution,” they most likely relate these terms with the toxins or pollutants in the environment. But do you ever relate these terms to the human mind?
Quite similar to the Earth’s surface, the human mind can become polluted with toxic thoughts that can be detrimental to one’s self-esteem and sense of self-worth. However, by recognizing triggers that cause you to think negatively, you can learn to purify your thoughts and break negative thought patterns.
Tip No. 1: Check your surroundings and your thought patterns.
Whenever you begin to catch yourself polluting your mind with toxic thoughts, stop and evaluate your surroundings. What were you just doing? Who were you just talking to? What made you begin to think this negative thought?
Often people unknowingly continue to place themselves in situations that cause them emotional stress and, in turn, trigger negative thoughts. By evaluating your surroundings, you can understand the causes of these thought patterns.
With this newfound understanding of what environments or circumstances cause you to think negatively, you can work on new approaches to removing these situations from your life. If you constantly and unknowingly put yourself in these situations, your time and emotions are exhausted by negative toxic energy.
If possible, completely remove yourself from these situations beforehand so that you will not have to deal with the harmful repercussions. If you cannot withdraw yourself from these circumstances, try brainstorming new approaches to combat the negative thoughts. Perhaps you will have to go into these situations with a new and more positive mindset to help get you through the negativity unharmed.
Tip No. 2: Know that you are in charge of your own thoughts.
Often people do not recognize that at the end of the day, what they think is their choice and their responsibility. Nobody can physically implant thoughts into your mind, or tell you what to think. You, ultimately, have the power to decide what thoughts race through your mind.
Although others cannot physically control what you think, your surroundings and individuals in them can heavily influence your thoughts. However, as mentioned in the first tip, by recognizing what toxic environments cause you to think negatively about yourself, you can exercise your free will and remove yourself from those environments.
Even if it is impossible to physically remove yourself from a toxic environment, you are in control of your mental state, and you can shift your mindset from negative to positive. By choosing to see the situation for what it is and by not allowing yourself to fall into its negative trap, you can train your mind to repel negativity.
Tip No. 3: You can reformat your thoughts in a positive fashion.
You are in control of your own thoughts, as mentioned in tip no.2, and therefore, you can train yourself to think positively. Once you recognize what circumstances cause you to think pessimistically, you can train yourself to break the negative pattern.
Whenever you begin to notice that you are thinking negative thoughts about yourself, such as: “I’m not good enough,” “I can’t do this,” or “I’m not smart enough,” you can reformat those thoughts into optimistic thoughts.
For example, “I’m not good enough” can be reformatted to “I am strong and capable of handling this task,” or “I can’t do this” can be shifted to “I am doing the best that I can.”
Although it seems slightly strange to talk yourself out of negative thoughts, it is part of a training process to help your mind weed out the negativity. Negative thinking can become a habitual pattern, and it is up to you to make the choice to break that pattern.
