Reframing, or altering negative thoughts and making them positive, can be a powerful self-help tool. Reframing requires that you learn to think differently. This enables you to see the brighter side of situations and experiences, so you can get the most, rather than the worst out of them. Once you have mastered the technique of reframing you will find you automatically adopt a positive attitude and attract positive experiences towards you.
The effect reframing has on positive thinking is big. Harnessing the power of seeing the world in a glass half-full, rather than half-empty, perspective can help you deal effectively with stressful situations. Thinking in this way also means you are likely to adopt healthy behavior patterns to match your mindset that will improve your life.
There are several ways you can apply reframing to help you cope better professionally and personally with relationships and challenges. Doing so will allow you to see the good in what happens to you and let go of bitterness, frustration and other negative thought patterns that left unchecked could become a habit.
Combining reframing with NLP, otherwise known as neuro linguistic programming, can make the result stronger than if you simply attempt to block out negative thoughts in favor of happier ones. Neuro linguistic programming uses language, or messages to the brain, to influence thoughts and behaviors and often uses visualization techniques to accompany positive brain messaging.
You can use this method of reframing to visualize a situation or thought that worries you. See a picture of your worries in your mind and imagine placing them onto a movie screen before sitting back and watching them as though they were a film. By doing this, you have already begun the process of distancing yourself from your anxiety.
As the movie plays, turn it into black and white, so that it further loses intensity. Then rewind the mind movie to the beginning, but this time alter it. Be in charge of making your own movie rather than letting it run. Make the outcome of any challenging anxiety you fear positive. Picture yourself as the main character in the film being happy, calm and wise. Imagine yourself dealing with any situation without fear and looking happy as you do so. Make all outcomes positive.
Once you have successfully achieved this, see the movie in color again. Hear sounds you would really hear if you were part of the movie. Bring all your senses back into play to heighten the experience. When you are ready, bring the movie screen closer to you in your minds eye until you can imagine walking into the film and encountering what is happening first hand.
The more you practice this method of reframing the easier it will become. Eventually doing so will be so simple that it can take place when you are going about your day, shopping, working, socializing or sitting quietly alone.
Reframing takes practice. Just as muscles learn how to move in particular ways due to repetitive behaviors, so do neural pathways. You can train your brain to respond favorably to situations and help you see the light at the end of any tunnel of your choosing if you keep working on reframing until it becomes second nature to you.
