Have you ever found yourself upset or worked up because you found yourself replaying something that happened in the recent or not-so-recent past?

It could be something that wasn’t fair to you, or you were wronged somehow by somebody.  Maybe someone said something that really offended you, or hurt you and you keep replaying it or reliving it again and again?

It is not pleasant to be inundated with random or intrusive thoughts or undesired memories. Those things can pop up into our heads and just ruin the mood or affect how we interact with family, friends, our team, or others we come in contact with. Without conscious effort and awareness, we can get stuck in a negative thought loop. 

It’s not worth the mental energy, productivity, or attention.  So here is what I learned and here are some thoughts that I would like to share with you today.  You probably heard that saying… You can’t really control your current thoughts, but you can choose the next one!  We can learn to take out those particular thoughts that don’t serve us. We can learn to choose and to focus on the right things.  This takes practice, building that habit, and working out that muscle.  Do not be discouraged if it doesn’t work right away.  As with most habits, this needs a little bit of repetition before it can stick and before you can see and feel the results. Notice that negative thought, acknowledge it, redirect it, or replace it with a positive and desirable thought, and keep repeating the process.

A few things I always remind myself of are:

 –The past is the past, and you can’t drive looking through the rearview mirror.  Look back only for lessons and for celebrations of achievements which will encourage you to do more and feed your confidence.

–Yesterday is gone, decide what you want to do today so both today and tomorrow will be better.

–Do not let anyone live in your head rent-free. Take control of your thoughts, attitude, your mood and don’t let anyone else pull those strings in your stead.

For the complete steps on how to keep moving forward “K M F”, listen to this specific episode of the Resilience Across Borders Podcast at:

Listen on Apple Podcasts/ iTunes: Click here for Episode 4 – Keep Moving Forward

Listen to Spotify: Click here for Episode 4 – Keep Moving Forward