How do you STAY in the groove?

[jawillie]

This has probably been asked a million times before, so here is 1,000,001.

How do you stay in that positive-mind-set-groove?

I am trying to make meditation a daily practice but I haven't been successful with that.

I try to listen to Dr. Dyer's Power of Intention, but after the tenth time it has lost some of it's luster and I don't want to keep buying new inspiration.

I am pretty positive, I really am. BUT... every day kinda gets in the way sometimes, doesn't it? I mean, I work for a living (for now this is true and I can't just quit) so just trying to stay in the right frame of mind is HARD.

I have totally lost focus on what I was trying to do a few weeks ago and it all feels impossible to me again. I am not trying to make a million bucks pop into my life as I have way too many issues with thinking how that could be possible.

So what do I want? I have no clue! How can I NOT know what I want to make happen in my life? UGH!!

Any suggestions?

[Lil Chris]

I sometimes struggle with this as well (not knowing what I want), I'm getting much better though. Anytime I think of something now, I try and ask myself, IS THIS WHAT I WANT...? If not i'll refocus back on what I DO WANT...

One thing that has helped is looking at it from the standpoint of, what am I interested in... This help me keep better focus on what to think about.

[pc99]

Originally Posted by jawillie

I am pretty positive, I really am. BUT... every day kinda gets in the way sometimes, doesn't it? I mean, I work for a living (for now this is true and I can't just quit) so just trying to stay in the right frame of mind is HARD.

I have totally lost focus on what I was trying to do a few weeks ago and it all feels impossible to me again. I am not trying to make a million bucks pop into my life as I have way too many issues with thinking how that could be possible.

So what do I want? I have no clue! How can I NOT know what I want to make happen in my life? UGH!!

Any suggestions?

I have found that most people are really looking for joy & happiness. Of course, there are lots of 'things' that could bring this. However, I would suggest when you find yourself at a crossroads like this, to just focus on the feelings you want. Don't get distracted with the specifics.

You also mentioned trying to get into the frame of mind isn't always easy. When this happens to me I just start singing a song I made up. Only has 2 lines and I keep repeating it over and over and BINGO I’m in the mood I want to be in again.

Hope this helps.

Good luck.

[cylon]

Originally Posted by Lil Chris

Anytime I think of something now, I try and ask myself, IS THIS WHAT I WANT...?

That's simple and powerful. When you ask what you want you could get mulitple ideas, doing this just cuts right through the BS. It's easy to get sidetracked and go down several paths at once.

This would be a good thing to just ask in general.

[Acting Like Godot]

Originally Posted by jawillie

How do you stay in that positive-mind-set-groove?

I think it is an ongoing challenge. But then we human beings do also tend to overcomplicate matters. Sometimes the solutions are simple and straightforward and staring at us in the face.

For me, the straightforward way to deal with anxiety, stress and worry is just to exercise. I go running for 20 - 30 minutes. The more anxiety I have, the faster I run. I burn off the negative energy and when I finish running, I feel better.

Also listening to music is another simple way to cheer myself up.

[RT Wolf]

Our thoughts and moods are often not our own, however we can learn to take control over them. You basically want to enhance subjective well-being, anf i you look into the study of positive psychology, you can find correlates to it. Certain simple habits help, including:

- reading good books
- meditation
- excersizing regularly
- sleeping regularly
- eating healhily
- Thinking the right way

If you've been following the Raw food trial of Pavlina, he reports occasional euphoric experiences. THat sounds like a good groove ot be in.



Wrote about my recent 30-day excersizing trial:

Mind-Manual » Sometimes the best things in life are simple

[Vee]

Just keep on going.

Sometimes i fall off the path and get frustrated - but that's ok. Release it and carry on.

[dancer]

I've had some results with asking for guidance before going to sleep. When sending my intention I also ask for the answers to be clear and easily understood. The answers normally come in dreams and take no analysis to understand.

Something I noticed in your post was that you are "trying" a lot. Trying for me makes it harder, I'm experimenting with making a consious choice to "be". That's working better for me.

[quin]

I find writing down things that I am grateful for really shifts my mindset.

[LoveFreedom]

Here is my five cents...

On one of the Ester's CDs I heard her say (channeling Abraham) "there is so much delishousness in the wanting". Took me a while to understand it thorougly. But it proved to be one of the most important lessons for me.

Some time ago, working towards my PhD, I was dreaming of a post doctoral 'nirvana' and fulfillment. But when I finished, I felt goal-less and totally lost. My iron (life flow?) went down and so did my energy levels. I improved my diet eating foods packed with nutritional goodness (mainly fruit and veggies, a lot of greens!) and ... nothing! I didn't enjoy my work either, but that's a different story.

I was too anxious about getting to the finish line rather than enjoying research and writing my thesis. Pity, now it feels like a wasted opportunity, but also a valuable lesson!

It took me a while to really get what Abraham was on about. I feel that being too anxious to 'get there' plays a huge part in our inability to enjoy life 'now'. And when we get there, we need another goal to keep us alive. So really, we can never get there totally. So it's not really about getting there but about enjoying the process.

Knowing that helps me a lot with 'feeling down' and seem to keep me 'up' most of the time.

Here is a longer quote from Abraham. Hope it helps Jawillie,


"Celebrate the desire that is within you, and stop cursing the fact that it isn't fulfilled! It is the desire that is within you that is worth everything -- it is life itself! You keep thinking that it must be manifested before you can feel good, and that is backwards. The fact that it exists is the reason for the Life Force.

There isn't anything that you want or have ever wanted, or anybody has ever wanted or ever will want that is for any other reason than this: You want it because you think, in the having of it, you will feel better. And we are here to say to you, you want it because in the wanting of it, Life Force is summoned through you -- and you are more alive. You are in the flow.

Being In The Flow is having goals that cause Energy to flow through you. It is being in such a place of expectation and acceptance of your eternal motion forward, that you are eternally in the flow. So people say, "How are you doing?" And you say, "Great!" And they say, "Well, is there anything not going well with you?" And you say, "Everything always goes well with me!" And they say, "Oh, but I see there are all these things incomplete in your experience." And you say, "Yeah, isn't it great? That means I'm still alive. I still have wanting, I'm still summoning life. That means I still have the future ahead of me. That means Life Force is still flowing."

Have you ever found yourself eating an ice cream cone and wanting to make it last? Do you find yourself ever in a sexual interlude or in a delicious book, wanting it to last? You can tell you're getting to the end of it, and you don't want it to be over? You know that feeling of savoring? That's the way we're wanting you to be with your goals. And that may be why you're not so eager to get on with the completion of everything. You're recognizing that you have all of this life before you -- so much wonderful stuff to do -- never getting it done. "

[RT Wolf]

^ Science agrees with much of what you said. Our joy systems are hooked up into our exploratory systems which are activated by goals. Incentive motivation (wanting what we want) feels a lot better than consumptive motivation (having what we want). Human beings are also need big goals to believe in and it makes people sooooo much happier who have goals, because we're goal-oriented, action-oriented creatures. That means, indeed, that the journey is the best part, not necessarily the achievement. You also get used to the achievement very easily and very shortly after the achievement is done.

[cylon]

I'm experimenting with making everything I do a goal. But it's not just big goals. Taking the time to meditate--goal achieved. Writing out my intentions and re-writing them (I like to re-write them word for word every day, somehow the act of writing on paper the same ideas helps them to sink in more, it's also a form of visualization)--goal achieved. Spend some time praciticing piano--goal achieved. Watch a James Bond movie--goal acheived.


Somehow I keyed into this, that goals are the answer. And if everything is a goal, it's easy to stay in the moment, because EVERYTHING you are doing, is a fulfillment of a goal. Big or small. They are all the same.

If that makes sense. It seems to be working so far.

[jawillie]

Originally Posted by RT Wolf

Our thoughts and moods are often not our own, however we can learn to take control over them. You basically want to enhance subjective well-being, anf i you look into the study of positive psychology, you can find correlates to it. Certain simple habits help, including:

- reading good books
- meditation
- excersizing regularly
- sleeping regularly
- eating healhily
- Thinking the right way

If you've been following the Raw food trial of Pavlina, he reports occasional euphoric experiences. THat sounds like a good groove ot be in.



Wrote about my recent 30-day excersizing trial:

Mind-Manual » Sometimes the best things in life are simple

I can definitely relate to this. I started exercising regularly and eating healthy back in Setptember. It really has helped!

I just have one area of my life that is draining me.... it's my career and I am not sure how to change it at this point. But, perhaps if I keep in the groove in all other areas I can see the way soon.

[jawillie]

Originally Posted by dancer

I've had some results with asking for guidance before going to sleep. When sending my intention I also ask for the answers to be clear and easily understood. The answers normally come in dreams and take no analysis to understand.

Something I noticed in your post was that you are "trying" a lot. Trying for me makes it harder, I'm experimenting with making a consious choice to "be". That's working better for me.

Yup. You are right. Would it be wrong if I said I would "try to BE" more?? Like I said above I am just getting MAJOR frustration from one area of my life. I know it's time to make a change but darn, I just don't know to what or how!

[dancer]

Originally Posted by jawillie

Yup. You are right. Would it be wrong if I said I would "try to BE" more?? Like I said above I am just getting MAJOR frustration from one area of my life. I know it's time to make a change but darn, I just don't know to what or how!

When I read "try to "BE" more", it made me laugh cause I thought you meant you were trying to exist in the context of exist = be. So, I guess if you put your question in that context "trying" doesn't quite fit.

Ýou are working for a living... If you could work for fun, what would you be doing? Can you combine that with what you are doing now? Or use it as a means to get you to the fun stuff. What does your current employment represent to you?

[Danyelle]

I just want to say thank you to the OP and everyone who offered the helpful suggestions above.

I am in the same boat as the OP and this thread really helped me get some perspective and good ideas on how to get myself back in the groove.

Thanks again to all!

[MmeIntentional]

Originally Posted by Acting Like Godot

For me, the straightforward way to deal with anxiety, stress and worry is just to exercise. I go running for 20 - 30 minutes. The more anxiety I have, the faster I run. I burn off the negative energy and when I finish running, I feel better.

Also listening to music is another simple way to cheer myself up.

Yep I do 35 mins jogging 2-3 times a week and other workouts. I don't really like doing it but I feel sooooooo good after.

Also because I spend all day indoors I do find it hard sometimes to pick myself up so I do go out for a walk and since Dec I've been writing my goals first thing in the morning and last thing at night.

I do highly recommend doing some sort of excerise every day for a min of 20 mins.

[Adrian]

For me, it's positive, uplifting quotes that make me think about my mission and life. I don't know why, but it's the most effective way to give me a positive mindset, no matter what I'm going through. I especially like this site, World of Inspiration, it always gives me a boost.

[attracta]

If you're not sure what you want, make a quick list of what you don't want, then beside each entry write down what the opposite of that would be. This can give you a better idea of what you DO want.

Sometimes we just have to be patient until a strong desire comes to us. In the mean time you can focus on gratitude for all the great things you already have (that always helps). Don't worry about it too much if your a little unfocused right now--we ALL go through that sometimes, and it always works out.