Dr. Amen's ANT's

I reviewed the book, Change Your Brain, Change Your Life, by Daniel G. Amen, M.D., in my October 24 post. Today I'd like to focus on one of Dr. Amen's ANT's that he mentions in the book. ANT is his acronym for Automatic Negative Thought. We all have them, and we need to learn to talk back to them.

ANT's go by other names, too. Maybe you've heard them called Negative Self-Talk. In the coaching community, I've heard them called "The Itty Bitty Sh%#ty Committee in Your Head." I love that one...it's a bit longer, but equally memorable! :-)

For this post, I'd like to talk about the ANT that Dr. Amen calls "Fortune Telling." I'll use a little fiction here to convey the idea. Let's suppose there's a woman sitting in a coffee shop waiting to meet a guy she's been corresponding with by email for six weeks. He looks normal in his photo, and there have been no red flags in his daily emails. In fact, he seems to be quite funny and bright.

But as she waits for him to arrive, she gets nervous, and she starts into a downward spiral of Fortune Telling.... Maybe he used someone else's photo. Maybe he's a knuckle-dragging neanderthal male chauvinist pig! Maybe he lied about not owning any reptiles. Who knows what else he'll lie about?? Yikes! That scuzzy guy who just walked in must be him! Thank goodness this place has a back door. I'm outta here!

As you can guess, this woman isn't going to meet many men with her negative predictions for the future!

Check in with yourself. Are you harboring negative predictions for the future? Dr. Amen suggests countering the ANT's with thoughts of the opposite. So our fictional friend might try.... Maybe he's even better-looking in person! In six weeks' worth of emails, he always sounded like a good, honest guy. That's why I agreed to meet him here in the first place. Wow! Here he comes now. I'm glad I got up the nerve to do this!

You get the idea.... :-)

As I mentioned in the book review (10/24 post), be sure to check out Dr. Amen's site at http://www.amenclinics.com to see some amazing functional brain scans!

How do YOU keep the Fortune-Telling ANT's at bay? Please stop by the comments section and let us know!

Thanks,
Susan

P.S. 'Looking for some reasonably priced holiday gifts? Contact me at scleaver@dejazzd.com or 610-385-3766 to inquire about my two products, The Whispering Heart: A Guided Journal for Body, Mind, and Spirit, and Food for Thought: Delicious Quotes on the Law of Attraction [gift-boxed in a pastel Chinese take-out box; includes two fortune cookies; NO ANT's! :-) ].

***All of Susan's creative4life posts are copyright of Susan Cleaver.***

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What We Gain from Losing Our Clutter

My Latest Decluttering Report and Two Resources for You

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I'm Half-Way to My Goal of 100 Clutter-Zapping Hours! I logged 11 hours since my last check-in for a total of 50 hours in 4 months. I've done most of this in 30-minute segments and even some 15-minutes segments (when I'm feeling tired, overwhelmed, or under motivated). Using small blocks of time is key for my success. 50 hours is the equivalent of one work week of 10-hour days. I can confidently say I would not have had success with that format!

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Here's What I'm Gaining as I Lose My Clutter:

~More space to create.

~Visual calm.

~A feeling of being on top of things.

~Order.

~Space for new things to come into my life; room to grow as a person.

~Better organizing habits.

~An opportunity to be a better role model.

~Better energy...for my space and for me. (Four months ago, the bamboo plant on my desk was languishing, despite having adequate sunlight and water. Now it has three new sprouts of growth on it!)

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Check Out These Two Great Sources of Info and Inspiration!

~When Organizing Isn't Enough: SHED Your Stuff, Change Your Life, by Julie Morgenstern (hardcover or audiobook). This book is a valuable resource for folks in transition, whether the change is welcome or unwelcome.

~www.RealSimpleRealLife.com This site features inspiring before-and-after photos and practical tips.

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Please drop by the comments section and share your organizing success stories!

Thanks,

Susan

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P.S. This blog has an alter ego! It's my light and inspiring bimonthly snail-mail newsletter, "Susan, Unplugged....Your 'Slow-Tech' Source for Creative and Healthy Living Tips." It's complimentary within the US. To request it, contact me by email, snail-mail, or phone: scleaver@dejazzd.com, P.O. Box 586, Douglassville, PA 19518-0586, USA, or 610-385-3766.

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***All of Susan's creative4life posts are copyright of Susan Cleaver.***

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Get the "How" Out of There!

Are you interested in deliberately applying the Law of Attraction, but confused by experts saying that you must let go of "how" you think your intention will manifest? I found a news story that illustrates this point perfectly.

A man named Bobby Guffey from Indiana had been buying state lottery tickets since 1989. From then up until this past August, he had only won about $5,000 in all that time. He clearly had an intention to win, and his "how" was to use the exact same sequence of numbers that had personal meaning to him every time he bought a ticket.

Up to that point, the question, "So, how's that workin' for ya?" may have been met with a scowl from Mr. Guffey! However, one day last August, he forgot his glasses, and he accidentally let go of his "how" by entering one of the digits wrong while buying his ticket.

When he saw his "mistake" later, he went back and bought another ticket for his usual number.

The results? His usual number won him $1,000 that day. Not a bad haul. But the "wrong" ticket won him three million dollars!

Moral of the story: Let go. Trust. And get the "how" out of there!

If you know a story that also illustrates this point, please share it with my readers and me in the comments section. Thanks!

My best to you,
Susan

P.S. Email me at scleaver@dejazzd.com to set up a complimentary trial coaching session by phone or in person. Your responsibilities? Show up or call in on time and bring an open mind!

***All of Susan's creative4life posts are copyright of Susan Cleaver.***

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