The Power of Right Thinking

Self-depreciation never won a single battle of life. It has, on the contrary, killed ambition, weakened the will, and incapacitated thousands from noble work. Many people have spent their whole life with a negative character and outlook. The daily, and perhaps hourly, streams of false suggestions pouring into their minds overwhelm them. Many tormented by fear and timidity do not realize how a flood of negative thoughts daily affect them. They hedge themselves in with suggestions of limitation, incapacity, and unworthiness. They constantly think not of how they will succeed, but of how they will surely fail. In developing the habit of positive thinking--of seeing only the best in yourself and others--of regarding yourself as capable of great things--it is well to bear in mind that our thoughts really make us what we are. What you did yesterday makes you what you are today, and what you do today determines what you will be tomorrow. Suppose you put these practical questions to yourself: -Does negative thinking pay? -Is it desirable for me to encourage thoughts in my mind that break down, hinder, and incapacitate me for good work? -Do I want negative thoughts that inevitably bring discontent, unhappiness, and ultimate failure in their train? Your answer will be, of course, that you do not want them. But such thoughts work insidiously, and will find an entrance into your mind if you are not extremely vigilant. The surest way to keep them out, however, is to fill the mind completely with vital positive thoughts, to think constantly of yourself as a person of unlimited possibilities, growing daily in mental and spiritual power, equipped for great things, and moving forward toward a triumphant destiny. The habit of right thinking, when firmly established, becomes a source of attraction. Good thoughts soon become great thoughts, and the mature mind attempts even the impossible. The power of a single thought at the beginning of a day can hardly be estimated. It can change despondency into hope, and fear into courage. It can arm the nerve for great and noble deeds. It can strengthen a weak and timid. It is possible for it to set in motion an influence that will reach the ends of the world. An excellent way to furnish the mind with material for right thinking is to commit to memory some of the sayings of great people and to ponder them at leisure. This assists in establishing a standard of truth, and at the same time furnishes the mind with many nourishing and useful thoughts. Here are some examples: "The confidence which we have in ourselves gives birth to much of that which we have in others.''--La Rochefoucauld. "Courage in danger is half the battle."--Plautus. "We should not let others do our thinking for us. Our individuality is too precious to be so sacrificed."--unknown A person who thinks right has reason to feel proud and walks abroad with "the sparkle in their eye." There is no weakness, no timidity, no hesitation, since to them - right is might. They have learned to make their thoughts selective, by aid of which they take the good and reject the bad. They know, too, how to fit each thought into its proper place, make correct inferences, and form well-considered judgments. This clear and positive thinking is constructive in its character; it builds new power and discloses ever-widening fields of usefulness. Wrong or negative thinking is destructive; it produces nothing but paralysis, fear, hopelessness, and heartrending failure. Right thinking means cheerful thinking. It means that you are an intellectual optimist, who sees nothing but good in yourself and in those around you. Your thoughts go out to clarify and brighten the lives of others. How shall you exclude fear thought from his life? Certainly not by affirming such sentences as "I have no fear," "I am not weak," "I do not lack ability," "I am not a failure." Remembering that only positive thoughts are constructive, you will avoid even the use of negative symbols as "weak," "fear," "lack," "failure." You will say, rather, "I am self-confident," "I am strong," "I am able," "I am a success." These affirmations will be made both silently and audibly, always with deep conviction and earnestness. Remember, however, that these affirmations must be confirmed by actual performance. When you say "I am courageous," you must demonstrate it in your daily life. You may say "I am hopeful, powerful, buoyant, cheerful," but if you then proceed to sit down in a corner by yourself and bemoan your fate, you are simply deluding yourself. It is not sufficient that you believe what you affirm; you must be it, live it, and act it. Everyone who aspires to right and lofty thinking should shut the door of their mind against negative thoughts as they would against the bitterest foes. Negative thoughts work their way cunningly, by plausible excuse and subterfuge, until they hold you in their death-like grasp. They subdue, discourage, weaken, intimidate, and at last brand their victim as a failure and outcast. To harbor negative thoughts in your mind is to entertain an enemy. Right thinking constructs, strengthens, and ennobles. It knows no limitations, and reaches out daily for new conquests. It is a power unto itself, growing through its own use. Our habits of thought must be governed by fixed principles. One clear-cut, positive suggestion made in good time may frighten off a thousand petty negative thoughts. The thing we repeat frequently enough in our mind comes to acquire undisputed authority. We should not seek to perform some one great act of courage, but courageously perform all acts, however small, of our every-day life. Pascal says: "Let us persist in our aim to think right, and to do right, knowing that "true courage consists in long persevering patience. Let us more earnestly direct our thought toward the lofty and sublime. Above all let us seek the best sources of inspiration, that the great thoughts of other men may become our thoughts, and that we may rise into the fullness of our rich inheritance."