Talk to Yourself

This beautiful Monday morning I want to share an extract from a comprehensive self-improvement book that I've found useful in my life.

In this extract, you'll learn how to talk to yourself to improve your health.

Whoa!

The book's title is Five Steps to Personal Power and was written by a psychologist named Patrick Ryan.

Here's what Dr. Ryan has to say about self talk...

Even though there are twenty-four hours in a day, I don't believe that all time is created equal. I am convinced that what happens to us during both the first and last ten minutes of each day is inordinately important.

An athlete would not dream of starting a physical activity without first stretching and warming up. Similarly, we need to psychologically stretch and warm up each morning before starting our day. Following is the psychological warm-up that I use every morning.

Wake-Up Stretch

Set your alarm clock for five minutes before you actually need to get out of bed. Or, better, eliminate the need for alarm clocks by learning to auto-suggest a wake-up time when you go to bed at night. In any case, it is important to wake up gently, without feeling rushed. Before you get out of bed, ask (and answer) these three questions:

What do I have to be thankful for?

What do I have to look forward to today?

What can I do today to move me closer to my goals?

If you wake up in the morning and ask a question like "Oh God, another day: why me, Lord?" the super-computer will spend the rest of the day validating those questions. But the opposite is also possible. If you ask questions like, "What do I have to look forward to today?" the super-computer will make every attempt to validate that question. So the choice is really yours: you can either program your super-computer with garbage, or program it with empowering thoughts and questions.

Morning Pep Talk/Mirror Talk

This technique is simple, yet so very powerful, if you try it for even one week, I bet you will see results. Within the first fifteen minutes each morning, put yourself in front of a mirror. Your morning Pep-Talk should be very brief (10-15 seconds), should have some humor in it, and should be positive. You should also make certain that you establish unbroken eye contact with yourself in the mirror.

A sample morning Pep-Talk might go something like this: "Good morning, you good-looking devil. This is going to be a fabulous day, and I'm going to make the most of it. I am really looking forward to working on that project today. I'll be unbeatable."

Another idea is to use a water-soluble pen to write an inspirational or motivational word, sentence, or short quote on your mirror. This kind of "mirror talk" is a surprisingly powerful method to program your super-computer in a positive way.

Note from Chet: I use many of the simple but highly effective self-improvement techniques found in Dr. Ryan's Five Steps to Personal Power and I bet you'd find them helpful too.

Oh, if you have a self-improvement tip you'd like to share, scroll down a bit to the "Comments" link and give it a click and then type away to your heart's content.

Chet "I Talk to Myself Constantly" Day
Editor, The Natural Health Circus
http://chetday.com/blog