Gratitude: Your Secret Weapon to Fight Every Kind of Negative Thinking

If there were a magic pill that would solve all your problems, would you take it? Well, there is a way of thinking that lifts up our lives, and is easy to swallow as well. Whether you are fighting depression, stress, or feelings of lack, deep gratitude is your best defense.

In 1910, Wallace Wattles wrote, "Gratitude alone can lead our minds back toward the source of all things." "Gratitude alone" can mean "only gratitude" can lead us back, or it can mean "gratitude all by itself."
Both ideas are worth exploring. Only gratitude has such power to short circuit our negative thoughts, and redirect us from wallowing in self pity, or our imagined fears. And only gratitude can draw us away from concentrating on what we don't have, and open ourselves up to what might be.
When we are dealing with stress, or feeling unable to attract money into our lives, we become stuck in our current situation.
Wattles explains that without gratitude, "you cannot long keep from dissatisfied thought regarding things as they are." Good Vibe Coach Jeannette Maw calls this "being addicted to reality." We hang on so tightly to our problems that we allow no room for the happiness we really want. Our dissatisfied thoughts imagine our only future as just more of today. And we continue repeating the same negative emotions and ideas.
It's not hard to be thankful for good things. But sometimes, we just forget. So we need to cultivate our awareness of our blessings. There is not a moment in our lives that doesn't have something good in it. We need to seek those things out and be grateful. Wattles wrote:

"Cultivate the habit of being grateful for every good thing that comes to you: and to give thanks continuously. And because all things have contributed to your advancement, you should include all things in your gratitude."
The writings of every major faith emphasize gratitude. There are Sutras of gratitude, it is part of Islam, and St. Paul wrote, "in everything give thanks." The benefits all return to us.
But how can we give thanks when everything seems out of control? First, recognize that today's turmoil may be tomorrow's blessing. After all, who has not had a failed romance that seemed like the end of the world, only to realize later that escaping it was the best thing that could have happened?
Keep little disasters in perspective. Think of families who have lost everything in a tornado or other tragedy. We see them smile tearfully because they are so grateful that their loved ones are still alive. And it is their gratitude that will enable them to rebuild. Can we do less?
So, look around you. What can you be grateful in this moment? Then in an hour or so, ask yourself again. And again. Until it hits you, that you are grateful for it all.

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Thinking Against The Herd Can Often Achieve Remarkable Results

Usually when the mass market is following a trend or an investment theme, those in at the inception have cashed in and already got out. Getting out before a change in sentiment is key. How do you judge when to take action against the herd?
Normally this requires three key skills:
1. Foresight
2. Intuition
3. Confidence
Foresight comes from using data and context to have the right information.
Then Information and analysis creates insight. But insight plus intelligence creates foresight. Unless you work at creating foresight, then going against the herd becomes a speculative gamble. A flip of a coin. It relies on getting your timing to perfection.
Intuition comes from combining your foresight with your experience to narrow in upon a change in course with a lower downside risk. Your intuition needs to guide your timing. And your principles and criteria for decision making need to remain highly consistent. This is about patience rather than emotion. It is about confidence rather than reckless courage.

Intuition with confidence leads to action. And action plus process creates new value. Confidence comes from knowing when is the right time to take action. It comes from being consistent again, about your strategy. As if you know that the aggregate total of all of your actions, even when you have misjudged your timing, will yield a valuable, positive outcome.
So acting against the herd can get superior results.
In your career, this will always differentiate you. Set yourself apart from the pack and bring innovation. Make controversial but practical proposals. Be remembered as a thought leader with courage but pragmatic leadership qualities.
When investing, going against the herd can often yield better returns. Buying earnings and dividend yield on dips in the market is one strategy. Getting out of a momentum share or derivative instrument, before the herd, is the core skill. Once the desired return is achieved, profits would be taken. Better to get out before all of a growth trend is complete, than to get caught as a share price drops. This applies especially with Options trading Strategies.
So how do you apply the three key skills to get positive results? Act decisively. Never bemoan lost opportunities. Never fall in love with your assets. Start each new day ready to apply new foresight and not rest on the past. Follow your intuition. Have the confidence that the herd will always be slower to react than you will. Stick with your chosen strategy until you get the aggregate return you have set. But set a limit to stop your losses, if sometimes the charge of the herd is just too strong. Thinking Against The Herd will get better long-term results, particularly with options trading strategies.

Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/7788698

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