It Is Up to You to Make It Happen

The key to changing your mindset is to understand yourself. Having the belief that change is possible can better equip you for challenging tasks where dedication and effort make a difference in the formula for success. Some people falsely believe their intelligence and abilities are unchangeable, which is indicative of a fixed or rigid mindset that limits his or her ability to dig deep when discovering new things. Norman Vincent Peale, an American minister and author of the best-selling book The Power of Positive Thinking, once said, "Change your thoughts and change your world."

Wishing yourself into a new mindset will not work for most people. Try these strategies to make your self-talk work for you instead of against you:

• Your Thinking Needs Adjusting - Feeling stuck can invoke anger, apathy and other negative emotional responses when you fail to meet your goals.
• Flip the Switch Today - Don't allow the up-coming events in your day hold you back. Instead, think positively and control what you choose to think and feel.
• Believe in Change - A positive mindset promotes self-confidence, helps you manage your emotions, and allows you to see challenging situations as new opportunities.
• Stop Complaining - If you immerse yourself in positive thinking and personal growth, it will change your self-dialogue as well as how you see your challenges.
• Create Positive Affirmations - It is true that most people are given to making negative affirmations, when discussing new challenges. So, change your thoughts by creating positive affirmations to yourself like a sacred mantra.
• Set a Pace for Positive Results - Investing the time to work on your own development can be challenging but it is the only way to effectively manage the inevitable "ups and downs" that you will surely face.

If your goal is to make a major change in your life, it is easy to focus on all the external stuff. However, making a permanent change in your life starts with changing the way you see things internally. Simply stating that you want to break or change a habit will not make it so. To adopt a new habit, you first have to unlearn the old one and replace it with a new behavior. Reject goals that involve chasing a pot of gold at the end of the rainbow. When you are working hard to develop a growth mindset, be honest with yourself. Whitewashing your doubts with positive affirmations is a temporary fix, at best