Thinking on the surface may sound like a simple thing, but to change through patterns that we don’t care for takes work. Have you ever asked yourself…damn why do I keep doing that? Or, wow, something really has to change. It requires action. Actions that are different than the ones we’ve been doing. To not change actions yet expect a different result is a widely accepted definition of insanity. Changing actions takes conscious thinking. I stress conscious thinking and conscious action because I believe to act subconsciously is to live in the past. There are many books written and research done that supports this. Throughout this journey I’ll share those books with you and what areas helped me along with other books on other subjects.
Back to thinking and acting differently. This can sometimes be scary, it means stepping outside of your comfort zone and doing something different. Even to people who have already made major changes, changing something simple can potentially be scary.
For me the hardest step is the very first, recognizing that something specific needs to change. For me, this often requires another person letting me know the issue. My actions and decisions were so ingrained in me that I either didn’t know they were an issue or didn’t know I could change them. Next, I acknowledge the issue and decide if I want to change. If I want to change then the real work begins.
If I’m making a subconscious to conscious change I need to recognize when I’m making that subconscious decision. At first, I’ll usually recognize it after the fact and I’m able to analyze what just happened. I’m usually able to analyze a situation once and move on to correcting it. After analyzing I’m able to recognize the situation while it’s happening, instead of after, and I’m able to think about the decision I want to make. Pretty soon I’m able to recognize that potential issue before it ever plays out and approach it with a conscious mind, thinking and assessing.
Thinking consciously to make changes is just like any other habit. In the beginning, it takes time and a lot of effort and just like starting any habit it gets easier the more you do it. Eventually, there’s a tipping point and it becomes ingrained, second nature, something you’ll be lost without. Conscious thinking is a habit worth having!
When something becomes second nature to use we sometimes take it for granted, thinking its common sense. This is one of the reasons I created THINK3. Subconscious to conscious changes and thinking is almost second nature to me, almost. I’m at a beautiful spot with it where I know how powerful it is and I know it is not common sense. In his book, Outwitting the Devil by NapoleonHill, he suggests that only 2% of people live a desire, driven life. I’d agree the % is very low and I believe those people live and think consciously. I believe the % of people who live and think consciously is also pretty low.
What I’m saying is living/thinking consciously is not common sense and we should never take it for granted. Eventually I’ll have a forum section here but for now I encourage you to encourage others in whatever setting or platform you choose. Not everyone thinks, but they need to know they can.
Encouragement can be done in many ways. A major turning point in my life came from hearing that a book had been sent to me. Not receiving the book or reading it, without even knowing what it was about. Just simply knowing a book was sent, knowing who sent it and knowing what that person’s motivation was for sending it. It was a long time and quite a few ups and downs leading up to the book being sent, I gained a lot from that book which you’ll be able to read about soon in my “book section,” but for now I want to share how simply hearing that a book was sent transformed my life. A single act of encouragement! First I want to take a second to say thank you to my sister Melissa who started me down this journey. 7 years before the book came into play! And to Jason for sending me that book!
February 18th, 2015 I’m at P.S.I. Basic doing a guided relaxation meditation. For the first time in my life I glimpse how powerful the mind is. Using my mind I made my whole body fully relaxed. I was floating, (not literally). I hadn’t used heroin in about 6 weeks and I have just given myself the exact same feeling. This is huge. I have control! But this is just a glimpse, very early on. Fast forward…
I had been on the streets, using drugs, trying to avoid my 2nd time in prison. I haven’t talked to my family since about mid June, It’s now late August 2015. Today I found out I have to do 210 days in county for unpaid court fees and in 3 days I see another judge about a drug charge. I already know the options for the drug charge: 3 years intense probation or 1 year in prison. I weigh my options: 210 days country plus 3 years of probation or 1 year in prison and the country time is counted along with it. It’s a no brainer…prison. This led to one of the most profound experiences of my life less than a week after getting to the yard. I decided to call my mom and let her know I’m ok, just on my way to prison again. I’m really messed up mentally but something keeps telling me to call her. For weeks my thought have been pure negativity, daydreaming about how i wish i had brought dope with me to sell or calling someone to tell them who to rob so they can put money on my account. So much negativity and hopelessness that 2 weeks ago I attempted suicide for the 3rd time, tying part of a sheet around my neck, only to chicken when my vision started to go and untied the knot. I call my mom but we only have 60 seconds and she’ll have to put money on the phone. 60 seconds is good enough, she knows I’m okay and where I am.
During the 60 seconds, that was more like 20, she tells me that Melissa and Jason were able to find me and had sent me some $, the phone goes dead…damn there’s more to talk about. I have to wait a bit to call her back, but I do. As we’re talking she mentions that Jason sent me a book. Almost instantly my mentality changed! Yes they had taken the time to track me down and sent me money, but those things simply showed me they still cared, it showed their motivation. The book tells me they have knowledge they want to share with me and knowledge is power, if used. Curious about what the book might be I started thinking about how Melissa and Jason think…hmm, I know they believe in the power of thought and try to think positively. This brought me back to P.S.I., the concepts of positive thinking i learned and the power I discovered during the relaxation medication. Again this whole thought process is happening almost instantly and I finish the call with my mom on a positive note, thankful that I chickened out 2 weeks ago. I go back to my cell with a positive mind and still think about $ but now I’m thinking of ways to get it on the inside, i.e. a good job or hustle.
Fast forward about 3 weeks still positive, still no book. I’ve been on the prison yard about 3 days. My bunkie has a laundry hustle making about $60 a month, in prison that’s good $ for something that doesn’t involve drugs. My bunkie comes to talk to me, “I go home in 2 weeks, I’ve been trying to find someone for a while now to take over my laundry hustle but I don’t trust any of them. If you want it, I’ll introduce you to everyone and show you how they want it done.” W.T.F. I’ve known this guy for 3 days and out of everyone here that he’s known for years, he’s going to hand me whats essentially a business he’s build over the last 2 years. It made no sense. He basically has no clue what I’m about. The only thing that makes sense is my mentality.
I believe that what we put out into the universe by our thoughts, words, and actions is what we get back and this experience solidified that belief. I changed from negative thoughts about getting money in prison to positive ways to support myself and I was literally handed an established husble that was beyond anything i could imagine. Encourage people in whatever ways you can because you never know when a simple act can completely change someone’s life. This isn’t some profound, new age thinking, it’s fundamental necessity of life.