This Could Be
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By Judi Moreo
W
hat if this year could be your best year ever? What if you could make every year better than the last one? It is possible, you know. It will probably take a bit of reframing to your thinking. You will have to face the fact that for things to be even better, things must change. Most of us don’t like change. But change is the one thing of which we can be certain: everything changes. Reframing your thinking is similar to changing a picture in a picture frame. The frame doesn’t change, but the picture is different. In your case, the situation may not change, but the way you think about it is different. You make a conscious effort to see the situation in a more optimistic way. You have the power to define the meaning of whatever circumstance with which you are dealing. When you interpret things differently, you are giving your meaning to the circumstance. You are looking at the situation with a new view.
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When you perceive the situation differently, you feel differently about it. When I got cancer, I could have thought it was the end of my life and felt sorry for myself, but I wasn’t ready to die, so I decided cancer was my opportunity to live a healthier life. With my doctor’s help, I changed my diet, my exercise program, and my lifestyle, reducing stress and getting more rest. As it turned out, cancer gave me an opportunity to be my best self, to discover a new talent, and to feel excited and inspired about life. Reframing is a technique you can use to consciously change your limiting beliefs and assist you in reaching your goals. What you are doing by reframing is interrupting old thought patterns giving you time to think about how you can interpret the situation differently. By changing the meaning of an experience, you may put yourself in a more positive state of mind and come up with new ways to deal with your situation.