Are you familiar with the term monkey mind? It’s something that comes up in Buddhism, and maybe in meditation as well. It refers to the notion that our minds are wild. And when we put this in the context of feeling good about who we are, the monkey mind has the potential to stand in the way of being your most confident self.
Here’s the thing, our thoughts control the mind. And more often than not, our thoughts aren’t based on reality. They’re stories that we’ve made up relating to the past, or the future. These stories tend to take over, and run themselves deep into our brains to the point where we believe them.
The Monkey Mind At Home
It’s like this, while looking in the mirror as you’re getting dressed for date night, you may be saying things to yourself like Oh, you’re going to wear that? That does not look good. That makes you look shapeless. And washed out.
The thought that’s running through your mind isn’t the truth. It’s the story you tell yourself whenever you look in the mirror. It could be because you’ve struggled with your weight for years so the ongoing narrative is you’ll always be fat. Or maybe you’ve got a stressful meeting coming up at work, and it’s making you question everything about yourself.
The point is, these stories have the power to dictate who we become. If we’re constantly stuck in the negative zone because we’re always believing these stories, our confidence gets affected. And then we can’t be the person we want to be.
Tame The Brain
Once we realize these thoughts aren’t speaking our truths, we can take control and quiet them down.
In the video, I share one of my favorite meditations that helps me get out of my head and into a place of peace.
One thing to remember is taming the monkey mind isn’t something that happens right away. You could have a moment of clarity when everything feels amazing, and the next second it’s gone. This is how it works. The goal is to become more aware of those moments when you’re being ruled by your monkey mind, and feeling allover the place, so you can gently bring yourself back to your most confident self.
Tell me how you keep your mind quiet so it doesn’t trample on top of your confidence?
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Good reminder. Our minds can really go crazy overboard at times.
Indeed they can. Thanks, Michele!
Love this. I try to get into my body to quiet my mind–aerobics, dancing, gardening. It works! But I do like guided meditations. And the Calm app helps . . .
I find getting into the body through exercise is an excellent way to calm the mind!