Flip That Thought! We're Talking Positive Thought Replacement

Last week, I had the pleasure of attending and speaking at the Proxy x Shopify Wildly Better Well-Being pop-up event in Soho, NYC.

Picture taken by @higherculturemedia

For a bit of context behind my connection to Proxy, about a year ago, I asked the one and only Miss Roxanne Kaiser of Netflix's The Ultimatum to come on the Gin & Toxic Podcast to chat all things "Netflix reality show" and talk about how she built her empire behind Pasted Nip, a line of premium nipple pasties she founded. After having such an incredible conversation on the show, our friendship expanded outside the podcast.

Around the same time I launched my life coaching career, Roxanne was preparing to launch her newest business endeavor, Proxy, a mental health wellness brand that recently launched their own line of wellness gummies geared towards helping you relax in times of panic. While planning the official NYC launch of Proxy, it almost seemed like a no-brainer that we partner up together to bring my coaching expertise to the pop-up & host an activation to promote better mental health & overall well-being.

Speaking on a panel with many other mental health advocates felt both exhilarating and daunting. Would people enjoy what I have to say? What do I have to offer? The imposter syndrome kicks in. I've done public speaking before, but usually in a more lighthearted, silly manner, never yet with my newest life coaching endeavor. The thing that pushed me through the pane? The positive outcome. Instead of focusing on the nerves and worries that crossed my mind before the panel, I focused on how I would feel when it was all over: HAPPY! Relieved, excited, proud, successful, you name it! I turned that scary feeling of speaking to a crowd of people into an excited feeling of success when it was all done.

Aside from speaking on the panel, I also hosted a workshop. What did I teach in this workshop? Exactly what I just displayed before. Take your scary, negative feelings and flip them into a positive. This is called positive thought replacement, precisely what my workshop was centered around, and something I would love to re-teach on this blog.

Positive thought replacement isn't some "sparkling new" way of thinking, nor do I want to claim that it's my idea. It's been around for years in different capacities and has been preached about countless times. Why? Because over time, it works. Similar to manifesting, which I know 99% of you are doing these days, you will focus on the positive outcome. Take your negative, anxiety-inducing thoughts and shift them to something positive or exciting. 

For example, you may say, "I am so stressed about my job hunt. I am afraid I won't find anything."

You'd replace that with the positive thought, "I am excited for when I have my dream job. I am working towards my goals and excited for my end result."

See how we flipped that thought to something more positive and progressive? This activity provokes you to have a "flip it" mindset—focus on what you want or enjoy instead of dwelling on what's wrong.

Regarding body image, we tend to focus on harsh thoughts of our appearance. There are two different ways you may tackle this. 

If the negative thought is "I don't like the way my arms look," you may flip this statement into a positive by:

A) Describe an action with that body party that you enjoy. Example: "My arms allow me to hug my loved ones."

B) Pick another physical feature or attribute that you love about yourself. Example: "I don't like how my arms look, but I have the most gorgeous eyes!"

Another example may be, "I hate how my feet look." Flipping this, you may say, "My feet allow me to walk and explore new places!"

Sometimes, we are so caught up in our own negative thoughts that it may feel impossible to find a positive. In those cases, instead of flipping the thought, pick a thought that makes you appreciate the parts of yourself that you love. 

Additionally, if you're struggling to flip the thought OR appreciate the parts of yourself that you love, you may want to pick an action. Consider a step that can help you change the thought from negative to positive! This is a proactive approach to improving your mental health and self-perception.

For example, if your thought is "My anxiety scares me," your action step to flip the idea into a positive may be "I can't wait to start working on improving my mental health!"

Remember, positive thought replacement is not about justifying your unfavorable traits or situations. It's about sparking a thought that inspires action, whether it's to do better or to speak more highly of yourself. There are numerous ways to practice this, so find the one that works best for you and start living a more positive, fulfilling life. 

Think it, flip it, pursue it, love it!

Once again, thank you so much to Proxy, Shopify, and Roxanne for giving me the opportunity this past week to share this practice with others so that they can start living their lives more clearly and abundantly! 

Talk soon!

NYC Certified Life Coach: Flip That Thought! We're Talking Positive Thought Replacement