How To Master Your Mind
What Does It Mean to Master Your Mind?
When people talk about mastering their minds, they are often referring to having a sense of control over their thoughts, attention, or focus. It is important to understand that we have little control over the thoughts that pop into our minds, and it can be unrealistic and unhelpful to try to control automatic thoughts as it isn’t possible and sets up a tug-of-war with your thoughts.
However, you can change how you relate to your thoughts, challenging unhelpful thoughts or practicing letting your thoughts come and go while also practicing deliberateness over where you put your attention.
Increasing Awareness of Thoughts
To feel more control over your attention, for example, limiting the amount of time you spend dwelling on unhelpful thoughts, you first have to build awareness of your thought patterns. It can be helpful to write down examples of the kind of thoughts that go through your mind over a few days. Do you notice any patterns or themes? For example, are you consistently self-critical? Do you call yourself names or make certain evaluations or judgments about the world? Maybe you notice that you consistently tell yourself you are not doing enough and need to do more or are often comparing yourself to those around you.
Having a strong awareness of your thoughts sets the table for having more options for how you want to respond to your thoughts.
Mindfulness
Mindfulness, generally defined, is nonjudgmentally tuning into the present moment. It involves noticing and observing the present moment, including your experience and the environment around you, without judging or evaluating the moment (not labeling something as good or bad), and bringing your attention back to the present moment when you are distracted and perhaps thinking about the past or the future.
For example, mindfully observing your thoughts can look like noticing that you are having various thoughts and saying “thinking” to yourself as you imagine that your thoughts can come and go in your mind like clouds drifting in the sky or suitcases moving slowly on a baggage carousel. Mindful breathing involves focusing on the physical sensation of your breath as it enters and leaves your body without trying to change your breathing. For example, you may focus on the sensation of air as it enters your nose or the rise and fall of your chest.
When you notice that you are caught in your thoughts, you can focus on the sensation of your breath as a way to reconnect with the present moment and then deliberately choose where to place your attention next, such as on a task that you want to work on. This Psychology Today article by CBT Denver psychologist Jennifer Caspari provides an overview of mindfulness.
Challenging and Changing Unhelpful Thoughts
Another way you can change how you respond to your thoughts and feel a greater sense of control is by challenging and changing unhelpful thoughts to be more balanced and helpful. Cognitive Behavior Therapy (CBT) can assist you in identifying common unhelpful thought patterns such as all-or-nothing thinking or catastrophizing (assuming the worst-case scenario will happen) and increase awareness of the automatic unhelpful thoughts that go through your mind.
Once you have increased awareness of these thoughts, you can practice asking yourself questions to challenge these thoughts and broaden your perspective. For example, you may ask yourself, “What is the evidence for and against this thought?,” “Is there another way I could think about this?” or, “Am I 100% certain this will happen?”
Based on the answer to these thoughts, you can then practice creating an alternative, more balanced thought. For example, if your automatic unhelpful thought is, “I never do anything well. My boss thinks I’m stupid,” you may write down evidence for and against this thought, realizing that you received praise on a recent presentation, and create the alternative thought of, “I am working hard. I may not do everything perfectly, and my boss has acknowledged and praised my work.”
Challenging and reframing your thoughts to be more balanced and helpful can lead you to feel more capable, empowered, and in control. You can visit the CBT Treatment Page on the CBT Denver website to learn more about challenging negative thought patterns.
Please contact us to learn more about mindfulness, CBT, and other evidence-based techniques that allow you to master your mind and feel less controlled by unhelpful thoughts.