Your Blank Slate
It is natural to be influenced by those with whom you associate, primarily friends and family. But, at some point, you need to take responsibility for what gets through to your thinking criteria.
Regardless of what has influenced you to act in the past, you still have control over today’s influences. How much control depends on your willingness to control what may try to influence your thinking.
There are a great number of voices, publications, and other avenues of communication trying to appeal to you with many, often conflicting, ideas. Some ideas will be beneficial, and other ideas will be detrimental to your well-being. Some ideas are encouraging and some are discouraging.
In my youth, we used a slate tablet, like a small chalkboard, to write answers to questions. Every day you have a chance to write something positive on your mental slate tablet. The choice is yours. Be the guard at your mind’s door!
What Will You Write
Every day has hope and possibly frustration. It is very important that you learn how to react to what comes your way. Patience will help you slow your reaction until you know more facts.
I am thankful to have read about positive thinking and repeated simple truths to reinforce my power of reasoning, early in my life. That has served me well but not as much as the hope I have experienced through my faith in God. Don’t underestimate the power of prayer!
But you have the power of choice. You can stop reading and act on your own intuition. Faith is a very personal insight that must be initiated within yourself.
My hope is that you will get serious about your responsibility to filter your influences.
Do You Allow Others to Write on Your Wall
Social media has a host of influencers. However, mass appeal for them must not prevent you from using your filter for what you let your mind accept as truth.
Writing on your wall is a social media term. The question remains though; do you allow others to write on your wall?
Your image. Your reputation. Your own confidence in choosing the right actions for your life may be influenced by what others write on your wall.
You can filter what enters your mind and what becomes the base for your reasoning and evaluation of your course of action, how you set goals, and how you plan your days.
Too many influencers will leave you confused. Do what you can to upgrade your filters.
You Reflect What Is on Your Wall
Take a good look at yourself, your actions, and your reactions. You reflect your influencers.
Do you like what you see and how your actions affect others? Do you understand what is positive and what is negative about what you see? Do you perceive when you are selfish or sharing?
What is your call to action each day? You need a good cause, even if it is just to provide for a secure future. But you need others to help you get there. Selfish actions push others away. Helping others will build a base for your success.
Consider replacing bad habits with good habits that can create a positive change for you and those around you. Become acutely aware that your actions affect others.
Your Words Carry Weight So be Careful Where You Throw Them
Learn to talk. Speaking is a great form of communication. Although texting has become the norm, emojis had to be added to replace our vocal inflection and word emphasis and the emotion behind our words.
Learn to express yourself. Show your motivation. Truth should be motivation to offset lies and fraudulent behavior. Don’t be intimidated. Learn to speak out.
That sounds easy but many people come to power based on intimidation, even to the point of life-threatening! Hopefully, you can find the courage to contact law enforcement.
Some people are more sensitive than others. Be careful how you speak to them. Heavy critical comments will knock them down and they will avoid you in the future.
You Can Be Comfort to Others
Or hurtful, the choice is yours.
Most of us have a selfish tendency. We like doing what we like to do.
The conflict comes when those we care about want to do something they like to do, which is different than your likes.
Now, what needs to happen? Aside from going your separate ways, a discussion about likes can help both see what you can do together. Then, separate activities are more tolerable and less hurtful. A common understanding helps.
This area of communication can be affected by poor filtering of outside influences. Any influence that makes you selfish about the concerns or interests of others can wreck your relationships. Are those relationships not important to you?
You Need Others
You can expect back what you give. From Galations 6:7: “Do not be deceived God cannot be mocked. A man reaps what he sows.”
From Proverbs 19:17: “Whoever is kind to the poor lends to the Lord, and he will reward them for what they have done.”
Are you not kind to those who are kind to you? Are you not upset with those who abuse you?
Can you not see the benefit of learning to be helpful to others rather than using others for selfish gain?
Let this be part of your filtering criteria for those who seek to influence your actions.
Guard the door to your mind. Protect your internal well-being. Learn to see what their motives are. Do they match your goals and the welfare of those you care about?
Read to Feed Your Mind
Filter what you read. But do read to help you filter better!
Bad experiences and disappointments, especially with other people, can weaken your confidence and hope for the future. But those are only temporary setbacks. Reading can give you a way to restore your hope and faith that your fortunes will change for the better.
The Bible can help you see that good behavior will always win over bad behavior. Though patience and hope require faith in things not seen, you can develop a perspective that will give you internal comfort and peace of mind.
There are many successful people who have shared their experiences in books. They acknowledge their troubles and failures on their way to success. Take time to read about those. That will be added to your filtering criteria.
Feeding your mind is a start. Action will require motivation. Be sure to verify that your motivation is worthy enough to add value to your life.
This blog was developed to be a positive influence on your mindset for money; to help you be a better steward over your assets and income.
Your ability to manage your money well will depend a lot on how well you filter your influences!