How To Move Past The Obstacles That Hold Us Back
Good outcomes in life are the result of having the right thoughts. If our actions are not producing the results we want, it is because we are not looking at the situation correctly. Trying harder will only lead us to fail faster, because we are not following the right map.
Changing our attitude and beliefs toward an area of life that is an obstacle to our success will change our behavior and therefore change the outcome. Continually doing the same thing over and over again and expecting a different end result is crazy.
Are there areas in your life where you have hit a glass ceiling? Does it seem like you keep trying and trying, but fail to make any progress past a certain point? Are you frustrated that you cannot get ahead in an area of your life? Read on!
How can we change our thoughts to overcome obstacles?
Changing how we think about certain situations in life is often difficult, but essential. Otherwise, we end up continually fighting the same problem repeatedly without ever making any progress.
As an example, we seem to get into the same arguments over and over again with our spouses. We feel stuck in dead-end jobs. We continue bad habits even though we know they aren’t good for us. Why? Because we persist in looking at the problem from the same angle. We cling to inaccurate or incorrect thinking without really reevaluating our position.
It often seems that changing our point of view is almost impossible. How can we change the way we think about these things so we can overcome these obstacles? I ran across an illustration that I think will help.
Imagine that you are holding a glass of dirty water in your hand. It’s full of all kinds of particles, sand and dirt.
If you were to pour fresh, clean water into that glass continually and just let it overflow, eventually all the dirty water would be gone.
All you would have left would be the pure, clean water. And you wouldn’t have to really do anything to get rid of the dirty water except allow the new, clean water to flow.
~ Joel Osteen
Overcoming obstacles is easy once we understand
You might want to reread the quote above. Isn’t it amazing? It basically says that we can overcome the biggest and most difficult obstacles in our lives very easily. All we have to do is allow the pure, clean water to flow into the place where our impure thoughts exist.
We just need to continually pour the right thinking into our minds so that it eventually forces the inaccurate thoughts out. In other words, we can retrain our thoughts by simply repeatedly and frequently filling our minds with the right thoughts.
We can essentially brainwash ourselves to behave in anyway we want. It just takes good input, an open mind, and time.
Start to retrain your thoughts for success
Give this a try. Choose an area of your life where you seem stuck. It could be your marriage, your finances, your career, or your relationship with your children. It can be any area of your life. Just pick an area where you want to experience more success.
Once you’ve chosen the area, then start locating the fresh, clean water. Find new inputs that will help you change your thinking. Please realize that you need new inputs with a point of view that is different than what you hold now.
You need to change your thinking and the only way to do that is to fill you mind with new thoughts. Don’t choose inputs that simply reinforce the way you think now. It won’t help. Instead, find people that have already accomplished what you hope to accomplish and then find out how they did it.
Go fill your mind with their thoughts. If you want to be a millionaire, then find someone with lots of money to talk to. If you want to be a great spouse, then find someone that has been successfully married for 50 years. If you want to become CEO, then find heads of companies and ask them how they did it.
How to keep pouring the right thoughts into your mind
It is likely that you will need to keep pouring the right kind of thinking into your mind for weeks, months and maybe even years before you will succeed. How do you do this?
You can’t sit with a person 24 hours a day. Therefore, besides just finding others who have succeeded in the area you have chosen, you also need to find other inputs. Of course, you want to be sure that you only follow the advice of those who have already accomplished what you want to do. This is crucial.
Here are some ideas:
- Read books by successful people in your chosen area
- Read good blogs
- Join a group, club or association
- Locate free videos on YouTube on the subject
- Listen to talk radio shows
- Find a friend with the same interest to trade ideas
- Do all of the above and more!
Obstacles will disappear once we see things clearly
The dirty water will eventually disappear if we keep pouring in the fresh, clean water. It will take some time, but we can retrain our thoughts and overcome the obstacles that have held us back. Follow others that have gone before you and learn to think like they do. This is a surefire way to think your way to success!
In what areas do you need to retrain your thinking to overcome obstacles?
Other articles that might interest you:
Top Ten Tips To Overcome Obstacles to Success
Gaining Perspective Helps to Achieve Excellence in Life
Resist Change At All Costs Even If It Is For The Better
Photo by DISC0STU
I change my thoughts by stepping outside of my comfort zone. I try something completely new. It allows me to see the issues I face from an angle I hadn’t yet envisioned.
Read Marc and Angel Hack Life´s latest article – 10 Reasons You Are Rich
@Marc – Continually challenging ourselves with new experiences is a great example of continually pouring fresh water into the glass!
Thanks for commenting and thanks for the Stumble!
I really like that quote a lot. I think we all often try to filter the dirty water which is far too difficult. Finding new ways to add fresh water to your life sounds like a much better solution. Great article. Stumbled!
Read Steve C @ MyWifeQuitHerJob.com´s latest article – A Peek Into The Glamorous Life Of A Small Business Owner
Nice article. Stumbled and Reddited
Read HIB´s latest article – Frugalicious?
Hi Jeff,
Great article. I actually wrote a similar one called Kick Them Obstacles Over: Overcome and Grow!
I like the idea of your article. Changing our mindset often helps with mental obstacles we create. However, there are certainly physical obstacles we must overcome as well.
Perhaps maybe this is the first step to move us in the right direction.
Cheers,
Jeremy
Read Jeremy Day´s latest article – The Complete Noobs Guide to the Economy
I really enjoyed this commentary & it is sooo true! I’m in a rut & needed to hear this perspective & these truths again. I couldn’t help but smile..I kept thinking about Dr. Phil saying “So, how’s that workin’ for you?” We can be so stupid sometimes, we just keep on doing the same things & expect different results…duh?!?!?!
Thanx again for the jolt back to reality!
@Sherry: It is funny how sometimes we forget things we already know. I’m glad that my article helped remind you.
Thanks for letting me know!
Great post! It’s so easy when you really stop and think about it. I just finished reading Living Life as if Thinking Matters by R. L. Wysong, and he shows how we can make changes and solve a lot of our problems if we’d only stop and think about what’s right for us instead of buying into other peoples thoughts and beliefs.
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