Appreciation & Mindset: focus

What you focus on multiplies.

Not sure if that’s true? Just give it a whirl.

Hop on the negativity train

Spend a few minutes thinking about things that annoy you and people who irritate you. List your gripes and grievances. Think about the store clerk who was rude to you and the driver who cut you off in traffic.

Oh my, are you feeling depressed yet? Because once you get on that negativity train, it just rolls down the track, taking you unhappily with it.

One irritation becomes two. One frustration becomes many.

Because what you focus on multiplies.

When you’re looking through the lens of negativity, life starts to look gloomy fast. One reason for this is a fancy-sounding something called the reticular activating system.

Your brain’s filter

Your reticular activating system (RAS) is a kind of gatekeeper in your brain. It sorts through massive amounts of information delivered by your senses, acting as a filter to decide which information is important and which isn’t.

Essentially your RAS lets in information you’re already focused on. Which is why when you learn a new word, you start hearing it frequently. Or when you’re thinking about buying a certain kind of car, you suddenly start seeing that model everywhere.

Or when you’re focused on negativity, you start noticing things to feel bad about all over the place.

So that’s what going on in your brain.

Like attracts like

But there’s another reason what you focus on multiplies. And that’s because of Law of Attraction.

You attract more of what’s on the same frequency. So when your point of attraction is negativity, you attract more into your life to be disappointed, frustrated, and upset about. Negativity attracts negativity.

Luckily, the opposite is true too. When you focus on the positive, the positive aspects you notice and encounter grow and expand. For instance, when you focus on love and appreciation, there’s simply more to love and appreciate.

Give it a try.

Focus on appreciation

Start thinking about all the people you love. Think about the many blessings in your life. Think about how much you have to be grateful for.

Give thanks for the bright side of life, the kindnesses you’ve been shown, your good fortune.

Think about waking up in a warm bed, eating nourishing food, breathing clean air. Let’s be honest, most of us don’t really need to think too hard to come up with a list of blessings a mile long.

Once you start looking for the good, you find more of it. Once you start giving thanks, there’s suddenly more to be thankful for.

Again, in part it’s because of your reticular activating system. When your filter is positivity, you start noticing all kinds of things to feel positive about.

You get what you give

At the same time, the Universe is conspiring to give you more of what you’re offering. So if you’re vibrating at the frequency of love, you’ll receive more love in return.

And…if you’re vibrating at a frequency of lack and complaint, then there will be more to grouse and grumble about.

Because what you focus on multiplies.

What will you do with this invitation?