The obstacles toward what we want are often overestimated by our thinking. In other words, we allow ourselves to believe that the issues we face are far too complicated to resolve quickly or simply. We may have decades of “evidence” of what has gotten in the way of what we want and why we don’t have it.

We often overestimate the solution as well, as in, “it would take a miracle or a lot of deep-dive work to get what I want”. Those overestimations are thought errors that we have not done an adequate job of managing or purging. Chances are, we already know the “solution”—usually it sounds like “more money”, “more time” or “losing weight”—and it feels unattainable. The good news is that those are thought errors and can be corrected so that accomplishing what is truly wanted becomes available in a whole new way.

Consider the hundreds of times we have gotten what we thought we wanted only to find ourselves dissatisfied shortly thereafter and wanting something new. By holding on to the complexity of the problem and the complexity of the solution, we remain stuck. The human brain is the most advanced tool we have to create massive change in our lives. Our thoughts drive our action or inaction toward everything we do. Our greatest motivation is how we feel, how we want to feel and how we don’t want to feel. What we are always after, when it comes down to it, is a feeling. We want to feel better or we want to avoid feeling something negative.

The greatest thing we can do is train our mind to allow all the feelings without being afraid to feel them or trying everything under the sun to avoid them. When we train our thoughts to serve us rather than limit us, we naturally stop being afraid of the worst of emotions and can trust ourselves to handle anything that comes our way. Because we know that emotions are simple vibrations that will ride themselves out if we just let them do so, our thinking often delays this process and thus we find ourselves stuck in a mental power struggle that can play out for years—if not decades.

So, while beginning to consider our potential New Year’s resolutions, perhaps we should consider training our brain to think deliberate thoughts, rather than repeat all of its thought errors for yet another year.

Denisse Cabrera, RN, is a Certified Integrative Life Coach and Functional Medicine Health Coach. Using science, intuition and fun, she helps clients find relief in health, relationships and career where they may been struggling for years. Connect at 520-979-4600, [email protected] or RiseAboveItCoach.com. See ad, page 13.