Eulalee Thompson

Year 2007 is full of potentials, possibilities, probabilities. Let's not waste it. The future is in your hands, the world is at your feet. Let's unfold our dreams.

"Old papers thrown away,

Old garments cast aside,

The talk of yesterday,

Are things identified;

But time once torn away

No voices can recall:

The eve of New Year's Day

Left the Old Year lost to all."

- Excerpt from The Old Year by John Clare

What would you like to achieve? Personal growth, weight change, better health, financial growth or a home of your own? Maybe these are goals hanging over from last year's wish list and the year before that and the year before that.

What could possibly be preventing you from unfolding all your possibilities, realising your dreams and achieving your goals ? Your greatest enemy could be your mind - false beliefs, irrational thoughts and negative self-talk. Here are some common ones:

1 You jump to conclusions a lot. You think that you will fail even when there is no evidence to support this belief. Buying a house is on your list but even before doing the necessary financial research, you think that you might lose your job and then your mortgage will fall through or interest rates might shoot up out of your reach and you will lose the house. This is catastrophic thinking, thinking of the worst possible outcome. This kind of thinking will certainly prevent you from even getting started on the path of unfolding your dreams.

2Focusing on minor flaws - You can't get started because you are missing the bigger picture as you are too preoccupied with failure and deprivation.

3 Overgeneralisation - So you think that you will not succeed because your friend did not succeed in his endeavour even though you are different and have different dreams and "nutten naw gwaan".

4Magnification/minimisation - Insignificant things are blown out of proportion, minor mistakes create crisis, while you minimise the important and successful things in your life. This way of thinking is a comfortable cushion to explain away failure.

5 Personalisation - You relate every event to yourself even if they are not remotely connected to you. So every thing is "all because of my terrible performance".

6Labelling/mislabelling yourself - So you have failed at some endeavour in the past but you don't have to continue labelling yourself a failure. How about stop focusing on the mistakes of the past and using them to define your present?

7 Thinking in an all-or-nothing way - For you, things are either black or white; good or bad. Give yourself a break, see some grey sometimes, you are human, imperfect and will make mistakes. Forget the 'musts' in your life - " I must always succeed."

This year, how about stop playing these mind games? Change the way you are thinking and stop sabotaging your dreams. Create the space to become a winner in 2007.

Send your feedback to eulalee.thompson@gleanerjm.com.