“The words we attach to our experience, become our experience.”

This quote is so damn powerful.

I am a firm believer that we create our reality through our thoughts. So when you’re feeling a mood, check the words that you are telling yourself in your head.

After watching a video in my KBB course where Tony Robbins talks about Transformation Vocabulary, I cannot stop catching myself labeling my experiences, and let me tell you friend, the words I’m using are not helping.

Tranformational Vocabulary are the words you attach to an experience, that creates the emotion and feelings about that experience. When something happens that maybe I didn’t want to happen, or my three year old is having a tantrum, I very easily recall that experience to my friend or mother in law and say, “That was so FRUSTRATING.” I also find myself saying, “That is so ANNOYING.” These words create the experience. Tony’s advice is to choose another word, one that makes you smile or even giggle and will break up the negative emotion you are feeling toward the event. So, when Holtan is lying on the ground crying because I wouldn’t give him ice cream before supper, I am choosing to say, “This is so FASCINATING!” and when someone doesn’t do what I was hoping they would do, I will say, “That is kind of inconvenient!" instead of “That is so annoying!”

Words also shape what we tell ourselves about our reality and the stories we make up about our lives. Most times, these stories aren’t even true. They are based on things we learned in our past from other people’s experiences, bad advice or mistakes the people in our lives have made and they are warning us not to make the same mistakes. I have so many stories I tell myself.

That you have to bust your ass ALL OF THE TIME, and work NON STOP until you die to be successful

That you have to work for someone else, Monday to Friday and 8-5 with weekends off

You can only make money by getting a degree, then working in that profession

You can’t make enough money as a writer (or any type of artist/creator for that matter)

You don’t know enough to make money doing what you love

No one will pay you for writing

No one will pay you to coach them.

All of these statements are just NOT TRUE. But when I repeat them to myself over and over again, I believe them. It’s time to rewrite them and change my limiting beliefs to support what I want for my life.

You don’t have to work ALL THE TIME, it is possible to work hard in bursts and ENJOY time off.

Work looks different for everyone, and it can be at night, during naptime, on the weekends, whenever you can fit it in. It is still WORK.

You can get a degree, make money doing that work, or you don’t have to use your degree. Either way, your degree is not wasted. Everything you learned to earn that degree, and the experiences you had to get where you are MATTER, and shape who you are!

You can make as much money as you want, you just have to find the person that wants what you have to offer. Your work is valuable and worth money. Lots of it if you want it.

Creating and writing is one of the best gifts you can give the world, so you should continue to do it. If you follow your passions, you will make it your career. Continue to be authentic and real with who you are and what you want.

You have all of the knowledge you need, you have to believe you can do it.

Many people will pay you for your writing, you have to believe your writing is worth getting paid for.

Many people would love to benefit from your coaching. You have to put yourself out there to attract the right people to you, that need what you have to offer.

Woof. This is a powerful exercise. I have a lot more work to do, but I’m going to keep at it. I think I’ll print these statements out and hang them by my desk to remind myself that I can and I am doing this thing.