Creating an Empowered State of Mind: The Power of Questions

By Natalie Rivera

You want to be happier, feel more gratitude, be more confident and create a successful, satisfying life. But, you seem to hold yourself back because:

  • Change feels like a daunting task
  • You don’t know where to start
  • You figure it is probably too complicated
  • How would you find the time?

But, what if I told you that you can make massive changes to your reality, your state of mind, and your experience of life just by asking yourself different questions?

I bet you would probably think that its B.S.

And, if you did, you’d be absolutely right! It is your Belief System (B.S.) that creates your life. This belief system creates thought patterns and habits that impact every part of your life.

Have you ever noticed that there are people that are always happy or things seem to go right for them even when things are not going right?

Many studies show that it is not your environment that determines how successful or happy you are. It truly comes down to one thing—your state of mind. People with the right state of mind live longer, have better and longer lasting intimate and social relationships, get promoted more often, earn more, and, more importantly, experience more happiness.

So how can I be one of these people?

The first step is to realize that you can control your state of mind and emotions. With the right tools, techniques, and questions you can feel happy, confident, grateful or at peace no matter what is going on around you.

The questions you ask yourself, consciously or unconsciously, direct the focus of your thoughts and therefore the direction of your life.

The activity below is designed to condition your mind to establish an empowered state and focus. It’s designed so you can ask yourself a different set of questions every day. Through daily questions that rewire your conscious and unconscious mind, you will be able to change patterns, see life from a different perspective, and create habits that will help you create a truly life.

Conscious and Unconscious Questions

The activity each day asks two questions: one for your conscious mind, which you will write out an answer, and one for your unconscious mind. By asking yourself the unconscious question and leaving your mind open to receive an answer throughout the day, you are directing your RAS (reticular activation system) which is a small part of your brain that focuses your awareness. The RAS does this by narrowing down the amount of external stimulus you notice. There are millions of bits of information going on around you all the time. If you were aware of it all you would go crazy—in fact, you wouldn’t be able to function. The role of the RAS is to selectively focus on ONLY the inputs that are important and relevant. The way it knows what data is important is either a) it is required for your survival or b) it is a match for what your unconscious mind both believes and expects. Those expectations are determined by the questions you are constantly asking yourself.

Sit in an airport and ask “I wonder if my flight’s on time” and you’ll hear your flight number being called, and block out all of the other noise.

Ask yourself “why does everything always go wrong for me” at the grocery store and you’ll find yourself feeling irritated when you notice that your line is slow because of trouble at the register, while you fail to notice the inspiring act of kindness taking place behind you.

What Questions Do You Ask?

First, ask yourself what questions you are constantly asking yourself, often without realizing it? Are any of your questions instructing your RAS to look for things you do not want? Or things that are disempowering?

Daily Questions

Below you will find 14 sets of questions, and your challenge is to commit to empowering your state of mind by asking yourself one set per day for just 2 weeks. That’s only 5 minutes a day!

Note: “C” is for conscious (answer this question) and “U” is for unconscious (allow your unconscious mind to search for an answer throughout the day).

Day 1: C: What obstacles in your life turned out to be blessings in disguise?

U: What will I learn today that I didn’t know was possible

Day 2: C: What is something positive that I can do for someone else today?

U: What will be something positive someone else will do for me?

Day 3: C: Who is someone I am grateful for that I can express it to today?

U: What will I be the most grateful for at the end of today?

Day 4: C: What are 3 simple things in life that bring me joy?

U: What little detail will I notice and appreciate today?

Day 5: C: What 3 talents or skills do I have that positively impact my life?

U: How will my talents/skills serve me today?

Day 6: C: What are 3 things I can be grateful for that many people do not have?

U: What will I notice today that I will realize I am grateful for?

Day 7: C: What are 3 things that make me excited?

U: What new thing will I be excited by today?

Day 8: C: What are my 3 best traits or qualities?

U: What will I realize that I love about myself today?

Day 9: C: What are 3 things I can be proud of?

U: What will I do today that I will feel proud of?

Day 10: C: What are 3 things I appreciate about my friends and family?

U: How will I feel connected to friends and family today?

Day 11: C: What are 3 things I am passionate about?

U: What will I experience that feeds my passions today?

Day 12: C: What decisions have I made in my life that truly honor me?

U: What will I do today that honors myself or another?

Day 13: C: What are 3 “happy thoughts” that put me in a good mood just by thinking about them?

U: When will I use one of my happy thoughts to boost my mood today?

Day 14: C: What are 3 things that feel like part of my life’s greater purpose?

U: What will happen today that feels meaningful and purposeful?

And finally, continue to empower yourself through constructive questions by determining 3 questions you can ask yourself every morning to start your day in a state of gratitude and positive expectation.

NOTE: This activity is part of my online course 21 Days to an Empowered State of Mind. The full course also includes daily NLP (Neuro Linguistic Programming) activities to condition your body and emotions, as well as your mind, to experience a state of empowerment. If you are interested in taking the full program, you are welcome to enroll in this course for FREE using the following discount code, exclusive for Transformation Magazine readers. Visit www.transformation-academy.com and enter discount code transmag upon checkout.

Natalie Rivera is a firestarter, speaker, coach trainer and entrepreneur. She is passionate about empowering others to GET REAL and live authentically. After a decade of living a life that wasn’t hers and developing Chronic Fatigue Syndrome, Natalie let go of everything and completely transformed. Through her journey to healing she rediscovered her true self and greater purpose—to inspire others to transform their lives. Natalie “retired” from the rat race at 24, put herself through school as a freelance designer, created a non-profit teen center, and later created Transformation Services, Inc., which offers motivational speaking, curriculum development, life coaching, event management, and publishing. She is also the Publisher of Transformation Magazine. Visit www.ignitelife.me.

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