Michele Molitor is a force for positive change in today’s challenging mental health landscape. As a master coach, clinical hypnotherapist, speaker, and author, she has dedicated her career to helping others activate transformational change in their lives, both personally and professionally.
Your mind is an extraordinary powerhouse. In my previous article, you’ll recall that we were talking about the Habits of Mind. This week, let me share with you the Rules of the Mind, so you can start to harness your brain’s amazing power to the fullest for greater mental well-being!
In today's fast-paced business world, inner peace and mental clarity are essential. As professionals aim for success, the real battle often happens in their minds. The secret to serenity and achieving goals lies in mastering your mind's principles.
This article delves into 13 fundamental rules of the mind, drawing from pioneers like French pharmacist Emile Coué over 100 years ago and further defined by modern therapist Marisa Peer. These principles support the effectiveness of hypnotherapy plus coaching, providing a roadmap to control your thoughts effectively for greater peace of mind and success.
Your mind shapes not only your thoughts but also your reality. Understanding its rules is like finding a master key to your psyche, unlocking unlimited potential. So, let's explore these rules, understanding how they affect our body and habits, and learn to harness your mind's power. Using it as a catalyst for positive change, working for you instead of against you.
Rule 1: Every thought you think and every word you say form a blueprint that your mind, body and psyche work to make real.
Our thoughts cause real physical and emotional reactions – think about pre-presentation jitters or that fuzzy feeling when recalling a loved one. This shows how much influence our minds have! So, pay attention to your inner dialogue. As you read this, observe what your inner voice is has to say to you at any given moment.
Rule 2: The strongest force in every human being is that you must act in a way that is absolutely consistent with your thinking.
Once your subconscious grabs onto an idea, it sticks with it until replaced by a new one. So, if you catch yourself thinking negatively, remember, your mind is keen to act on these cues. What positive outcomes do you want more of? Pay attention to where your thoughts linger and shift your inner dialogue to be a force for good in your life.
Rule 3: Every thought you think has a physical reaction and an emotional response.
Imagine that you’re biting into a big juicy slice of lemon. Did your mouth water? That's how powerfully our thoughts impact our bodies.
Every thought you think has a real, physical impact on your body. Anxiety can speed up our heartbeat and stress us out, even hijacking your decision-making capacity. And long-held emotional pain can then lead to chronic physical conditions.
Conversely, when we think happy or peaceful thoughts, it can have a comforting effect on the body. Utilizing mindfulness and hypnotherapy, we can learn to redirect our thoughts towards calmness, easing the heart rate and bringing tranquility to the body.
Rule 4: Imagination is more powerful than logic.
Your imagination is a realm without limits, more influential than objective knowledge. Emotions are the currency here, and only by consciously directing our emotions can we start to override well-worn grooves of old beliefs or fears.
If you ask any successful athlete, they will tell you how powerful mental imagery is in helping them see, feel, and visualize their winning shots. The repetition of this mental mind-mapping is a powerful tool to build a familiar path to success.
Rule 5: Your mind learns by repetition.
Ideas that are accepted by the subconscious tend to stick as they can quickly become those grooves in your neural pathways. If you've ever tried to change a belief, you know it’s not enough to just decide to think differently.
We are creatures of habit, instinctively returning to what we know. This is why change feels daunting. By introducing repetition, we can coax the mind toward new, more beneficial paths that drop down to your subconscious mind.
And by using positive, present tense, descriptive words it creates a powerful lasting impact on your mind as you repeat these words over and over to yourself.
I am enough. I am enough. I am enough. I am enough. I am enough. I am enough…
You get the idea.
Rule 6: What you expect almost always tends to be realized.
Our expectations set the stage for outcomes. Athletes visualize victory, while professionals rehearse successful negotiations. The key is to expect the positive, visualizing it happening over and over in your mind’s eye as you take the actionable steps in the direction of your goals to make them manifest.
Noticing how your mind wants to give you proof of what you’re thinking so feed it positive, empowering exciting words to give it something amazing to look for! “This is going to be amazing!” “I’ve got this!” “I can handle this!” “I am capable and confident!”
Yet when we focus on negative outcomes, the same principle holds true. Start to notice where you’re focusing your thoughts and emotions.
Rule 7: Your mind does not care if what you tell it is true or false – it lets it in.
Your subconscious mind is always listening and alert. Its job is to keep you safe, alive and on the planet. So, what are you feeding you mind? Positive or negative self-talk? What are you watching, or reading? Are you surrounding yourself with those who lift you up or bring you down with their energy and commentary?
You are always at choice and if the people, the media, and other influences around you aren’t filling your cup with goodness, then it might be time to find new sources of inspiration that encourage and support your positive growth and well-being.
Rule 8: You make your beliefs and then your beliefs turn right around and make you.
In the simplest sense, we transform into our most dominant thoughts. The adage "What we think, we become" encapsulates the genesis of our identity and destiny. If you look back at the sights and sounds of your youth, you can see the influence of the people and environments in your everyday life now that formed your beliefs about yourself. Some are good, some perhaps not so good.
The good news is, you can always change your mind and let go of old habits and beliefs that you learned unconsciously through the influence of your family of origin and replace them with new empowering ways of being in the world.
Rule 9: Your mind loves what is familiar and hates what is unfamiliar.
We are creatures of habit, instinctively returning to what we know, to what is familiar. This is hardwired into our limbic system in the brain – the Fight, Flight, Freeze and Fawn instincts we all naturally have to help us stay alive.
This is why change feels daunting because the unfamiliar is scary to our habitual ways of being because anything outside of that could be deadly (according to our ancient limbic brain that is always on alert). This is seen in the body’s stress response to change, even when that change is beneficial to us.
By introducing repetition at a subconscious level to build new habits through hypnotherapy, we can coax the mind toward new, more beneficial paths and deeper emotional healing.
Rule 10: Your mind only responds to two things: the pictures you make in your head and the words you say to yourself.
Life is unfolding in a unique way for each of us. Sometimes really great things happen, other times really bad things happen. You can’t change an event, but you can change how you respond to the event. You don’t have to like the event, but you can find a neutral perspective around how you’re interpreting it.
What do you want to tell yourself about the event? Can you change the pictures in your mind’s eye and the words you’re telling yourself to create a neutral or even positive physical response?
Rule 11: The way you feel about anything is down to the words you use.
The words that you’re telling yourself are creating chemical reactions in your body, which are making you feel good or bad. If you’re telling yourself negative words such as ‘I’m stupid,’ ‘I can’t do this,’ it’s going to release stress hormones into your body: cortisol and adrenaline.
Conversely when you’re thinking positive thoughts, ‘I’ve got this.’ ‘I’m proud of myself for achieving my goal,’ your body is going to release happy chemicals. Dopamine, Oxytocin, Serotonin or Endorphins. These are your feel-good hormones which when released make you feel happier and satisfied, creating a positive upward cycle.
Rule 12: The mind cannot hold conflicting beliefs.
The mind struggles with contradiction. When beliefs clash, it leads to inner turmoil and even physical discomfort, revealing the need for harmony within our thoughts. And when these conflicting beliefs arise, they cancel each other in a stalemate. This often leads to indecision and that stuck or spinning in circles feeling.
Rule 13: Your mind does what it thinks you want it to do.
Your mind is always listening at the ready to take down your instructions and fulfill them for you. What are the instructions that you’re giving your mind? If you’re not satisfied with the results getting in your external world, then start by looking at what you’re feeding your mind, heart, and spirit in your internal world.
Remember, your thoughts are yours to change at any time.
Understanding these rules offers a glimpse into the power and plasticity of the mind. Hypnotherapy is a profound tool that leverages these rules at a deeper subconscious level and when combined with transformational coaching, helps to create lasting positive change in both mind and body. Creating a positive ripple effect in your personal and professional world!
If you find these principles helpful and want to learn more about how you can master your mindset each day, then reach out to schedule your confidential clarity call with Michele.
You have the power to master your mindset and with some guidance, you can achieve mastery sooner than you think.
Michele Molitor, CPCC, PCC, CCHt, CEO of Nectar Consulting
Michele Molitor is a force for positive change in today’s challenging mental health landscape. As a master coach, clinical hypnotherapist, speaker, and author, she has dedicated her career to helping others activate transformational change in their lives, both personally and professionally.
As CEO of Nectar Consulting, Inc., Michele’s expertise focuses on empowering professionals to overcome anxiety, self-doubt, and the stress that often saturates modern work environments. Her approach is practical: to bring dignity into our communications that foster emotional well-being through genuine acceptance, belonging, and meaningful connection – with ourselves and others.
