Wow! 35 Thoughts a minute

I sat staring at the calendar on my phone this morning, trying to imagine how I was going to fit everything in it that needs to be done. It’s not just what needs to be done but all that I would love to get done and events I would like to attend. I need to order hay. That seems like a simple task but actually involves a lot of phone tag and coordination of schedules to make it happen. I need to plan my family Christmas here at home to prepare for leaving for the actual holiday “up north” with my parents. There are numerous events I would like to attend this month. There are endless chores to tend to here at home. As the thoughts were swirling through my mind I realized that so many of them were useless, irrelevant and simply clouding my focus.

I began to focus on all the pointless stuff in my mind and it became an eye opener. I did a little research. I found that an average of 2100 thoughts go through our minds every hour! Wow. So an average of at least 35 thoughts a minute. No wonder I can’t keep track of things and feel like I’m going Crazy! I then thought about how many of those 35 thoughts are relevant and productive? One or possibly two? More importantly, what to do about it.

Obviously, we can’t change how many thoughts are in our minds constantly. We can however change how we filter and process them. If something is going too fast, the natural solution is to slow it down. I believe we need to do the same with our minds. If we realize how many thoughts are racing through our head, and how few are meaningful then we can have a plan of action! Slow down our thoughts! How do we do this? We first have to be aware that it is necessary and focus on our thoughts. We can learn to filter them into categories of good and bad. When a lobster man is catching lobsters in a net, he also catches many undesirable fish and creatures of the sea. He begins to sort them meticulously. I believe we can use this same principle to sort our thoughts. We can then slow down our thinking and meditate and pray. When you’re praying you’re focusing on communication with God. It definitely slows the useless thoughts and produces positive and  focused thinking.

I believe we all battle with thoughts that are slowing down our productivity and usefulness. By becoming aware of the needless information constantly flooding  our minds I believe we can start to implement strategies to combat it. I know praying always helps ground me and gives me a calm direction to proceed in.  Sometimes just meditating about something helps bring a clearer focus. Sometimes just writing down all the conflicting thoughts and emotions can bring a greater peace of mind. I love crossing things off that list! I also love pulling weeds. It brings a sense of accomplishment as well as therapy to my mind as I yank those pesky weeds from my garden.

As you go through your day today, focus on the one or two productive thoughts going through your mind each minute. Then focus on all the good things they will produce.