Like most, I had to put off so many things, making excuses for not executing them. However, I felt a change had overcome me and I had to gear myself into action because of the fear of complacency. It started with a book I had read and only implemented 3 years after, it propelled me into proactively changing my mindset, called "The Secret" by Rhonda Byrne.
The book delves into speaking your life into being, thinking proactively, and ultimately attracting what you project out into the world and how it all conspires to work in your favor. I thought to myself, the thought of consciously speaking kind words and thoughts about myself and others can't possibly have negative implications, practically speaking, if anything, it would only make for a positive state of mind.
The book implies how it is imperative to envision your dream and work on milestones towards achieving it. Looking at the science behind it, neuroscience has found that dopamine is produced when there is a desire that stimulates you emotionally, which ultimately motivates behavior. In this instance, it's thinking about your dreams and aspirations. So in theory, constantly stimulating your brain with your desires compels you to pursue it.
With that in mind, I first changed my train of thought and my very energy into positivity by not indulging and steering away from the petty gossip and unproductive behavior. I then reiterated every negative thought about my abilities by replacing it with gearing myself into being proactive; whether it was acquiring new skills or simply educating myself on topics that would propel me into the next goal I had set for myself. It goes without saying that one still needs a plan of action.
With a plan of action, one of the first things I did was to create a vision board of what I wanted to achieve and what I saw for my life. Like all, I had an array of big dreams. Once I put them visually into perspective, I then followed a plan of how I was going to achieve the first most attainable ones that would lead to attaining the other goals in mind.
At present, The vision boards still gear me into action, whenever I sit at my desk at home or switch on my laptop, I have a background collage of my aspirations as a constant reminder of where I want to be. It has its subtle ways of re-emphasizing what's important in your life, while also reinforcing and reminding you to keep working on your goals. Not to mention the dose of dopamine that aids the state of flow (the mental state of operation in which a person performs an activity while fully immersed in a feeling of energized focus, full involvement, and enjoyment in the process.)
It is still a conscious decision to think positively for me, but a discipline I hope to master. Overall it hasn't steered me wrong.
If you have any of your own experiences and processes for a good mindset, let me know.
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