Successful people maintain a positive focus in life no matter what is going on around them. They stay focused on their past successes rather than their past failures, and on the next action steps that will get them closer to the fulfillment of their goals rather than on all the other distractions that life presents to them. They think about their successes in the morning and practice day and night meditation as well.
Successful people are constantly proactive in the pursuit of their chosen objectives. @JackCanfield (Click to Tweet!)
An important part of any focusing regimen is to set aside time at the end of the day—just before going to sleep—to meditate on your successes, review your goals, focus on your desired ideal future successes, and make specific plans for what you want to accomplish the next day.
Why Meditate at Night?
So, why do I suggest night meditation?
The reason is, whatever you read, see, listen to, talk about, and experience during the last 45 minutes of the day has a huge influence on your sleep and your next day.
According to some recent research, during the night, your unconscious mind replays and processes this late-night input up to six times more often than anything else you experienced during the day.
This is why cramming for school exams late at night can work and why watching a scary movie before bed will often give you nightmares.
This is also why reading good bedtime stories is so important for children—not just to get them to fall asleep, but because the repeated messages, lessons, values, and morals of the story become part of the fabric of the child’s consciousness.
Sleep Meditation
As you drift off to sleep, you enter into the alpha brainwave state of consciousness—a state in which you are very suggestible. If you drift off to sleep after watching the late news, that is what you’ll be imprinting into your consciousness—war, crime, automobile accidents, rape, robbery, murder, gang wars, drive-by shootings, kidnappings, natural disasters and corporate scandals.
Think how much better it would be to read an inspiring autobiography or a self-improvement book instead.
Imagine the power of meditating, listening to a self-help audio program, or taking the time to plan your next day right before you go to sleep.
Nighttime Meditation Techniques
Here are two exercises that will keep you positively focused and moving forward at the end of the day.
1. The Evening Review
The first is a very impactful night meditation technique called “The Evening Review”.
This is a powerful exercise to help you more quickly install a new positive behavior like punctuality, a new habit, like listening more, or a new quality, like patience or mindfulness. You’ll be amazed at how fast this technique can lead to permanent change.
It is very easy to do. You start by sitting with your eyes closed, and taking a few deep breaths., After you feel more relaxed, give yourself one of the following directions:
Show me where I could have been more effective today…
Show me where I could have been more conscious today…
Show me where I could have been a better (and then fill in your profession— a better manager, teacher, coach, salesperson, etc.) today…
Show me where I could have been more loving today. …
Show me where I could have been more assertive today. …
Show me where I could have been more (and just fill in any quality or characteristic) today…
As you sit calmly in a state of quiet receptivity, you’ll see that a number of events from the day will come to mind.
Just observe them without any judgment or self-criticism. When no more events come to mind, take each incident and replay it in your mind the way you would have preferred to have done it had you been more conscious and intentional at the time.
For example you might see yourself being more patient in the checkout line at the supermarket or more patient with your young daughter as you were getting her to help clean up her room, or being more assertive and speaking out more boldly in your staff meeting at work.
This little bit of effort to visualize yourself doing a more conscious and intentional job in alignment with your chosen values and goals creates a subconscious image that will help to more easily evoke the desired behavior the next time you find yourself in a similar situation.
2. Visualize Your Next Day the Night Before
Another powerful tool to keep you focused on creating your life exactly as you want it to be is to take a few minutes after you have planned your next day’s schedule and visualize the entire day going exactly the way you want it to.
Visualize everyone being there when you call them, every meeting starting and ending on time, all of your priorities being handled, all of your errands being completed with ease, making every sale, and so on.
See yourself performing at your best in every situation you will encounter during the next day.
This will give your subconscious all night to work on creating ways to make it all happen just as you have visualized it. We also now know that every thought you think is broadcast out to the universe on what my friend and success coach Robert Scheinfeld calls the “inner-net.”
So when you are visualizing your ideal day, you are also sending out your intention to the other people and into the universe!
Try This Night Meditation for Yourself!
Get into the habit now of nighttime meditation. It will make a huge difference in your life. If you want to learn more about meditation click the button below to download my free 4 Step Meditation for Beginners.
Try this “Evening Review Meditation” before you go to bed tonight. And then take a few moments to visualize yourself completing all of your goals for the next day. Come back and share your experience of how it felt in the comments section.
As the beloved originator of the Chicken Soup for the Soul® series, Jack Canfield fostered the emergence of inspirational anthologies as a genre—and watched it grow to a billion dollar market. As the driving force behind the development and delivery of over 100 million books sold through the Chicken Soup for the Soul® franchise, Jack Canfield is uniquely qualified to talk about success. Jack is America’s #1 Success Coach and wrote the life-changing book The Success Principles: How to Get From Where You Are to Where You Want to Be and Jack speaks around the world on this subject. Check out his newest book The 30-Day Sobriety Solution: How to Cut Back or Quit Drinking in the Privacy of Your Own Home. Follow Jack at www.jackcanfield.com and sign up for his free resources today!
Image courtesy of bruce mars.
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