Mind Your Mindset

When I was doing yard work, a thought popped in my head…yard work is a lot like mindset work.

(1) Yard work and mindset work require effort.

A well-manicured yard won’t happen by accident and neither will a healthy mindset. If you want to make changes, you have to be willing to do the work.

If you don’t put effort into your yard, you know what happens. The weeds will grow out of control, there will be parts of your yard you’re too scared to venture into, and the neighbors will probably start to complain. When it comes to mindset that translates to having your mind be dominated by powerful unhelpful thoughts or being too afraid to do shadow work or face the parts of yourself that you’re not proud of.

(2) Yard work and mindset work require intentionality.

Intention is the act of doing something in a specific way for a specific reason. It’s about knowing what you’re doing and why you’re doing it.

When I’m doing yard work, I’m going to think of everything that needs to be done and do it in the order that makes the most sense. If I don’t put it in order, I may have to repeat tasks.

When it comes to changing your thoughts, you have to do so in a certain way that works with the subconscious mind and not against it.

(3) Yard work and mindset work require specific tools.

With yard work, we use tools. We use a lawnmower, a weed eater, a rake, hedge clippers. We don’t use all the tools to do all the things though. We use specific tools for specific things. We don’t cut the grass with hedge clippers and we don’t cut the bushes with a lawnmower. We make sure to pick the tool that will be most effective for that specific part of the process.

We can use specific tools when it comes to changing our mindset as well. Specific thoughts have to be reframed in a specific way in order to be effective.

(4) Having a well-manicured yard and a healthy mindset require maintenance.

I don't cut my grass and trim my bushes one time and expect that I’ll never have to do it again. I understand it is something I will have to do regularly.

Mindset is the same. I don’t get to make one change in my thoughts and expect that I’ll never have to do it again. I have to monitor what is going on in my head regularly if I want to stay in control of what is occurring there.

(5) You. Are. The. Gardener.

This is where yard work and mindset work vary. When it comes to doing yard work, you have options. You can do it all by yourself, you can enlist friends or family to help you, or you can outsource it completely.

When it comes to your mindset, you are the only gardener and you are 100% responsible for what occurs there. You are responsible for the information you allow to enter in and you are responsible for the words and behaviors that come out. You and only you.

This can be both good and bad news. Bad news because you have to take accountability if you’ve let your thoughts become overgrown, but good news, because no matter what you have done in the past, you have the option to change at any point.

How Therapy Can Help Depression 

If you feel like you’re having a hard time gaining control of your thoughts, depression therapy can help you identify the thoughts that are like weeds in your brain, pull them out, and plant something new. If you have questions about depression counseling or would like to book a session with me, use the Contact Me button below.