So.
As you may know, I’ve been going through some health stuff.
I’m not ready to get specific because when I get specific, I get sad and I really don’t like being sad.
One of the things I do to stay positive — which not only helps with the healing process, it simply makes manifesting all manner of things happen much faster *and* it makes me way more fun to be around — is a process for turning poopy thoughts around.
I came up with this when my landlord was pissing me off by taking forEVER to get to some repairs. Stupid stuff. But it can sometimes be just that kind of stupid stuff that just sticks in my craw, festers, and makes me downright crankypants.
And that’s no fun for ANYONE.
So I grabbed a pen and wrote up a never-fail method for turning thoughts around. And it’s simple.
I feel poopy about ____________. (In this case, my landlord.)
Option 1: Think a better thought about ___________. (My landlord.)
Option 2: Think about anything else.
As thoughts return to poopy feelings about ____________. (My landlord.)
Repeat options.
Choose again.
Repeat ’til all better. NO MORE POOPY!
Those blanks — since the time I was crankypants about my landlord’s ass-dragging about repairing things — have been filled with a bunch o’ WONDERFUL stuff for me, and for my clients. I’ve seen SMFA ninjas use this super easy formula to improve their outlook on auditions, agent meetings, gigs they didn’t land, you name it!
And recently, I’ve gotten the chance to use it on my health. I’ll tell ya, it works! Now, I sometimes have to use it every couple of minutes (because my mind *really* wants to run right back to those poopy feelings sometimes — and this tends to be true for everyone facing anything that’s really current, really right in your face, really all anyone else is talking about, really important, whatever), but it ALWAYS works!
I mean, I was in the floor doing my PT homework just before grabbing the laptop to type this up and Keith kept count of repetitions by kissing me for each one! So, how could I have any sort of poopy thoughts about what I was experiencing while there was love being lavished upon me, each rep?
What can you do to turn around thoughts that aren’t serving you?
Here’s what I mean by that question: Sometimes, there are things we can do something about right now. Y’know, your footage is not its best. Great! Your work is to at least come up with a gameplan for shooting something with your friends one weekend so you have more footage to choose from. Or meet with an editor to discuss how to recut your footage to make it stronger. Or write an easy-to-shoot scene. Gameplan. Something!
But when there are things you can’t do anything about right now… something going on in the world that makes you feel powerless, the feedback you got about your last audition, being dropped by your agent just as you thought you were poised for a really busy pilot season together, or even some crappy health news… your work is to either be grateful for the opportunity you WILL have to do something about that bad news, thrilled that you know the worst audition you’ll ever have for that casting director is behind you, open to the next great hell-yes agent you’ll land after you do some ninja targeting, or happy you’re surrounded by so much love and support as you face something challenging…
OR…
your work is to think about your sweet pet, your bestie, those amazing shoes you got on sale that just really make you happy for no good reason, your favorite song, a child’s laughter, a LUSH bubble bath, or anything else you’re looking forward to or that you remember fondly. Something. Anything. Change the radio station when what’s playing is making you feel poopy.
That’s absolutely within your control.
So, with all that in mind, share with me some other ways you’ve been able to turn poopy thoughts around. Or share how this system fails you so I can try and help! Comments are open below!
Quick news before we charge into the weekend! I’ll soon be announcing the exact dates for all the fun stuff we’ll be doing in Chicago, New York, Toronto, Berlin, and London, so stay tuned! As for awesome badassery closer to (MY) home, if you’ve not yet scored your EARLY BIRD tickets for the LA Actors Meet & Greet, please hop to it! I’m so excited to get to share this time with y’all, thanks to The Headshot Truck, LA Reel House, and Talentboom!
Oh, what fun we will have!
Much love, beauties. Thank you for the tremendous good vibes you keep flowing my way. I feel them and they are — and YOU are — greatly appreciated.
🙂
Bonnie Gillespie is living her dreams by helping others figure out how to live theirs. Wanna work with Bon? Start here. Thanks!
I’m so sorry you’re feeling poopy. Sending you healthy happy thoughts and hope you feel better soon! One thing I do when something doesn’t go my way (like when I drove off to an out of town audition with my husband’s keys in my pocket) is think about how it may have been a blessing. Perhaps my husband was not meant to be on the road that day or it was lucky he could not leave my son in daycare that day, etc. I also think about the times that things went really poopy for me and I came out the other end better for having lived through it, like when I was 3 months pregnant with our first and suddenly we found ourselves homeless due to our landlord’s negligence. Then we started losing clients because we had to move back home for a couple of months and I thought we’d never get back on our feet. Now, instead of living in a poopy condemned duplex with dangerous wiring, we’re in a beautiful home because we realized we were so complacent in our cheap duplex that we weren’t charging an appropriate amount for our work. It took getting kicked out of that place to realize our full potential! I keep that memory with me and think on it whenever I feel like I’ve lost everything. Sometimes, when the storm clears, new and exciting flowers grow.
This is a great reminder that we always have the power to choose how we focus our thoughts and energy. Keep resting and taking care of yourself mercilessly. I just got my ticket for the meet and greet, and I can’t wait to see you!
Bonnie! Your article made me think about something therapy which sounds similar called “thought” blocking. Hoping this might add and help some ninja’s out there. When the thought comes in you have a gesture or a key word, perhaps a clap, (some people choose to have rubber band on their wrist and they can gently slap the rubber band), a gentle pinch, something that tells the body stop which tells the mind stop, and then you immediately start doing a task that involves a thought process, doing a crossword puzzle, engaging in a conversation about something totally different, basically engage in an activity that will for that period of time force your thoughts to be elsewhere. It’s about making this a habit as you mention in your article!
Keep up the free mindspace guys, it’s all in our control. We are our thoughts. Thanks Bonnie for the great reminder!
xxx
I love the power in cultivating thoughts and training your brain towards the helpful and positive, however I also think it’s important to note that it’s also okay to have ‘poopy’ thoughts and even sometimes necessary to allow yourself to sit with them for a while, especially in the case of trauma and mental illness; if we get too caught up in escaping from what we perceive to be negative thoughts/emotions, we might fail to accept, learn and grow from that experience, however painful.
Having said that, I am totally on board with this and am practising my own version wherein I write down the negative thought and then pretend it’s my best friend’s thought and answer it as I would them. A bit like what Elizabeth Gilbert does in ‘Eat, Pray, Love’ when she’s doing all that vital mental groundwork before her big trip, accessing that kind, quiet inner voice. I find that I tend to be much more compassionate towards others than myself and taking a step sideways allows me to perceive my thoughts from a kinder angle and then decide what steps to take such as what you have so helpfully written 🙂
Amelia, I love the idea of trying to find the blessing in something that could be perceived as negative. There’s always a silver lining!
Rock on with that thought blocking, Elena!! <3
Love your approach to those negatives thoughts, Lore. But I agree, it's definitely helpful to feel those feelings when you need to. Part of our work in Get in Gear for the Next Tier includes setting a time limit and clocking in for those feelings. Usually, for me, it's about 24 hours. When I experience a setback, I tell myself, "Ok, I'm treating myself to a pity party about this for today, and today only. Tomorrow, it's back to work."
Oh Bonnie I really hope you feel better! I personally have a life coach that uses the Byron Katie Thought Work to turn my thoughts around. That, in combination with your program, has helped me tremendously. Please take care!
Elana
“…taking care of yourself mercilessly.” Ann, I don’t know what it is about this phrasing, but I just love it. Perhaps because it reminds me of the word “relentless” which is precisely how we must approach caring for our physical, mental and emotional selves.
Bon’s formula is so beautiful in it’s simplicity. It’s often the simplest shifts that yield the greatest results when it comes to our minds – simple shifts made consistently over time, again and again and again.
“…taking care of yourself mercilessly.” Ann, I don’t know what it is about this phrasing, but I just love it. Perhaps because it reminds me of the word “relentless” which is precisely how we must approach caring for our physical, mental and emotional selves.
Bon’s formula is so beautiful in its simplicity. It’s often the simplest shifts that yield the greatest results when it comes to our minds – simple shifts made consistently over time, again and again and again.