81: How to Clean Out Your ‘Thought Closet’ So You Can Stay Positive More Easily (Jennifer Rothschild)
Do you ever catch yourself filled with poisonous thoughts about your worthiness or capability as a person, mom or employee? In this episode of Vibrant Happy Women Jennifer Rothschild shares how bad moments don't have to mean bad days filled with endless negativity and how she overcomes her own negative self talk by cleaning out her “thought closet.”
Jennifer Rothschild is the author of 14 books with combined sales of over a half-million units, including the newly released Me, Myself and Lies; What to Say When You Talk to Yourself, best-selling Lessons I Learned in the Dark and DVD-enhanced curriculum product Walking by Faith. Springfield, mo married to her husband Dr. Phil for 31 years and she’s a mom of 2 boys and a little dog named Lucy. You can explore more at www.JenniferRothschild.com
Nuggets of Wisdom from Jennifer:
“'Sometimes, God allows what he hates, to accomplish what he loves.' Even though it reminds us of those hard things in life, it really is an optimistic way to look at them. That nothing is ever truly lost.”
“Focus on what really matters. Receive joy. Have a sense of humor. Find the value in everything I can. You absolutely see what you look for.”
“When hard stuff happens, there’s always more questions than answers.”
“I'll have bad moments, but I don't have bad days.”
“I realized, in my life, I was telling myself a lot of lies. Once I began to be aware of how I was talking to myself, often unkind, self slandering – ways I would talk to myself that I would never talk to someone else, but I would speak that way to me – when I began to notice the habit, that’s when I began this journey of learning the importance of what I say to myself. I have this thought closet. ”
“Grace is just giving us ourselves kindness. The biblical definition of Grace is truly unmerited favor. You don’t have to earn it, you don’t have to deserve it. You’re just treated kindly and you treat others kindly because of your inherent value. When we treat ourselves that way. It can really change the way we talk to ourselves.”
Some of Jennifer's Favorite Things:
“iPhone in bed with me. I use it as an alarm. Using my iPhone, I like to read the scriptures. I have an app on my phone and it will begin to read. It helps me settle and focus my mind.”
“I have to have coffee to function. When I’m done, with my responsibilities for the kids out of the way, then I will go into my office. Usually I light a hazelnut candle. I play spa music. I turn on my computer and deal with writing, journaling, emailing and forgot to mention, I actually do shower right after coffee. My office is my safe place, my room of peace.”
Jennifer's Favorite Books:
“CS Lewis books, his Narnia Series – The Silver Chair”
“The Great Divorce by CS Lewis”
Best advice received:
“Mature people say no and don’t feel guilty.” – Jennifer's dad
“You can do anything you put your mind to.” – Jennifer's mom
What does it mean to be a Vibrant, Happy Woman?
“To be a Vibrant, Happy Woman for me means to be an authentic woman because to be a vibrant, happy woman does not mean you are on top of the world all the time. And it doesn’t mean you do everything well. To be vibrant, to be happy, to me is being authentic – because that is when we are the most accepting of others. That’s when we are most lovable. That’s when we represent our real beauty.”
A Challenge from Jennifer:
“It’s ok to be who we are. We’re not the only ones who struggle. To be authentic is to accept yourself, give yourself grace and realize that it doesn’t have to be well with your circumstances for it to be well with your soul.”
Resources
Get organized this fall with your own copy (and video instructions) of my kids' chore chart.
Me, Myself and Lies; What to Say When You Talk to Yourself
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About jen
Jen Riday is a mom of 6 and life coach who loves to help women experience massive happiness as they let go of stress, sadness or other chronic emotions of negativity.
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