12 Powerful Steps To Get Rid Of Negative Thoughts Instantly!

how to get rid of negative thoughts

Are you going through a rough patch? Do you struggle with negative thoughts and emotions and wonder if there are any effective ways to get rid of them? If so, you are not alone my friend.

Practical life can sometimes throw curveballs at us in the form of challenging circumstances, past memories, and difficult people.

During such times, it’s common to get stuck in the loop of ongoing negative thoughts and emotions which directly influence the overall quality of our personal and professional lives. It’s important to overcome those unwanted voices in the head and kick them out for good!

These 11 simple yet powerful steps will help you get rid of negative thoughts and break free from any disempowering state of mind almost immediately as you apply them.

Try to implement them collectively to get the best results!

1. Be Aware of the Negative Thoughts 

Awareness of Negative Thoughts

The first step to getting rid of negative thoughts is to know they are there and begin to see them as a separate entity from yourself.

It’s important to realize that those negative thoughts do not necessarily represent reality. They are just an interpretation out of all the countless other possible interpretations.

Most people often hold on to negative thoughts and defend them as if those thoughts are a part of their identity. Associating your identity with such thoughts only disempowers you and makes you feel helpless.

It not only closes us off from learning and moving on, but it also makes our experience of life all the more negative.

So from now on, whenever you experience negative emotions, begin to observe your thoughts from a neutral stance. Avoid judging yourself and just notice them curiously.

Pay attention to how your mind is processing those thoughts, and how one thought leads to the next. Establish awareness of your mind.

2. Analyze the Impact of Negative Thinking by Asking These Questions

How negative thinking affects our life

Observe how your mind is interpreting a certain experience or memory, and then notice the impact it has on your mental and emotional state. 

Ponder over the following questions:

1What will be the consequences if you feed these negative thoughts and allow them to wander in your mind? 
2How will it influence the quality of your life?
3How will it influence your relationships?
4How will it impact your workflow and productivity?
5Do you want all of the above consequences in your life?
6Will you settle for a compromised quality of life when you know you can greatly enhance your life experience by shifting the state of your mind?

3. Get Away from Negative & Toxic People

Avoid Negative People

Negative people can come in two forms:

  1. Those who are just plain toxic or manipulative, and try to take advantage of you or get under your skin deliberately. 
  2. Those who might be good at heart and have good intentions, but their own outlook on life and personal beliefs are just too negative. 

The thing is, it can often be easier to distance yourself from the first type of people ASAP. But when it comes to those who are close to you and who wish you well but are indirectly having a negative influence on your state of mind, that is when it gets a bit tricky to deal with.

It’s comforting to have someone who understands your challenges, but sometimes our sympathizers and well-wishers can subconsciously have a negative impact on us. 

During our vulnerable states, our subconscious mind is more receptive to suggestions, and if the advice and suggestions we are getting are from people who have negative beliefs and opinions, and a negative outlook on life, our mind is going to absorb all that negativity.

“It’s much better to be the optimist who is sometimes wrong than a pessimist who is always right.”

Their influence might be keeping us in self-pity and in a “victim” state of mind.

Their presence constantly reminds us of our problems and so we keep talking about our problems with them. Their constant sympathy gives us an excuse to justify our negative state, which keeps us stuck in misery. 

Identify any toxic and negative people in your life and keep a healthy distance from them. You don’t have to cut ties, just create some space.

4. Avoid Traps of Ego

Avoid negative self talk

The ego is what usually holds us back from letting go of negative thoughts. Anger, self-pity, blame, and animosity are all different colors of ego trying to justify our misery.

Allow yourself to be flexible and receptive to the change that you are trying to make in your mental and emotional state. Often, we stand in the way of our own happiness by allowing our EGO to have too much power over our lives. 

And when EGO is in power, it wants to justify itself and resist change. The ego wants to hold on to anger, grudge, animosity, self-pity, and blame.

Don’t let that happen. Be aware of the ego and keep it under your control instead of the other way around.

You’ll be surprised at how easy it is to let go of negative thoughts and move on once you learn to tame your ego and cultivate intellectual flexibility.

5. Break Your Pattern

Shift your state of mind

We are often caught up in the loop of thoughts and emotions that seem to go on and on forever. One thought leads to another, one feeling leads to the next. It won’t end until we end it ourselves by breaking the ice. 

Look at the negative thoughts and emotions as a Pattern that can be broken and shaken up.

You don’t have to wait for the negative thoughts to go away on their own. You don’t have to be at the mercy of chance, a chance to feel good. You can interrupt those disempowering patterns at your will and change your state instantly.

Yep, INSTANTLY!

Let’s say you’re feeling down. Notice your body language in that state.

  • Are your shoulders hanging?
  • Are you slouching or lying down?
  • Is your face all tense or gloomy? 

Now to break this state, this “pattern”, force yourself to get up immediately, stand tall with your shoulders back, your head held high, and start marching actively in your place.

Notice how the pattern shifts immediately, the negative thoughts, and emotions leave you, and your overall state shifts to a more energetic one. 

On the other hand, if you are angry, sit down, drink some water, and go for a quick shower. 

If you are having anxious thoughts, just close your eyes and begin to breathe deeply into your belly, letting go of the external world for a few minutes. Notice how suddenly that anxious state of mind will shift to a more calmer and relaxed state.

Jump out of your pattern, shake yourself up. Break the chains!

6. Channel Your Emotions Through Creativity

Beat Negativity with Creativity

Often negative thoughts and emotions carry a lot of energy or force within them that might have the potential to propel you to make some shifts in your life, make a decision and take action.

Or you simply need some catharsis and a way to let it all out.

Instead of just wasting all that build-up, and letting it out in unproductive or self-sabotaging ways, utilize that energy in more proactive and creative ways. Ways that’ll benefit you and possibly other people. 

A lot of great things in the history of humanity emerged from great people suffering through painful emotions which they learned to translate into something of great value, not just for themselves but for other people as well. 

For the sake of keeping things to the point here, I have written an entire guide on how you can channel your emotions and get positive outcomes from negative emotions. I have also listed 18 ideas that’ll help you get started right away. Make sure you check it out:

How To Channel Your Emotions Constructively – 18 Ideas To Get Positive Outcome From Negative Emotions

7. Go for a Walk

Go for a walk to get rid of negative thoughts

Allow your mind to have some fresh air and get some movement in your body through a quick walk.

Usually, when we are feeling low, we’d want to stay at home isolated, lying in bed, but often that kind of isolation is not a good idea as it pushes us further into a depressed state.

Avoid falling into the trap of isolation and allow yourself to go out for at least a refreshing walk.

Walking is also a great and simple way to instantly shift your state by balancing out the flow of energy through your body and allowing you some space to clear your head. 

If you want to move on from negative thoughts, get your body moving.

8. Surround Yourself With Positive, Uplifting People

Surround yourself with positive people

If you have friends that are positive and uplifting, those who understand and motivate you, then great! If not, then just find a place where you can be in the proximity of positive people, you don’t have to know them personally. Just cherish their presence and allow them to influence you in a positive way. 

Attend a seminar. Join a course. Take part in a non-profit project. If you have a hobby, join a local group with similar interests and attend the meetups. Read the biography of an uplifting person, or read a book on personal development. Heck even watch a good youtube video from someone positive.

(Online Life Guide Youtube channel also has some positive animated videos for you, just saying!)

9. Consume Uplifting Content

Consume positive and uplifting content

Avoid reading or watching the news and any sort of negative stuff on TV or the internet.

Surround yourself with positive and uplifting content whether it be intellectual content or even just entertainment.

Choose consciously what you entertain yourself with because that is the information that you are allowing into your brain and it will directly affect your mental and emotional state.

10. Avoid Music with Negative Lyrics

Avoid sad music

If you notice, the lyrics of most of the songs are focused on misery, loss, breakup, depression, vengeance, getting filthy rich, and being arrogant.

Since so many people find it relatable and validating, they keep on listening to them over and over again.

The lyrics, played repeatedly, act as hypnotic suggestions to the subconscious mind, so in essence, people who listen to such music are, in fact, programming themselves for more misery and a negative state of mind.

Even in general, without such lyrics, it’s still too much noise for the brain. I’ve personally found that my brain gets constantly occupied by subconsciously repeating the music/rhythm over and over again, even in sleep, and when I left the habit of listening or playing music, after the initial withdrawal, there was so much calm, silence, and peace of mind. 

Give it a try. Avoid any music completely for a couple of weeks, and you’ll notice the difference.

11. Reduce Social Media Consumption

Reduce Social Media consumption

If you’re going through a rough patch, it would be better if you just leave social media entirely. If you have to use it for work purposes then restrict its usage.

Endless scrolling through the feed, watching other people pretending to live a perfect life while we face life challenges, is not a good idea, as you can guess. 

Much of social media tends to put us in an inferiority complex. It influences us to compare our not-so-perfect lives, with the seemingly perfect lives that people tend to live in their “perfect photos” and gain some attention and glory that has no meaning in it (most of the time).

Obviously, we are not gonna throw everyone under the bus here. Some social media influencers who promote personal development, and uplifting and enlightening content are good to follow. Hence I used the word “Restrict”. In simple words, just don’t overdo it.

Oh, and turn off the notifications for your social media apps from your phone settings. You’ll thank me later for this hack!

12. Use Affirmations to Get Rid of Negative Thoughts

Use affirmations to get rid of negative thoughts

Affirmations are a powerful way to shift the state of your mind at any given time. There are enough research and studies available on the impact of affirmations on our moods and emotions.

Check out my Top 75 Affirmations for letting go of Past, Hurt Feelings, Anxiety, Guilt & Worries.

If you’re going through Self-Doubt, you can find 70 Affirmations to Get Rid of Self-Doubt Right HERE, in which I have also shared a quick 3-step strategy to eliminate negative self-talk instantly.

Make sure to also check the affirmations section of this blog to find affirmations that are most relevant to your situation.

If you want to share your experience or ideas that you use to cope with negativity and shift your state, share it in the comments below, I’d love to know.

Talk to you soon!

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3 Comments

  1. Hello, this is good info, info I did not know of.
    To my understanding, what is an EGO refered to or where is it found upon!??

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