Let’s talk about love

Hello Mommas!

I have to admit the title of this post may be a little misleading. It may sound like I am going to talk about romantic love, but that is not the topic for today. (Definitely one of these days though!) 

What I actually want to share with you today is how you can intentionally use the word love to shape your thoughts about things that you want to love, like your family, your home, and your life. And also how to feel less attached to things that you don’t want to love because they don’t serve you. Things like watching a lot of TV, or eating too much ice cream.

If I’ve lost you, stay with me….

Love is one of the most powerful words in our language, and you can use it to create powerful results in your life. Just that one word inserted into a sentence can create a certain kind of energy and desire that you can put to work for you whenever you want to generate positive energy.

A few of the dictionary definitions of love are…

• To like or desire enthusiastically.

• To have an intense emotional attachment to.

• To delight in; take pleasure in.

With definitions like those, love is a word that is sure to trigger good vibes. That means when you think that you love something, you are probably going to feel some very good feelings.

You know I’m all about your thoughts, and thoughts are nothing more than sentences in your head. Sometimes one word in a sentence is so powerful that it can literally shift your energy and your focus. Love is one of those kinds of words. Read the sentences below, with an emphasis on the word LOVE and see how they resonate in your mind.

• I LOVE my husband and my kids.

• I LOVE my home.

• I LOVE hiking.(Or yoga, or spin classes or running etc.)

• I LOVE chocolate.

• I LOVE reading.

• I LOVE my job.

• I LOVE to travel.

• I LOVE my body.

How did those sentences sit with you? Isn’t it interesting to note that love is such a strong word that if you don’t love any of those things, you may have had a strong reaction to one or more of those statements? That is super good to recognize because if you don’t love one of those things and you want to, (like your body for example) I’m going to tell you how to use the power of your thoughts to help you get there eventually. 

When we say that we LOVE something it changes our behavior around that thing.

For example, when I think about how much I LOVE chocolate, it increases my desire for chocolate. If I really dwell on how much I love it, I might even go out of my way to get some or find myself in the kitchen looking for a chocolate fix when I really didn’t intend to eat it.

After recognizing this awhile ago, I started working on toning down my language around chocolate. When I started using less emotional language around chocolate, I found that I didn’t have as many chocolate cravings. Now I try to say things like, I like chocolate, or Chocolate is good. Thoughts like these have less effect on my emotional state and don’t drive my chocolate cravings nearly as much. I’ve also applied this to other things I love that don’t love me back. Things like breads, desserts and movie theater popcorn. It’s really amazing how the power of words can increase or decrease our desire for a certain thing.

So take a minute right now and try this for yourself. Think about something you love that doesn’t serve you. Maybe it’s ice cream or watching too much TV. Say whatever you usually say like I love ice cream or I can’t get enough ice cream. Say it out loud and see if you almost immediately start feeling a desire for ice cream. You can do the same with TV, social media, or whatever you want to use. 

Now try the sentence again with a word that isn’t as strong as love. What happens if you just say Ice cream is good? Or I like ice cream? Does that have a little less impact? I’m really curious to know what you find when you try this. 

And here is another super cool way to think about this. If you already love something, like your kids for example, try putting even more energy and focus into thinking about how much you love them. Whenever you have a loving thought like “Oh my gosh, he/she is soooo cute!!!”, take time to really dwell on that thought for a minute or two. Really savor that thought and the feeling it creates. Doing this will make you more aware of positive emotions and help you generate more of them. 

Anytime you can create more positive thoughts and emotions around your home, family, and life you will be a happier momma!!!

You can use this idea in lots of different contexts. For example, if you are trying to eat better, you can spend more time reminding yourself how much you love salads, and less time dwelling on how much you love chocolate (and movie theater popcorn, and butter, and ice cream..I have issues haha!) If you want to feel more patience with your kids, spend more time thinking about how much you love them, rather than focusing on how many messes they make and how much they fight with each other.

Another way to put this idea to work for you is to help you feel more love and gratitude when something in your life isn’t really what you want it to be. For example with your home. Maybe you think it’s too small, or the floor plan doesn’t really fit your family. If you spend some time thinking about the things you do love about your home, even if it’s just the heat, the lights, and the hot water, you can start to feel more love for your home. Look for all the little things you do love, like the pretty tree in the front yard, or the way the light comes through the kitchen window in the afternoon. Maybe you have a little backyard that is perfect for the kids to have a place to run around. You may never get to I love my home and I never want to leave, but you will probably at least find more enjoyment in the good things your home has to offer.
That’s going to feel a whole lot better than thinking time and time again about the limitations of your home and the things that really aren’t working for you.

As I always say…

Through small and simple things, great things are brought to pass. 

Thoughts are small and simple things but they are the building blocks of your whole life experience. 

Because love is the most motivating, energizing, happy and joyful emotion we can have, anytime we think loving thoughts we will generate positive feelings. When we feel loving feelings, it changes our behavior.

There is so much more I could say about this, but in the interest of time, just know that simply adding or deleting the word LOVE from any thought can help you feel more love where it serves you, and less where it doesn’t.

And again, if I mislead you with the title of this post, remind me later that I said I’d talk about romantic love and how you can use loving thoughts to create more romance and intimacy in your marriage. ;)

As always I’d LOVE to hear your thoughts about this. Drop a comment below or email me at rachel@mom-mindset.com. I’d also LOVE it if you’d share this post using the share buttons on your left and/or subscribe to our newsletter using the newsletter sign up below. 

See you next time!!!

XOXO

Rachel