Today, an acquaintance mentioned my weight loss and asked, “How did you do it?”

“I did it the old fashioned way,” I said.

“The old fashioned way?” she asked.

“Yep,” I said. “I changed the way I was eating, and I started exercising everyday.”

And while that’s true, I realized this afternoon that it’s not the whole truth.

I was looking through my stack of life-changing index cards. These are cards that I review on a regular basis. I have drawn stick figures on these cards with captions picturing goals that I want to attain.

I got this idea from my friend Pat Hicks. Pat has used this particular practice, plus other practices that he learned from Matt Furey, to become the premier provider of high end reclaimed hardwood floors in Texas. It seems so simple, but it works.

And today, as I was flipping through my cards, one in particular jumped out at me. It showed a very buff looking stick figure with a weight and blood pressure goal as the caption. I had not really thought about the role this particular card has played in my success until today.

When I started using this card, I weighed over 230 lbs. Today I weigh 200 lbs, and my blood pressure is significantly lower. I am well over half way to the weight goal as stated on the card, and I know I will get there.

Here’s my point. You have probably read lots of personal development methods for changing your life. You have probably tried many of these methods, and, sadly enough, you have probably stopped using them before you reached your goal.

The trick is to stay with something until it works. You can’t fail if you don’t quit. If a goal is worth setting, it’s worth doing whatever it takes to change your thinking enough to make it happen.

That’s what the cards do. They help you become your focus. Or as Phil Linklater posted in his response to my last blog entry, “You become what you think about – the most.”

The change is as quick as a thought, but it may need to really sink in deep for you to believe it. That’s what the cards do for me.

So, the next time someone asks me how I’ve lost weight, I’ll explain once again  that I’ve changed my eating and exercise regime.  But I’ll also have to tell them about that simple little index card and how it helped me change my thinking.

And when you change your thinking, you can change anything.

What you think is what you are. Change your life right now by changing your thinking. You can change anything at the speed of thought.

It was not premeditated; it just occurred. But now, I feel it lifting.

I believe in doing what feels right. I believe that you should do what you want to do.

I want to blog because I have things to tell you – things that will help you live the positive life you want to live.

And this is what I want to tell you in this post: your circumstances don’t matter as much as your thoughts and feelings.

I will expand this line of thought in subsequent posts, but for now, mull this over. Circumstances don’t matter.

So don’t fret over circumstances. Instead, focus on developing positive thoughts and positive feelings.

Don’t wait until you finish school or get a new job or lose 10 lbs.

Do it now.

Don’t live life vicariously through empty images on TV or the internet or magazines. Live life yourself, full-out, right now.

Why be absorbed by fantasy words and deeds of fantasy people?

Engage real people. Love them. Let them love you.

Engage ideas. Give yourself the gift of deep thought. Hold a thought through it’s completion.

Concentrate more on specifics and less on generalities.

Respect your own ideas. Respect your own beliefs. Don’t look to others to provide your thoughts and your beliefs.

Trust yourself to make choices.

There is power in choosing.

And we always get to choose.

Don’t wait.

Don’t hesitate.

Engage.

Do it now.

They are convinced that 2010 will finally be the year that real and lasting change happens.

Many will try to change their diets or their activity levels or their work habits or their approach to relationships, and some will succeed in these new endeavors.

But the vast majority will fail.

Why?

Why will so many invest so much initial effort but never keep the pace that leads to real success?

The reason is simple and profound.

Those who fail try to change their actions without changing their thinking.

Everything in your life, for good or for ill, begins as a thought. If you want to be healthier, wealthier, wiser, and more loving in 2010, you need to change how you think. All of the physical activity and positive intentions will ultimately fail unless you first change your thoughts.

Would you like some help to get started with real change? Get a free copy of As A Man Thinketh: The Study Guide by filling in the form to the right of this post.  That’s a great way to start changing your thinking.

If you want a little something more, check out 7 Days Away From Powerfully Positive Living (a quick and simple jump-start to a better life) or Mastering Your Power of Release (an expanded version of my approach to changing your life with lots of extra information from ten other personal transformation teachers). Or do a little web research and find something else that will help you change the way you think.

Just know that real change begins in your thinking.

If you ignore that fact, you will fail.

When you embrace that fact, your success is inevitable.

Now, it has grown into a daily practice.

And this practice is changing everything.

You may remember that I designed a ‘thinking sabbatical’ back in December to coincide with my 28 Day Transformation Experiment. It was all about transformation and manifestation, and the ‘thinking sabbatical’ aspect came about through a simple inner urge. The universe sang and I got up to dance.

I think I’m on to something big because everything has changed. My life has gone from ‘very good’ to ‘great,’ and I am enjoying more of the things we so often ‘work’ to get: more peace, more abundance, more passion, more zest, more joy, more happiness, more patience, more manifestation.

And it all started because I was willing to take carve out a specific time to simply be quiet and think. Now, my thinking sabbatical is an everyday habit. It is a joy to me.

I’m continuing to polish the process, and I will share it with you in the near future. First I have to get through my election in May (please see previous posts), and then I intend for my online life to get back to normal.

But, until I have the opportunity to share my process with you properly, why not start cultivating the habit now? Just take a few minutes to relax and breathe; quieten your mind and think. Just see what comes up.

Do you have specific questions?

If so, post them below or feel free to send an email to buz@viralhappiness.com.

We seem to be geared to resist it. We seem to be inclined to walk in place so long that our track becomes a rut. And our rut becomes a trap.

We claim to want to be calmer and more at peace, but we fall into those same old frustrations. We claim to want to do the things that we wish to do, but we don’t do them. We claim to want a direction change, and then we continue walking in the same old, tired direction.

And then often, after encountering frustration upon frustration, we give up. We throw in the towel. We quit. And to soothe ourselves, we make excuses. And, for those of us who have reached a certain age, the classic excuse is: “I guess it’s just too late for me. I’m too set in my ways. I cannot change.”

I just reread what I’ve written to this point, and, if I was inclined to get depressed, I would be. Has it been painful to read? It was painful to write, I can assure you.

It’s easy to get caught in a downward spiral. It’s easy to believe that the chance for change has passed you by. It’s easy to read guru after guru whose lives have been transformed and to wonder why you can’t transform your own life.

But if my 28 day transformation experiment has taught me anything, it’s that transformation is simple. To be honest, it’s not easy, as we define easy. It takes effort because you have to think, and thinking is the hardest work you’ll ever do. But it is simple.

Let me repeat that: ‘changing your life is simple.’

Today, while going through some papers, I found something I had written during my 28 day experiment. And it synchronistically complements the key to simple change. Here’s the quote:

“If you fear that you have wasted your life up until this point, then stop wasting it right now.”

Do you ever have the feeling that your life has been wasted? Do you ever feel that you have squandered your potential? Do you feel that your opportunity to make your mark on life has passed you by? Then NOW is the time to do things differently. Not tomorrow, not next week, but NOW.

Nothing is done ‘tomorrow.’ The only time to do anything is now. Action takes place now, and there’s never any type of change without action. So, if you feel that you have not done what you are capable of doing, begin doing it NOW!

During my 28 day transformation experiment (and beyond), I have been reading and studying voraciously. (I’ll share more about that in a subsequent post.) Last night I was reviewing some information from Wayne Dyer’s book, ‘The Power of Intention.” Here’s a quote that reveals the key to positive change.

“Act as if your desire is already here…treat yourself as if you already are what you’d like to become.”

Did you get that? Think about it this way, what kind of person do you need to be to accomplish what you’d like to accomplish? Do you need to be a person who is not addicted to TV, anger, and procrastination? Then give those things up. Do you need to be someone who is mindful, thoughtful, and meditative? Then take on those qualities immediately.

In a previous post, I have mentioned a good and wise friend of mine named Mr. 20/20. This is a man who is so dedicated to the importance of getting a ‘vision’ in his own life and helping others get their ‘vision,’ he legally changed his name to Mr. 20/20. He is also one of the most brilliant, loving, and open people I’ve ever met, and, one night on a conference call,  he spoke one phrase that totally captures the art of positive change.

During our conversation, I mentioned something I was trying to accomplish, and he offered the following insight:

“Buz, be your emerging self.”

That one phrase has helped me in countless situations, and that simple philosophy is key to my transformation and to your transformation. Whenever you are faced with a challenge or a decision of any kind, be your emerging self. Decide what the ‘dream you’ would do and do that. Don’t act like the person you’d like to change; act like the person you want to be.

Do you want to be a more positive person? Then act like a more positive person.

Do you want to be a more loving person? Then act like a more loving person.

Do you want to be wiser, happier, and calmer? Then act like a wiser, happier, and calmer person.

That’s how you become who you want to be.

And it’s never too late to change. It’s never too late to make decisions that will take you where you want to go. It’s never too late to make the choices that will transfrom you into the person you long to be. But you must start now. This very minute. Immediately begin making decisions like the person you want to be.

Are you resisting the possibility that you can change? Then this is your first practice. Decide if the ‘emerging you’ would resist or accept positive change, and then be that emerging you. I think the ‘you’ that you want to be would welcome and embrace positive change.

It really is that simple, and it’s never too late to begin.

‘Encompassing all progress and transformation is the practice of constant, never-ending education.’

Don’t become satisfied with what you think you know. If what you currently know is enough, then you would already be where you want to be. You would have already accomplished everything you wish to accomplish. Reach further by exploring more. Be willing to question your current beliefs.

Don’t be afraid of ideas. Good ideas will appeal to you and stick with you. Bad ideas will fall by the wayside. Knowledge is never something to fear.

I have much to share with you about the past 28 days. The full report will take more reflection and thought on my part, and I plan to offer insights as they are ready to share. But, initially, I want you to understand that over-arching all progress and all successful transformation is the practice of constant, never-ending education.

Expect another update within the next few days.