Naleighna Kai's Literary Cafe Magazine NK LCM February 2018 Anniversary Issue | Page 9
Janine A. Ingram
My grandmother always said, “Life is an inside job.
Fix your mind; you fix your life.” These thoughts still
carry in my mind.
Has life experiences smacked you into reality? Have
you ever gotten a “reality smack” from someone you
liked and respected a lot?
We don’t always “enjoy” these little wake-up jolts.
Sometimes, the truth can be painful. But from time
to time, we all need a reality smack. We need people
to hold us to a higher standard of behavior, or else we
tend to fall short of our potential.
It was in my pain where I learned to fix my mind. I
heard this a long time ago that PAIN is an acronym
for Pay Attention Inward Now. Whew! Why is it
that we must be pushed around by PAIN before we
learn? Because we, as spiritual beings, learn from
those painful experience more so than the joyous
ones. Part of that pain gets us to reflect, recommit,
and sometimes focus on loving the most important
person in the equations—ourselves.
Loving myself healed the very essence of my being.
Love awakened the Goddess in me. Love taught me
how to ask empowering questions as opposed to the
traditional “Why Me?” Instead, I ask, “What is the
Universe trying to express through me?” or “What
is the lesson?” Love taught me how to trust in the
process of the unknown. Love that taught me how to
see myself as a Divine Gift to the planet.
So you ask, “How do you fix your mind?” First, by
changing your thoughts.
Transform your life simply by looking into a mirror.
Mirror work—looking deeply into your eyes and
repeating positive affirmations—is the most effective
method I’ve found for learning to love yourself and
see the world as a safe and loving place. Simply
put, whatever we say or think is an affirmation,
so making certain that those words are positive is
important. All your self-talk, the dialogue in your
head, is a stream of affirmations. These affirmations
are messages to your subconscious that establish
habitual ways of thinking and behaving. Positive
affirmations plant healing thoughts and ideas that
support you in developing self-confidence and self-
esteem and creating peace of mind and inner joy.
The most powerful affirmations are those you say
out loud when standing in front of a mirror.
The moment when I made the decision to embrace
my grandmother’s words that love is an inside job is
the moment I began to own my voice. A voice that
awakened my inner lover. When I began to love and
honor me, it created a shift in how the world, people,
and experience started loving me as well.
I invite you to make loving yourself a daily ritual.
I invite you to wake each morning and ask yourself,
“How can I attract more love and joy into my life?”
Then watch things change as others begin to show
you exactly what you’ve requested.
Loving yourself is the greatest revolution and it
will not be televised. That wonderful movement will
happen right in front of your mirror
Janine A. Ingram is the author of bestselling inspiration book, Born to be Rich, wife to a wondeful husband
for twenty years, and mother to three uniquely beautiful and talented daughters. She is also the founder and
facilitator of The Love Journey, Inc., a yearly event in Chicago and weekly prayer line for those who focus on
healing, love and forgiveness. [email protected]
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