In these hard times

I don’t think I’ve talked to a single practitioner lately who hasn’t complained about the bad economy, the “hard times” or the financial crisis (in their practice, the country and/or the world). Patients aren’t coming in, revenues are down, they can’t afford the rent, they’re facing ruin.

In the past, I would’ve joined them in a good moan, lamenting my own financial losses and piling my worries on top of theirs.

Not any longer. I’m more and more convinced that this type of poverty talk is self-perpetuating. Call it the power of concentrated thinking, the law of attraction or whatever you want, the more we focus on lack and scarcity, the more we experience them.

The opposite is true as well. When we choose to think about abundance and success, we draw that to us.

There are many explanations for why this happens, and it may be as simple as the fact that our words and thoughts program our subconscious, which (even though we may not be aware of it) determines our actions. If we’re convinced that times are tough and our business is declining, we’ll most likely make decisions or take actions consistent with that belief. We’ll sabotage our own efforts without even realizing it.

Scientists have determined that the subconscious mind is 30,000 times more powerful than the conscious mind. The conscious mind works at slow speed, processes information at a mere 40 bits per second. Operating at 40 million bits/sec., the subconscious is a rocket booster in comparison.

Motivational guru Tony Robbins says that “All personal changes must take place at the subconscious level.” I extend that to professional changes as well. If we want success and wealth, we have to drill it down to our subconscious level that we can reach those goals. We have to replace our negative self-talk with positive reprogramming.

Personally, I couldn’t just jump from “woe is me, the economy’s rotten” to “I’m a magnet for money” in one leap. I had to take it a small step at a time. When I looked at things realistically, I had to acknowledge that many practitioners are hurting financially right now. But there are also doctors whose practices and businesses are actually growing and becoming more prosperous every day. The fact they’re doing it proves it can be done. So, it was logical to think that I could do it, too. One step closer to positive thinking.

Also, while it’s true that many patients are putting off needed care because they, too, are infected by the rampant poverty consciousness, despite the “recession” these same people are spending more on things like consumer electronics (up 12% this year over last year), chocolate (Hershey Co. profits in the first three months of 2009 surged 20%), wine (U.S. sales of California wines up 2% in 2009), and even gifts for their pets (an 11% increase according to an Animalfair.com readership study).

Whether they spend their money on health care or rhinestone-studded doggie collars is a matter of priority, not limitation. And if they’re not making health and wellness a priority, we share in the blame because we’re not educating them as well as we could.

Two steps closer to positive thinking.

Once I convinced my conscious mind of these two facts, I had to work on getting them embedded in my subconscious. That took repetition and vigilance. I constantly caught myself replaying the old tapes about the “hard times” we were in. Each time, I mentally “erased” that thought and replaced it with one of abundance and prosperity.

As my subconscious mind gradually accepted the new “reality,” my actions began aligning with that reality and I made decisions based on optimism rather than fear. It’s still a work in progress, but I’m seeing the results already.

Ask yourself whether you’re deriving any benefit from talking about how you can’t afford things, aren’t doing well, and are having a tough time in this bad economy. If you’re not, what would it cost you to try a more positive outlook for a while?