Drop The Drama Challenge - December 14-20

Join me in the DROP THE DRAMA CHALLENGE: CURB NEGATIVE THOUGHTS, STOP SH*T TALKING (about yourself and others) and NO GOSSIP.

The challenge begins Monday December 14th (when you wake up) and goes until Sunday December 20th when you go to sleep.

December 14 - December 20: Make an Effort to be more positive. Keep reading for how to do it!

Here’s the deal: Our energy, our world and the way we experience life can completely change if we change our thoughts and be intentional with our words. We have about 60,000 thoughts a day and (wait for it) 80% are negative and 95% are repetitive. Those negative and often repetitive ones are cutting us off from our true selves. Negative mindsets and complaining are often distractions from other things in our lives we’re avoiding. When we begin to remove the cheap drama, we open ourselves up to better energy which allows good stuff to flow in. When you actively work on being less negative, blocks may reveal themselves that have kept you stuck in patterns for years and this DROP THE DRAMA challenge is a great place to start. So, I’m starting and I hope you’ll join me so we can do it together.

How it Works:

Starting on Monday December 14th from the moment you wake up, try this with me: No projecting disasters, no shit-talking (saying negative things about yourself and others) and if gossip begins, opt out and definitely don't start it. Try not to roll your eyes or say “Ew, David” type stuff (this will be a big one for me). There are no real rules, just try to be more intentional about your thoughts and words. See how it makes you feel. Do it for a week, until you go to bed on Sunday December 20th. On Monday December 21st if you have the urge to gossip PLEASE CALL ME. Kidding. The idea behind trying this for a week is really to create a new habit of more positive thoughts to create a more positive mindset. Hopefully this becomes a way of life, not a challenge.

Where it began:

I was recently listening to a Louise Hay lecture called "The Power of your Spoken Word" and she basically said, "What we think about, what we say, how we say it and to whom has a great impact on our energy, what we put into the world and what we get back." I started to cringe because I know what she said is true and I have some work to do on myself in this area. She said it's important to not gossip and I was like F*ckkkkkkkkk NO. It was clear I need to make some changes. I'm a pretty positive person but I love to swear and complain, some of the time it’s jokingly, but even Louise says the Universe doesn't have a sense of humor. It doesn't know when you're joking. What you say becomes your reality and it comes back to you. So if I think people are assholes, I'm affirming this belief and I'm going to encounter a lot of situations to replicate this. It's how the Universe works.

Last Monday I was talking to my friend Erika who said her friend @nicolecarolineskin posted on her Instastories that she was doing a one week challenge without negative thoughts or saying negative things and gossiping. If a negative thought came in she was going to intentionally change it to something positive. Sh*t. This was a sign to get on board and try this out. Erika said she would do it and I started asking a few others and they liked the idea too. So I sought out Nicole and told her I was interested in learning more.

FEEL GOOD ENERGY

Nicole joined me last week on my IG Live to talk about the benefits of being more positive. Click image to watch replay.

She joined me on Friday on my IG Live Series FEEL GOOD ENERGY and the results she shared seem very compelling. She says she’s happier, feels lighter, is sleeping better and feels less affected by other people’s negativity. I told her I want to do this and she’s like, “I’ll keep doing it with you.” So, I’m calling this the DROP THE DRAMA Challenge and I want to invite anyone to try it with me so we can support each other.

Tools to Support You in Dropping the Drama:

This blog post contains 3 tools to help you re-condition your thoughts and words. Personally, I don’t think we magically become positive; it will take work and I have tools you can apply to catch yourself when negative thoughts come in and how to replace them with a different thought. I also have ways you can be more kind/loving to yourself and others – especially people that you love to resent or bitch about.

This is the Beginning of Breaking up the Story:

So many of us have a “story” grooved into us like a record and it’s probably been written over many years – like a memoir of all the negative shit we’ve experienced or limiting beliefs that others have impressed upon us. It could be things you worry about regarding finances or projecting a disaster at work because you had/have a really difficult boss or feeling resentful toward your partner because you feel they aren't thoughtful or helpful. We live in fragments of a story riddled with limiting beliefs: “I canʼt do this because this happened.” So when negative thoughts come in, as they often do, we file them into different stories to justify negative belief patterns. I’m not saying all belief patterns are effed up – but in every workshop I’ve taught, this is the #1 thing I see we all have in common. So really no harm in trying to actively be more positive. So here are the tools to keep us on track:

Tool 1: CLEAR, DELETE and DE-STORY Negative thoughts or self-criticism with ENERGY CLEARING STATEMENTS:

This week we’re working on clearing negative thoughts, which is essentially breaking conditioned belief patterns. Before we actively choose a more positive thought when a negative one slides in, we can recognize it and actively clear it.

This becomes a game: When negative thoughts come in (about self or others) or you are projecting negative outcomes for things ahead of you - recognize them, and if they are not based in fact, pause and say, “This is not true for me. I clear and delete and de-story any energy or thought patterns that created this.”

That’s all you say. With practice, it becomes really fun to be aware when the thoughts come in and clear them out before they set in. By actively doing Energy Clearing Statements, you're parenting your negative thoughts/emotions like when a kid puts something in the shopping cart and you're like, "No, that's not what we're getting put it back".

TOOL 2: AFFIRM GOOD THINGS + CHOOSE GOOD FEELING THOUGHTS

Saying positive affirmations or having a positive mantra (especially after clearing negative thoughts or redirecting when you’re about to say something negative) will raise your energy and help keep your momentum going on this challenge. When we say positive things (even if we don’t believe them) our feelings usually catch up to our words. It’s like the vibration of positive words/statements can lift us up.

Saying things like:

This a great day. I feel good. I am having fun. I am living in abundance. I have everything I need for this to be a great day. No matter what comes my way today, I know I have everything I need to handle it. I feel supported all day long. I expect miracles. Miracles are everywhere. I am surrounded by positive and supportive people. Positive thoughts flow through me easily and freely. Just make them up, but keep affirming. Just try to keep saying things like this all day long. You don’t have to say them to other people (actually, don’t), just getting in the habit of doing it with yourself can be a fun game.

Also, get in the habit of gratitude for the simplest things. Like picking up your coffee cup to take a sip and saying, “I love you, coffee”. Or “I’m grateful for this coffee”. Don’t forget to be grateful for your willingness to do this challenge.

You can take it a step further and send GOOD ENERGY to all the activities, meetings and people (even strangers) you’ll encounter throughout the day. It’s like priming all parts of your day to go well. When I do this, it raises my energy and enables me to co-create well with others. Basically, we’re expecting it to be a great day, so we show up as such. This builds the energy of resilience, so even if unforeseen things pop up you’ll be better prepped energetically to handle them.

Choose whatever mantra or affirmation feels good to you – your words and thoughts are writing your reality right now. How dope is that?

TOOL 3: Start Each Day with a quick LOVING KINDNESS MEDITATION to build kind energy:

If you don’t meditate, totally cool. While a Loving Kindness Meditation is considered a meditation, it’s really a “thought exercise” that takes a few minutes to send out love and kindness, in hopes that you can feel more balanced energetically, more receptive and less judgmental. Yes, I’m talking to YOU.

There's actual science behind a loving-kindness meditation (originally coined by Sharon Salzberg) which is basically saying a few compassionate things to yourself like: "May I be happy", "May I be healthy", "May I be at peace", “May I be safe”, “May I be loved”, “May I be loving”, “May I feel free”. Basically, you can come up with any statements that feel good to you. Then, you picture someone you care about and say those same exact thoughts (out loud or in your mind) "May they be happy", "May they be healthy", etc. Then, you can pick a total stranger, like the person who rang you up last Tuesday at the grocery store and say the same statements in your mind to them. Those thoughts are energetic well-wishes. That energy ripples into the world and raises the vibration (even thinking good things vs. worrying or complaining helps) and it changes you into a more loving and compassionate person. It also works on people who annoy you. Actually, you’re supposed to add those people into this meditation. Like that person on social media who flaunts their abs and then bakes bread. Or your boss who isn’t a great communicator (yes, I’m putting that lightly because I’m trying to be positive). Send the people who challenge you some love in your meditation by saying those same statements to them in your mind and your perceptions about them will change. This will totally aid you in the DROP THE DRAMA CHALLENGE. I’m not asking you to believe this works, I’m asking you to consider trying it.

The science behind it is this: Thinking kind things about yourself, then people you love, then people you don't know well and then people who annoy you or challenge you makes you FEEL BETTER. These loving thoughts build resilience against negative thoughts and you start to organically be more positive. That’s our goal, babe.

So, for this week, try a 3 minute Loving Kindness Meditation each morning (you can say it in bed in between snooze) to see if it aids you in having more positive thoughts and being less focused on things/people you might tend to complain or gossip about. Generally, it’s supposed to desensitize you from negative things and make you more compassionate and resilient.

I’m so proud of you for joining us in DROPPING THE DRAMA!

If you’re doing this challenge, it’s not by accident. The Universe is calling on you to clear the crap to make room for what’s finding its way to you now. When we clear negative thoughts and speak more positively, we open up our energy and receptivity to welcome in emotional abundance. Also, more positive people light up our world because they have GOOD ENERGY. We so need that right now! So grateful for Erika for telling me about Nicole’s challenge and for Nicole sharing it with my community. The positive vibes are growing so let’s DROP THE DRAMA starting now!

I’m here with you, to support you and we’re doing this together. Any questions or thoughts? DM on Insta @theworldofdoug or email doug@theworldofdoug. I want to keep in touch and know how it’s going for you. Also, follow my IG stories this week, as I’ll share updates about the challenge (if enough people are interested I can set up a zoom mid-week to check in). DM if that’s helpful. Sending love and positive thoughts! Xo doug

Also, next Friday December 18th on my IG Live Series FEEL GOOD ENERGY at 12p CST I’ll be recapping how it’s going for me and having other people doing the challenge join to talk about their experience. If you’d like to join my IG Live on Friday December 18th for a few minutes to share your experiences with the challenge, DM me and we’ll set it up for you to “request to join”.