7 Tips for Controlling Your Thoughts
Your thoughts don’t have to control you.
Most of the time, it’s not reality that overwhelms us—it’s the unchecked mental chatter running in the background. Learning to direct your thoughts isn’t about perfection. It’s about creating just enough space between your mind and your awareness to choose what you focus on.
“You have power over your mind—not outside events. Realize this, and you will find strength.”
— Marcus Aurelius
Meditation is not about stopping your thoughts. Instead, it is about learning how to control them. Many people find controlling their thoughts difficult at first, but its just like lifting weights. Start off small, and work your way up.
These 7 tips will help you start that shift.
- Rethink what it means to “control your thoughts”
When most people think of controlling their thoughts, they assume it means to have harsh control over the types of thoughts you have. This is a misconception. In truth, we don’t have complete control over the thoughts that pop into our heads.
We only have control over our actions and reactions to our thoughts. So, when you try to control your thoughts, you control how your mind wanders and its reactions to the thoughts.
- Acknowledge your thoughts
When a thought pops into your head as you meditate, acknowledge the thought instead of quickly swatting it away. Acknowledging the thought will allow it to teach you. So, let the thought appear and acknowledge its existence.
- Let the thought finish
Once you acknowledge the thought’s existence, let it finish. Do not try to pinch it off. The reason for this is that pinching the thought off will deny your mind its clarity and growth and make the thought recurring and more difficult to get rid of. So, allow your thought to come to its natural conclusion.
- Rein your thoughts back in once the thought is finished
Even though you should acknowledge your thoughts, do not let your brain wander. Instead, rein your thoughts back in once they have reached their natural conclusion. This may be hard at first, but it will increase your focus, concentration, and clarity.
- Identify negative thoughts
As you acknowledge thoughts, try to identify any negative thoughts that creep into your mind. Identifying the negative thoughts will make you aware of how many negative thoughts are present, which will allow you to be more mindful in the future.
- Discern truth from fiction
As you identify negative thoughts, try discerning truth from fiction in your thoughts. This will allow you to retrain your mind so that you are kinder and more realistic about yourself and life.
- Be kind to yourself
Finally, be kind to yourself when controlling your thoughts. You will eventually mess up and be challenged by controlling your thoughts. This is completely normal, and you should not beat yourself up over it.
Turn around any negative thinking with positive statements
Good Things are Always Happening to me.
Things are ALWAYS working out for me.
My life is Always improving.
Controlling your thoughts doesn’t mean eliminating every negative idea—it means becoming the observer instead of the prisoner. Over time, these small practices create a mental space where clarity, calm, and confidence can grow. The more aware you become, the more empowered you are to direct your mind—rather than be directed by it.
Subscribe for practical mindset tools and explore our eBooks for deeper strategies to quiet the noise and think with clarity.
Discover more from Jepsen Mindset and Meditation Monk
Subscribe to get the latest posts sent to your email.
