Don’t believe a thought you think, or something to that effect, are words of advice from T. Harv Eker in his book “Secrets of the Millionaire Mind”.

I have heard that everything is created twice. First as a thought, and then as an actual item.

Where do thoughts even come from? It’s probably a good idea to sort out the origin of the thought before we decide to believe it.

Before we decide whether or not to believe it, the thought may invoke feelings. Another wise teacher I follow says that feelings lie.

What?!

Well, today on my usual summer morning bicycle ride, as I approached home, I came upon the “0” post marker, which shows that is where the bicycle trail begins in county we live in.

It’s just a post – maybe 4 feet tall – with a sloped top. And it has 0 on it. Nothing special.

However, as summer is winding down and I was wearing my cold weather gear on my bicycle ride this morning, I found myself feeling sad when I looked at the 0 post.  Sad because I’m almost home, my bike ride is almost over, and I have to go back to being a responsible adult and getting some work done.  Sad because summer is winding down, and the number of times I will be on my way home from a bicycle ride this year is dwindling quickly.

Other times, however, we have screamed along that section of trail setting personal best times. Times like those, when I see the 0 post, I feel larger than life! Unstoppable!

Then there are the times when we have embarked upon an especially long ride, or we have run out of water or something like that.  When I see the 0 post, I’m so relieved that I’m almost home!

The post is unchanging.

It’s me that changes. I can feel a different emotion about that post every time I see it. In fact, I pass that post twice on each ride. Once on the way out, and once on the way back. On the way out, we have just come from a long downhill section which is always awesome and fun! And the whole ride is ahead of us. I see the 0 post and sometimes I don’t even notice it. Or wonder with excitement what the ride will be like that day.

Is it safe to trust our feelings?

The 0 post is one example of how fickle feelings or emotions can be. Which proves to me that I cannot trust them.

When we are angry, we are advised to breathe deeply and count to 10. Anger is a feeling. But can it be trusted?  Perhaps feeling angry is correct, but taking a few seconds to allow the rational part of our brain to take over and make sure is probably a good idea.

Engage brain before opening mouth they say. Funny, but also true. And easier said than done.

In the heat of the moment, intentionally taking a step back, and a few deep breaths, before we decide if our feelings are lying or not, can sometimes save a lot of trouble.

This advice has been meaningful to me – it’s ok to have feelings. Just don’t let them have you.