How to Kill Negative Thoughts

This is how I stopped letting negative thoughts rule my life.

You may be worried about the future, concerned about the past, or overthinking, which is absolutely destroying your inner peace. This affects your productivity and growth.

Here are some strategies and techniques that I’ve used and that you can implement to overcome negative thinking.

First, we need to understand what a thought is. A thought is just a thought—it doesn’t define who you are.

I believe we live in moments, not years or days. In any given moment, you are either fully present and aware of your mind’s freedom or you’re lost in thoughts. Those thoughts either serve your inner peace or destroy it. In most cases, people just have a poor strategy for responding to negative thoughts.

When a negative thought arises, pause and ask yourself: 'Is this true?' and 'What evidence do I have?' Often, you’ll find the answer is false. Ask yourself, “What’s a more helpful thought?” When you ask your brain a question, it must come up with an answer. Your peace lies in choosing a better thought.

The tools I use to overcome negative thinking are working on what I call the “MEP” states: mental, emotional, and physical.

1. Mental state: This refers to the content you consume daily—whether it’s social media, podcasts, or news. Do an audit of this content. Is it serving your inner peace or destroying it? What you consume becomes part of you.
2. Emotional state: Regulate your emotions through meditation and gratitude. Every morning, instead of immediately checking my phone, I meditate for 10 minutes using apps like Calm or Headspace . I focus on my breath, and I practice gratitude by verbalising or writing down things I’m thankful for. Positive psychology shows that this can greatly impact happiness and reduce negative thinking.
3. Physical state: Movement is essential. Emotion is created by motion. If you ask yourself for a helpful thought while in a lousy state, you’ll get a lousy answer. Exercise is key to putting yourself in a good state, whether it's a walk outside or a 20-minute HIIT workout, physical activity releases endorphins, helping to overcome negative thoughts.

Many of our clients have followed these techniques. One had a lot of negative thoughts about a new business idea but implementing these strategies helped him tremendously as he realised that it was other people’s opinions that were holding him back. He started journaling and asking, “What’s a more helpful thought?” and his mindset shifted massively.

Do you incorporate any of these strategies into your life? And, have any of them worked for you? Or do you have other ideas or solutions that have helped? I’d love to hear your thoughts.

For more advice, find us on YouTube.

Adam Smith

Mindset Coach & Co-Founder of A-Game Consultancy