I had a revelation when you were coaching the other day on someone who wanted to spend more alone time with her father. You said that the thought seemed so positive and “pretty” – and true – but that it wasn’t actually serving her and she should question it. It made me realize that I too have thoughts that seem so great and positive but they are really poisonous!

Recently, I took a high level, C-suite, position and was so excited about it. I listened to a bunch of your calls and podcasts about future self, impossible goals, etc and felt energized about stepping into a big role at the company I’ve always dreamed about. However, it’s been months in the role and I’ve been miserable and had lots of different conflicts come up with lots of swirling thoughts. But the one I realized isn’t serving me the most is this one: I want to be a leader (with the result of I am a leader/I am capable of leading). It’s funny bc it sounded like such a great, “Brooke-like” thought and desire. I kept thinking that thought, and had impossible goals around leading teams, coming up with ideas that inspired others, and implementing all these new innovations at the company.

But the thought “I want to be a leader” has caused all sorts of drama, made me act defensively, and frustrated when my team pushes back on my proposals, or doesn’t seem to respect me. I’m exploring how I can reverse the model to have a similar result and wondering what thoughts would land better. Any suggestions on how to go about this? In addition to a thought being poisonous, can the result be too? Thanks!