It’s a very popular trend to say hello to a new month on social media. As a matter of fact, if you google “hello February,” so many cute little graphics come up for you to post on social media. I wasn’t ready for the hello February’s. I’m excited about my birthday plans, but not actually turning 30. Not yet.

The mind is the most powerful muscle in the world, so when you catch those depressing, negative thoughts you have to nip them out quickly.

So here are three tips on how to get control of your negative thoughts.

Disclaimer: I am not an expert of professional. I just share what works for me.

De-clutter your inbox

I absolutely hate unorganized inboxes and notifications. It is really bad actually. I may have a problem. When I get a notification, I have to check it. Not because I want to read it, but because I hate notifications. Cluttered inboxes also bother me. When things aren’t organized into folders, I feel like I’ll lose an email that I need or keep something I don’t. You may not be as bad off as I am, but having a clean work space is vital to success for some people.

Start the month off by cleaning out your inbox and notifications. Make folders to save things you need and get rid of some of those pesky subscriptions you don’t really want but just have been too lazy to unsubscribe to.

Unroll.me has become my best friend for this. I have three emails (one personal, two for business) and this app allows me to go right in to each one and unsubscribe to mailing lists I no longer want to be a part of and ones I didn’t even know I signed up for.

Set daily/weekly/monthly goals

Sometimes, we think too big. It’s great to have long term goals and a “big picture” to aspire to, but not having a daily plan will guarantee that big picture never materializes in your life.

So, what does that look like? If I have a goal this year to lose 50 pounds by summer, that breaks down to about 10 pounds a month. I tried the weekly goal setting for my health, but it just hasn’t been working for me, so now I’m focusing on daily progress. There are tons of apps that can help you track this. You just have to be committed. That goes for any other goal as well.

Be excited!

God is amazing. This is the 30^th February I’ve seen. I’ve been a little down about my birthday coming up because I’m not as far along in my recovery process as I would like to be. Most of my shortcomings, if not all, are my own doing. However, the fact that I’m breathing and typing this means God hasn’t given up on me and I am so very grateful for that. People are dying every day and He saw fit to let me live. I’m excited about that!

Perfect people do not exist. Social Media may convince you that others don’t go through emotional turmoil or experience failures and losses, but we only see what we are allowed to see. Accepting your downfalls does not mean you are okay with them, it just means you have accepted their existence. You cannot change something that you can’t acknowledge.

Remember, it’s all in your mind.