All of my patio tubs and planters are now all planted up with new, young plants, and we have reached that time of year where I find myself out there every evening, giving them all a good soaking of water, making sure they are in the right spot to get plenty of sunshine, cutting off any dead leaves and generally giving them all the care and attention they need to grow into an impressive picture of colour. Generally, we know that if we give our plants the right care, attention and nurturing that they need; good soil, plenty of water, and lots of sunshine, they will not only thrive, they will grow into an impressive version of themselves.

The same applies to our thoughts! If a negative thought creeps into our mind, and we nurture it by giving it fresh, new, healthy soil, plenty of regular water, and put it on the front step in glorious sunshine, then it will grow into a much larger version of the original, fleeting thought.

On the other hand, if that same negative thought crept into our mind and we do not give it any attention, refused to nurture it and starved it of healthy soil and water, and shoved it into the dark, under stairs cupboard, then it will not grow into anything. The seed will dry up and fail to develop.

We all get occasional negative thoughts that just pop, uninvited, into our mind. The trick is to refuse to give it the space, environment and nurturing that it requires in order to grow into an all absorbing, overwhelming, dark worry, fear or concern. Don't feed those negative thoughts. Starve them and they will be unable to grow. When a negative thought pops up, don't give it any attention at all. Think of other subjects, concentrate on different things, override it and ignore it. Refuse to let it take you over. Only water and nurture your good, healthy, optimistic and helpful thoughts and enjoy the results.