Positive thinking isn’t just the domain of happy hippies or self-help gurus, as a growing body of research proves, time and again. A positive thought actually nourishes your body like an apple, while a negative one acts as a toxin. You can easily focus on positive thoughts, which, in turn, can strongly influence your level of happiness and performance ability – just like starting a healthy diet.
Invest in positive thinking.
1. Learn how to manage failure
Nothing contributes to a negative mental state, like failure or rejection. At the time, unwelcome events can seem like the end of the world, but they never are. Overreactions are largely due to negative thinking, which turns manageable issues into insurmountable odds. Setbacks are always temporary and often act as springboards to improvement, in all areas of life. It’s all about putting failure into perspective, by becoming aware of time invested in discouraging thoughts and switching to proactive ones instead.
2. Don’t let resentment get in the way
Resent is a prime culprit in encouraging negative thinking, because it’s so difficult to see the ‘up’ side, when you feel hard done by. The thing is, resent simply isn’t helpful in any situation. Even if you have good reason to feel resentful, buying into it only increases stress and reduces your ability to see beyond, towards solutions. Accept responsibility for your circumstances and you’ll feel more confident to take control of any situation. At the end of the day, placing blame on others only delays positive outcomes.
3. Use positive language in daily life
It might come as a surprise, but the difference a few little words can make to your ability to think positively, is quite profound.
It might come as a surprise, but the difference a few little words can make to your ability to think positively, is quite profound. For example, you might think, “I have to go to work today.” Reframe the sentence, no matter what the subject, to, “I get to go to work today.” It might seem like you’re fooling yourself into happiness the first few times, but soon you’ll feel your attitude change to reflect the positive connotation, rather than the negative.
Surround yourself with positive people.
4. Surround yourself with positive people
Depending on where you work or the state of your relationships, hanging out with positive people might seem like a challenge. If that’s the case though, it’s time to make some changes. It’s possible to infect those around you with happiness, just by being enthusiastic, smiling and using positive language. The more you do so, the more reasons you’ll have to foster positive thinking, within yourself and your environment.
5. Put maximum effort into solutions
When things go wrong, it’s easy to spend a great deal of time talking about the problem, or those at blame, rather than investing energy into solutions. Positive thinking certainly doesn’t mean ignoring problems. Instead, practice devising solutions to issues, before pointing them out or discussing them.
This way, you’re actually retraining your mind towards proactive living and away from the negative thoughts that keep you stuck in the past. Along the way, the switch to positive thinking is just the type of nourishment your mind needs, for optimum health.
The Author
Nicole Leigh West
Nicole Leigh West is the author of fiction novel, 'The Gypsy Trail' and an internationally recognised travel and lifestyle writer.