Positivity Has Its Perks
Do you see the glass half full or half empty?
Do you see the sky as partly sunny or partly cloudy?
How you see things says a lot about how you view life in general and how you are prone to address life's ups and downs, mountains and valleys, wins and losses.
Why does it matter? There are some definite benefits to approaching your day with a positive attitude and making a conscious effort to look on the bright side.
These include:
- Better personal relationships
- Improved heart health
- Increased energy
- Better work performance
- Quicker recovery from illness, surgery, tragedies, and other setbacks
- Better problem solving
- Improved mental health and physical well-being
We Get Help With The Negative
There's no shortage of pushback if you make being positive part of your daily routine.
The news is rarely positive - wars, protests, political fighting, shootings, runaway crime, disease, famine, and more are just a newspaper, magazine, radio dial, phone screen, or click away at any time.
It is hard to escape the onslaught that constantly contests for a spot in our minds. These events are real and can consume our day unless we believe that there is also good all around us and choose to give the positive a place on the front porch of our routine.
It takes time and practice, and the journey is never complete but here are some tools that have helped me to tackle life head-on.
5 Steps To Positive Thinking
1. Have An Attitude Of Gratitude
Start your day by giving thanks. Even on your worst day, find something to be thankful for.
Thanks for waking up, thanks for a spouse or friend, thanks for the rising sun, thanks for a meal, thanks for a loving pet. You make the choice. Try to find 5 things to be thankful for.
In a previous post, you read about the loss of my oldest son. I hurt, I cried, I grieved but, in the end, I chose to be thankful for all the years my boy was mine. My wife was in the same hospital for Covid at the same time. She was not home for months and sometimes it looked like she wouldn't make it. I am thankful even on the worst of days that she is home with me now.
Find YOUR Thankful List
2. Input Positive Programming
-Speak Positive into your life
*Replace "I don't have time" with "I'll have to re-shuffle some priorities"
*Replace "That's impossible" with "I can find a way to make it work"
*Replace "I don't know how" with "I have a chance to learn something new"
*Replace "It can't be done" with "There's always a first time for everything"
-Listen to some positive music
Here are some others-
- "Happy" by Pharrell Williams
- "Good Life" by OneRepublic
- "I'm Still Standing" by Elton John
-Read some positive quotes
"If you can dream it, you can do it" -Walt Disney
"You just can't beat the person who never gives up" -Babe Ruth
"If you don't ask, you don't get" -Stevie Wonder
"For we walk by faith, not by sight" - Bible, I Corinthians 5:7 KJV
-Use Humor
Laughter is indeed the best medicine. Both for healing and mental health.
According to the Mayo Clinic
A good laugh can...
- Stimulate many organs. Laughter enhances your intake of oxygen-rich air, stimulates your heart, lungs and muscles, and increases the endorphins that are released by your brain.
- Activate and relieve your stress response. A rollicking laugh fires up and then cools down your stress response, and it can increase and then decrease your heart rate and blood pressure. The result? A good, relaxed feeling.
- Soothe tension. Laughter can also stimulate circulation and aid muscle relaxation, both of which can help reduce some of the physical symptoms of stress.
3. Control What You Can Control
- Stay in the Present - the past is past, the future is unwritten
- Take care of yourself - eat right, exercise, sleep
- Don't try to change others - improving ourselves is a full-time job
- Falling is not failure - not getting back up is
"For a just man falleth seven times, and riseth up again:"
-Proverbs 24:16
4. Attach Yourself To The Right People
It's hard to follow your diet if you hang out at the ice cream shop. It's hard to exercise if you don't get off the couch. It's hard to fish if you don't go near the water.
It's hard to stay positive if your circle of friends is more apt to complain, gossip, or support your stance when you talk badly about yourself, your job, your significant other, or your situation. You will find strength in friends and co-workers who look for the best in themselves and others and are happy to build you up and celebrate your victories.
5. Do Things That Make You Happy
- Hobbies
- Time with loved ones
- Time with pets
- Taking walks
- Exercising
- Reading an enjoyable book
- Watching a favorite movie
Whatever it is, find time to do it.
"Drag your thoughts away from your troubles... by the ears, by the heels, or any other way you can manage it"
-Mark Twain
I hope these steps help in your daily approach to life.
May your glass be always HALF FULL!
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