Everyone wants to live a happy and successful life. The thing with life is, even if you do all the hard work in the world, sometimes, you don’t get to achieve your dreams. It has happened to the best of us. But as long as you stay positive, you can get through any bad situation. Even staying positive at a bad workplace can get you through the day.
Positive thinking – The key to happiness
You must have heard many people say a positive mindset is a healthy mindset. It keeps you going.
Positive thinking is contagious just like smiling is contagious. People around us pick our mental mood. If you talk about good health, success, and happiness, it will cause people to like you. They would be eager to help you. Why? Because they enjoy the vibrations of a positive mind.
Positive thinking is much more than repeating positive words or telling yourself that things will be alright. It is much about developing a predominant mental attitude. If you think it’s enough to think positively for a few minutes, then you are wrong. Fears and disbelief will enter your mind some way or another. You need to do constant inner work to break free from negativity.
The Science of Positive Thinking
When you make conversations positive and more constructive, it changes how you feel. Research on Frederickson’s broaden and build theory says that positive thinking can produce positive emotions, mindfulness, life purpose, and increase life satisfaction. The hypothesis of the theory says that positive emotions broaden the scope of attention, action, and cognition. It opens up a person’s world and expands their attention capability. Over time, positive thinking helps us do so much more. We become better thinkers and develop better social relationships. This contributes to happiness in our lives.
Characteristics of a Positive Mindset
- Optimistic: Instead of assuming your efforts will not pay off, you make an effort to believe that things will work out.
- Acceptance: You acknowledge that things don’t always turn out the way we want them and that is ok.
- Resilience: Whenever you fail, you bounce back from disappointment instead of giving up.
- Gratitude: You constantly engage yourself in appreciating the good things in life. Even if things aren’t the way you expected them to be.
- Mindfulness: You dedicate your mind to conscious awareness and work on your ability to focus on the positive.
- Integrity: You are honest and straightforward
With these characteristics combined, you get to create a positive mindset.
Tips To Build a Positive Attitude
A negative perspective of things can bring you down but positive thinking has its own benefits. If you are ready to make an inner change and change the way you think, these are some of the actions you must take:
- Use positive words while you think and talk. “I can do it”, “I am able to do”, “it is possible” are some example of positive words.
- Allow the feelings of strength, success, and happiness to flow within you.
- Sure negative thoughts will come to your mind, but you must learn to discard them. Substitute bad thoughts with constructive and happy thoughts. Every time a negative thought or emotion finds a way in your head, replace it with a positive thought immediately.
- Whenever you are having a conversation with someone, use words that bring forth a feeling of success and happiness.
- Before you start working on a project, visualize the successful outcome in your head. Make sure you visualize with conviction and concentration and you will be surprised with the results.
- Pick a few motivational books and read at least one page a day.
- Watch movies that lighten up your mood.
- Don’t listen to news or read the newspaper much. The global news can make you anxious and this is the last thing you need right now.
- Associate yourself with the people who are positive thinkers.
- Always sit and walk with a straight back. Not only do you need to think positively, but you also need to showcase confidence.
- Engage yourself in some physical activity such as walking, swimming or running. This helps in relieving stress and develop a positive mindset.
- Even if the current circumstances are not in your favor, keep a positive outlook.
- It is true when they say laughter can keep all diseases at bay. So smile more often, it will improve your mood.
- Write positive affirmations for yourself in a notebook on a daily basis.
Positive thinking can make you a happier and healthier person. What are you waiting for? Crush those negative thoughts and develop a positive mindset.
