“What I think is what I am. If I think I can, I know I can.”
-Neel Trivedi
It’s constantly preached at self-help seminars. Psychologists make it a point to hammer it in. Every type of life coach stresses on the idea: Think positive. But how exactly do we do that?
How can we remain upbeat when nothing seems to go right in our lives? It’s relatively easy for someone in a good place to remain positive. It’s easy for that person to tell someone less fortunate that things will turn around soon.
But the person stuck between a rock and a hard place knows that it’s much easier said then done. Keeping all that in mind, here are a few tips for people who just don’t know where and how to bring forth some optimism when it seems almost impossible.
- When you wake up, say one positive thing about the morning. It doesn’t have to be something major. It could be something as small as “I woke up in a comfortable bed” or “I woke up with a roof over my head.”
- At some point in the day, pay someone a compliment. When you make someone else’s day, they’ll be happy and pass on the good vibes to you through their gratitude.
- Excercise for 10-15 minutes a day. Any kind of excercise, even brisk walking, increases endorphins which make the human mind feel good.
- Be mindful. Mindfulness is being aware of your thoughts and emotions. The more aware or conscious you become, the more control you’ll have of the way you think.
- Much like in the morning, think about something positive as you wind down for the day. Only this time, instead of one thing, list three to four things in your head. Again, simplicity is the key. You could be thankful for something as insignificant as the weather.
The tips above are certainly not the be all end all of positive thinking. They can definitely help, however, with someone who’s struggling with negative emotions and doesn’t know where to start to change that.
What do you do when bombarded with negativity? Do you have special tips of your own? Do you agree with the tips above? Share your thoughts and experiences by commenting below on our secure servers.
Thank you for these lovely tips, Neel. I felt horribly depressed and tired at Walmart yesterday, and what I did to cheer myself up was to buy myself a little, very inexpensive bouquet of flowers to take home and gave a few of them away to the lady bus driver. Felt better immediately!