Women's Life Link Be Well, Be Happy, Be YOU!
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It has been scientifically proven that when you are focused on happy, positive thoughts you feel and perform better. When you’re happy, you feel positive and as though you can overcome anything. And, though, positive thinking is not all you need to have to change your life, it certainly is a good place to start. Give the following actions a try if you want to harness the power of positive thinking.
Recall Happier Times
Whether it’s a fond memory of your wedding day or just a positive situation from the past, we can usually recall moments of bliss fairly easily. These memories allow us to emotionally revisit times when we were uplifted. Your brain doesn’t know the difference between what was past and what is now. So, it can actually recreate the feel-good chemicals that came the first time. When you recall a happy moment, it can change your entire outlook. In turn, this might be just the thing you need to pull yourself out of an emotional slump.
Making Recall a Healthy Habit
When you sit down with a cup of coffee, mentally sift through happy times that stand out to you. I do this in the mornings to set a positive and happy tone for the day. Specifically, look back at what you’ve accomplished over the years, what you are grateful for. If you need some assistance, perhaps looking through some old photo albums or picture collections might do the trick. This type of visualization can be life-changing, especially when we feel like the whole world is against us and nothing is going right.
Another way to integrate memory recall is on your daily commute. Allow simple scenes, people, and things to bring back fond memories. For example, you might pass by a bakery on your way to work. That bakery could be where you met your partner or where you held your child’s birthday one year. Maybe you just love the pastries! By utilizing these small mental tricks and associating objects with happy thoughts, you could see things differently and boost your mood.
Positive Thinking Isn’t Ignoring or Escaping Life
There’s a common misconception that always thinking positive thoughts is simply escaping real life. This couldn’t be further from the truth. Having the ability to react to hardship with a good attitude is the sign of an emotionally balanced person. This way of life is how some people get past adversity or even a simple bad memory with grace and confidence. The exception to this is if someone actually creates a fantasy world to avoid the truth or an unpleasant situation. As with anything, balance and moderation are good.
For example: If you lose your job, it wouldn’t be healthy to go around pretending that you did not. Unfortunate circumstances may put you in a position that requires immediate action. In this case, spending too much time thinking (positively or negatively) won’t help you. On the other hand, to someone with a positive attitude, losing a job is one door closing in preparation to open another door.
Self-Talk or Affirmations
Self-talk is one of the many manifestations of positive thinking. With proper affirmations, you can actually help to set positive action into motion. One thing that works for me is to speak out what I’m committed to in order to make things better. This solidifies my goals and helps me to believe in myself and my ability to change my life for the better. There are well-known methods such as the Law Of Attraction Manifestation Techniques that specialize in self-talk and visualization. I have used these and many other processes to fine-tune my practice.
How Negative Thoughts Affect Us
Negative thinking dampens our creativity and motivation. It kills any sense of enthusiasm we have which can be debilitating not only at home but at work as well. Bad thoughts in your mind could prevent you from doing a good job. In a worst-case scenario, they could even distract you while you work or drive, causing an accident.
There are some negative emotions such as anger and fear that can be helpful, however. For example, when we’re in a do-or-die situation, the adrenaline kicks in and we do our best to protect our lives and the lives of people around us. This is part of our instinct as human beings. We tend to react immediately when something threatens our well-being. Thoughts are at the forefront of this amazing process.
Though this emergency thought process is fine when we’re in a survival situation, it’s not meant to be the norm. For example, it wouldn’t be healthy for your mind to react the same way to your car breaking down as a bear attacking you in the woods. Some people actually do this. They live in a constant state of fight or flight. This would look like a crazy, irrational woman, raving about her emergency in an unhealthy way. This emotional malfunction would not serve you in fixing your vehicle or getting yourself back on the road. In fact, it likely would hinder your logical reasoning ability.
Positive thinking has so many wonderful applications and benefits. I have experienced them myself in all areas of my life. The best thing to do is find what works for you and keep doing that. We are all different, so saying that my way will help everyone is not logical. Try to be aware of your thought process as much as you can. This will help you identify any areas that trigger negative thinking. With awareness, you can change your mind.
