Having a Positive Attitude
A Positive Attitude
Having a positive attitude about life can create some very positive things in your life. The first thing that we need to find out is: What thoughts are swirling around in your mind right now as you read this? And Are those thoughts positive thoughts or negative thoughts?
If you were strolling down the street and a stranger passed you by, would that stranger know what you’re thinking about? I don’t mean explicit details but a general idea of what’s on your mind. In answering number one, that is personal and up to you, and the second question will directly relate to the first. The last question I asked is a YES.
Get Positive
The person passing you on the street will undoubtedly know what you are thinking about. Again when I say this I mean they will know how you are feeling and whether or not your thoughts are positive. How many times do you see someone with a frown on their face and know they are having negative thoughts. How about someone with a smile from ear to ear, it’s pretty easy to tell if someone is thinking negatively or positively.
When you enter the room, do friends or family fall silent or does the energy in the room amp up a little bit? If you are in a negative mind set the crowds generally fall silent, but if you’re in a positive mind set the energy usually increases. All this goes to show how powerful thoughts are. Negative and positive thoughts can and will affect your environment. The only exception to this is whether or not you can hide your feelings effortlessly.
Not only can your attitude affect yourself, how you feel about things and how you look, but it can also adversely affect the people around you. A negative attitude will make people want to stay away from you while a positive attitude will make people want to be around you. If you’ve ever come across people with a bad attitude in life and they treated you poorly, that kind of stuff can ruin your day. It can also have a chain reaction like a domino effect.
On the same token, just the opposite side—let’s call it the heads side, a positive attitude can work in a pay it forward manner. The same as a domino effect except instead of knocking down the dominoes they are being stood up. When you are positive you will notice how the people around you will be more upbeat and happy, this is because everyone wants to be around happy positive people. It’s almost like a drug but it’s better than all of them combined, it’s a high you never want to come down from.
Negativity can suck the fun out of any situation in a moment’s notice. People will generally try to avoid the negative people because they don’t want to feel negative.
We can define an attitude as a way of looking at the world; do you see a half empty glass of water or a half full glass of water? A person with a positive attitude will generally think of the glass as half full while the negative person will see it as half empty. We also refer to these as an optimist and a pessimist.
I’m not sure but I think it was me that thought of this saying, “Positive thoughts brings about positive actions.” I could be wrong but I’m pretty sure. It all starts in the mind. Think positive to have a positive attitude, to affect positively another person or event.
The benefits of a positive attitude can range from being happier, having more friends, enjoying better health, and being better able to handle stress. Ever get overwhelmed to the point you don’t know what to do? I have but you know what, when that happens I clear my mind. I give myself a few seconds or even a minute or two to clear out the negative thoughts and replace them with positive thoughts which in turn changes my attitude about things, and subsequently causes positive actions. The work gets done and to a higher standard had I not cleared out all the junk.
A positive attitude always starts with a good self-image. When you love yourself and are content, confident, and assured in yourself other people around you start to feel the same way. The same applies on the other end of the spectrum in opposite ways.
How to get a Positive Attitude
First you have to realize that you are an awesome person with talents and other awesome things to share with the world. Those are positive thoughts. Thoughts of, “I can do anything I set my mind to.” Or “It’s going to work out.” are positive thoughts. They are also healthy thoughts.
Another step in obtaining a positive attitude is to avoid all the poisonous garbage you read, hear, see, smell, and taste. Trust me negativity is everywhere these days. When you turn on the news you see stories of tragedy and death but rarely about the person who foiled a robbery against an old woman. I don’t know about you but I love to hear, see, and read stories of everyday people doing wonderful things for their fellow human beings.
Like I stated earlier, positive thoughts bring about positive actions. Getting a positive thought without provocation can be tough in the beginning, so I recommend you watch a funny movie or read some jokes and then tell those jokes to your friends. Maybe you have children, play a game with them. My kids never fail to get a smile out of me.
It is tough to keep all negativity out of our lives but when it comes knocking at your chamber door in the bleak December, remember that you are now a positive person and bar them from entrance to your heart.
One more thing before I go, when your friends are down and hurting and you are consoling them, not advising but comforting, you can do so without saying much. When all they want is to be heard and you sit there and listen with your positive attitude, you can affect them positively just by being there. It is this strength of character that people instinctively pick up on.
Problems will come, it is just the nature of this life, but problems never last forever and with a positive attitude they are resolved faster. So, are you ready to take a positive attitude?
© 2010 by Wesley Cox. All rights reserved. Copying without permission is illegal and will be prosecuted.