How to Train Your Mind to Think Positive
Thinking positively is just part of the way to having a life well-lived. Many self-improvement gurus would have you believe that it is a massive part. It is very important to keep a positive mind but it is not the be all and end all!
So, to get you started here are 17 ways to train your mind towards staying positive.
1. Start the day with cheers and smiles.
Your whole day depends on how you greet the morning. Therefore, as long as you welcome it with energy and high spirits, everything will go okay. You don’t want the rest of the day to get ruined, do you? Come on, smile! It doesn’t cost anything but it is worth everything. We have a really useful morning routine which you can read about here
2. Plan the day ahead.
To avoid mistakes that will cause negative output on your daily activities that will later on become negative thoughts, it is better to plan your work first. Then make sure you follow your plan as best you can. Make sure today’s goals are clearly defined and set into your mind. This can be done even before you get out of bed each day. In fact here is a tip! Write down the top 3 things you want to achieve the following day, before you go to bed.
3. Keep your mind focused on important things.
Set goals and priorities for what you think and do. Visualize practicing your actions. This is especially worthwhile if you have something which you are struggling with. Nikola Tesla, the inventor, was well known for having a nap when he needed an answer for something. Just as he was dropping off, he would ask for answers to his questions. Develop a strategy for dealing with problems. Concentrate on things that need to be taken seriously, but at the same time, take time to relax and enjoy. This way, favorable results may take place.
4. Be detached from the outcome.
They say that life is like a Ferris Wheel; sometimes, you’re on the top, and sometimes at the bottom. This means that there will be times in our lives where some things will not turn out how you want them to. Don’t be annoyed if you don’t get what you desire. However, do your best in everything you do. If things don’t go your way, accept that it is just the way it is and that things happen for a reason. Then move on.
5. Try new things and challenges.
See learning and changes as opportunities. Always be open to them – you never know where they may take you! There’s nothing wrong in changing attitudes and routines as long as they are positive to your everyday life. Doing new things may include considering more options for a project, meeting new people from different places, asking lots of questions. Through this, the flow of thinking is directed to improvement and negative thoughts will be easily eradicated.
6. Balance your desires.
We live in a world of opposites and duality – gain and loss, pleasure and pain, light and dark, male and female, love and hate. This is how the cycle of life goes. We can never have all the good things in life at the same time. In love, there will always be someone who gets hurt. In wealth, there will always be people who will not be fortunate enough. Measure and moderation is the primary key.
7. Be realistic.
Make sure that what you want is something possible. You don’t have to think it is achievable at this stage as the Universe will give you the help to get there if your desire is strong enough. Hoping for something to happen will never get you what you want. You need to have complete faith that you can and will achieve what you set out to achieve.
8. Keep track of your mental and physical health.
This way, you will know how far you can keep believing. There are now gadgets that can help you with this like the Fitbit for example.
Know yourself. There is no other person in the world who can tell who you really are. Know your passions, favorites, and principles. Spend some quality time by yourself – reading, listening to music, daydreaming, etc. If you know yourself completely, you will be aware of how far can you go physically, mentally, and emotionally.
9. Love yourself.
Before you can expect other people to love you, you must love yourself first. Sounds weird but it is true! Make a positive commitment to yourself, to learning, work, family, friends, nature, and other worthwhile causes. Praise yourself as much as you praise others once in a while. When you start feeling confident about yourself, positive thoughts will naturally flow to your mind.
10. Laugh.
Enjoy life. Have fun. Looking at the brighter side of life starts with entertainment and pleasure. Laughter is the best medicine, so they say. Whether your illness is physical or emotional, a few laughs and giggles can help you throw away heavy baggage such as anxiety, disappointment, or nervousness. It is actually impossible to feel down if you are smiling or laughing – try it!
11. Hang out with positive people.
In every situation or anywhere you go there are always groups of people. Make sure to look for the optimistic ones. Associate with them, hang-out, discuss matters. They can help you build self-confidence and self-esteem. It is said that you start to morph to the 5 people you spend the most time with so make them both positive and entrepreneurial!
12. Make it a habit to ask questions.
We have always told our kids that there is no such thing as a stupid question. After all, if you don’t know the answer to something why shouldn’t you ask? Never stop asking questions as this keeps your mind active and inquisitive. This then breeds positivity.
13. Be open.
We have to accept the fact that we don’t know everything. And that we are continuously learning in every place we go, with every person we meet. We should not close our minds to new ideas and information that comes our way. Our mind is so spacious that it is impossible to fill it up completely. The day you stop learning is the day you die! Thus, we should accept things that may help us to become better and more successful people.
14. Forgive and forget.
Mistakes and failures are the root causes of negative thinking. If we somehow learn to let go of all the pain, agony, and fear we try to keep inside our hearts and minds, then there will be nothing more to block our clear thoughts from being expressed. Forgive yourself for committing mistakes and forget these mistakes. Every failure in life is just part of your journey towards success. Thomas Edison took 1000 attempt to create the lightbulb and he saw every failure as part of his success.
15. Learn from experiences.
Learning inside the classroom is very different from learning outside of it. In school, you learn the lesson first before taking the exam; while in real life, you take the test first before learning the lesson! This test in our real life is our experiences. When we failed in lifes tests, i.e. the experience is not so good, we must study the situation and learn the lesson. From here, we can avoid committing the same mistake twice. This is why you must never define yourself by your past mistakes, unless you don’t learn from them of course!
16. Count your blessings.
Focus on what you have rather than what you don’t have. Be thankful and appreciative for all the blessings you receive. Expressing gratitude every day is a lovely exercise to do. Simply write down 3 things you are grateful for and just feel the emotion behind what you are writing. This really starts your day off well.
17. Kiss your worries goodbye.
I have always been taught to never go to bed on an argument. You should also not let things that didn’t go your way today, mull over in your brain. At the end of everyday, before going to sleep let them go, throw them out of the window, so to speak, and kiss them goodbye. Dream sweetly. As a new day unfolds, new hope arises. Keep believing. Always have faith.
