Introduction
We all have things in our lives that we would like to do, it could be go on holiday to the Bahamas, take the children or grandchildren to Disneyland, give the wife/partner a really special weekend in London, the list could go on ad infinitum, the point that I am making here is that we might like to do certain things, but how do we achieve them, if you learn how to think positively, then you will be halfway there.
We also need to balance our life that we would like, with the life that we have got, call it prioritizing or time management, it really does not matter, what does matter is how we plan it.
If need be use a journal or planner to sort out what you need to do, have to do and would like to do.
- Make a list of your goals – as in a previous article list these in order of priority, include not only those that have to be done, but those that you would like to do.
- Make a daily schedule – in this list your daily commitments, do you take or pick up the children from school, that is a commitment, as is a meeting at work. List all these down, include personal time, such as meals, relaxing and going to bed.
- Prioritize your time equally, do not let one commitment over shadow everything else, yes you have to work, but do not neglect your family.
Do not deviate from your daily schedule unless it is an emergency. You have probably realised that by keeping to this suggestion for at least three weeks, you are forming a habit, these habits do take at least three weeks to become part of your life.
If you want your new life style to really become part of your life then you must really stick at it, this is the new you who is learning to think positively.
Minimise Distress by Anticipation and Preparation
If you are prepared for possible distress or stressful situations then when it does happen, you will suffer far less stress than if you were not prepared for some sort of problem.
Another fact of life is that we all face change at some time in our life, it could be going to University and living alone, getting married getting used to really sharing your life with someone, a new child, again so the list goes on. Many of these occasions we look forward to with great anticipation, some changes we do not greet with as much enthusiasm. It is these changes that we must be prepared for.
Accepting change is a very important part of learning how to think positively, if you do not embrace change, then you will find yourself living a life that at least could become very boring, certainly mundane.
Adopt A Positive Mental Attitude
When I first came out of the Royal Air Force I joined an insurance company, one of the posters or flyers that I picked up was a character with the words Positive Mental Attitude or PMA for short, this I attached on the wall above the patio doors, in the extension, which I used for an office, that way I could see it when I looked up. Did find when I was a little low that it did me a power of good. It made me focus on the job in hand.
It made me respond to the cartoon character poster which I had next to it with the words. G.O.Y. A, will not elucidate what they mean.
If you think about it with anything but a very positive attitude, you will soon give in to a number of things from stress to despair to why should I bother, and so it goes on. If you end up getting too low, then depression could set in. This could then lead to all sorts of far more serious problems.
Remaining positive is not always easy, but if you do want to improve yourself and your way of life, learning to think positively is an absolute must.
Resolve Conflicts
If you have any ongoing problems or conflicts, then you must get them resolved. Having problems hanging over you will not do your future any good at all, it will form part of what I call “life clutter” or “clogging the brain with things that need sorting out”. Remaining positive is an important part of this process.
You cannot have a clear brain and move forward positively if you allow past or even present problems to interfere with the now, get rid of them, bin them, anything but get rid. Even to the point of backing down if you really have too, but get rid you must.
Allowing conflicts to rumble on will do far more harm than good.
Yes- You Are Worth It
Think that I may have mentioned this in an article in the past, but it is worth repeating. When my first wife left me, one of her parting shots was “Nobody likes you” to which I replied “Yes they do”, this as you can imagine went on for a while, I concluded with “I like me!”.
The truth of this remark is that as long as I can live with what I do, am not ashamed of my actions, then yes “I DO LIKE ME”, and do not really care too much what others think. Yes it is nice to be popular and well liked, but as long as you are comfortable in what you do, does anyone else really matter. (Not talking about your partner or family here, they will always matter).
We must also accept that are actions, words or deeds will not please everyone, that we can live with, just let it flow over you.
Remember you are you
Conclusion
As always do so hope that you have enjoyed this article on how to think positively, if you have any comments please leave them in the box below, we do appreciate your feedback, also the time that you take in making them.
The last article in this series will be “2019 Review of IDPLR.com”
Be Healthy, Happy and Wealthy.
Stuart (aka Edwin)
https://learningandwealth.com
Learning how to think positively is a big factor in how your life will get on. It can be a rough time or it can be filled with good memories, success, and wealth of many sorts. It is how you react to things around you and within you that can make life easier or harder.
The guidance you have laid out in this article will help a lot of people start to think positively if they have not been able to do so to now, and even those like me who may, for the most part, think positively can learn some additional tips and ideas on how to get better at thinking positively.
We used to say that preparation meet opportunity, and this is very true to this day. It also boosts your confidence that you are prepared for any situation and it is easier to think positively when you are ready for whatever may come. This can help too when unexpected things happen, you can deal with them better.
This was an insightful post that will help a lot of people, thanks for putting it together, I enjoyed reading it. It is hard not to think positively when I reflect on the points you have covered, and if there are areas to be worked on, you have laid them out so everyone can learn how to think positively.
Dave, As always thank you for your meaningful comments,
Stuart
Hi! I believe that being positive is a very important mental state for us to live in. I used to think very negatively, but after a while of CBT(cognitive behaviour therapy), I am now way more positive than before. With less worry and negativity, I find my daily tasks easier to do and am just an overall happier person. However, I think being overly positive may not be a good thing. What are your views on forced positivity?
Thanks Mary LI for your comments, good question, think that you need to be careful about forcing yourself to be positive, could result in you being over the top in relation to how people perceive you, which of course is not a good thing. But we must not confuse being over positive with being overly enthusiastic.
Stuart
Hi, Edwin.
Thanks for your thoughts on positive thinking.
The best shot was – “Yes, I Like me!”, it’s a great sentence, I believe!
Unless I like myself, my work, my thoughts, my deeds, my responses to others, my kindness, my beliefs – how others can make me negative.
From now on – I am going to repeat this sentence and raise my P.M.A.
By the way, Edwin, what does G.O.Y.A. Mean, still surprising.
Warm Regards,
Gaurav Gaur
Hi Gaurav, many thanks for your valued comments, G.O.Y.A. means simply Get Off Your !!!!!!!!!!,
Stuart
Hi Allen,
Hope you are well. I faced very much depression in my life. Whenever I have to take things positively. But could not control my mind. From your post I realised that I can handle all problems positively. I found your post very important and leaned how to think positive. You structure your post very easily but nicely. I will follow your advices and will share your post to my bosom ones.
Thanks a lot Allen.🙂
Thanks you so much for your honest comments, pleased to be able to help.
Stuart
Hello Edwin. I started affiliate marketing some months ago and it wasn’t until these last 2 days I decided to be more organized and not throw my time randomly here and there. Of course I had support and help from lots of people but the all this help you can start and utilize it when you yourself choose it to.
I liked the section about minimizing distress by anticipation and preparation. I agree that if you are prepared for something, it won’t surprise you, you will be less stressful when it happens and you will deal with it faster. Well my theory is that always prepare for the worst because if the worst happens, you will stay cool. Of course if something better happens, then it’s a plus.
In order to enjoy some kind of quality life, you must always keep positive. This life is too short to run it even for a little on negativity. But sometimes it’s unavoidable so these times you can just think of it as training that you need to do. With that mindset, you reduce the impact as much as possible. Not that it doesn’t hold any truth to it (the training).
Thanks for this interesting read. Always helpful to find the “goblins” (in your head) and kill them!. Have a nice day.
Many thanks George for your kind comments.
Stuart
This is just what I needed to read! Lately I have been messing up with my schedules and chores. I easily forget things and ended up doing little of all the things I needed to accomplish. I am not a journal type person but I think I might give it a try. I just started writing down “to-do-list” and it helps me remember things.
One thing I started doing to destress is meditation every morning. It helps a lot mentally. Thanks for sharing this article, I hope it will help boost the self-esteem of every readers as it did to me.
Many thanks Gillian, comments like this make writing content worthwhile, glad that you enjoyed the article,
Stuart