Positive attitude is one of the greatest personal assets one can ever possess, yet one of the hardest attitudes to embrace in these turbulent times.
You might want to say this world is not the best of places to live, I agree. The economy is still struggling with pre-recession, I also agree. Jobs are not easy to come by, I totally agree. But what if I tell you there is a way to live above these woes; that you can actually thrive amidst these circumstances and brutal rocks life throws at you every day?
It is possible to be happy. It is possible to stay positive. It is possible to maintain a positive attitude; to live life with all enthusiasm and hope that it’s not over yet.
To achieve this however, it has to start with your thoughts.
1. How to Maintain Positive Thoughts
Maintaining a positive attitude starts from your thoughts; what goes on every second of every minute of every hour of every day within you. It would surprise you to know that your outward realities are the exact picture of what goes on in your inner reality. Who you are inside is who you are outside or will become, eventually. For “As a man thinks in his heart, so is he”.
Your inner reality however, is made up of your thoughts and your thoughts are influenced by what you experience, every day.
The truth is, life is full of negativities and that brings us to the question, how do you maintain positive thoughts in the midst of this negative world?
- Learn to separate you and the world.
Yes, you are in this world, but allowing whatever happens around here to influence your thoughts would deprive you of the positive attitude you need to succeed in life eventually.
- Pray as often as you can.
We have an assurance in God; an assurance of peace in the midst of turbulence. So when we pray, negative thoughts would make way for positive ones and you’d see your life changing for the better.
- Make up your mind to stay positive.
In the words of Helen Keller, if we make up our minds that this is a drab and purposeless universe, it will be that, and nothing else. On the other hand, if we believe that the earth is ours, and that the sun and moon hang in the sky for our delight, there will be joy upon the hills and gladness in the fields because the Artist in our souls glorifies creation.
2. How to Maintain Positive Thinking
Maintaining positive attitude is an on-going and progressive journey and it revolves around positive thinking. When life hits you hard, what is the first thing that’d cross your mind? When you have a bad day, what do you think about? That you’re defeated or that you’re challenged for a comeback?
Groucho Marx said “Each morning when I open my eyes I say to myself: I, not events, have the power to make me happy or unhappy today. I can choose which it shall be. Yesterday is dead, tomorrow hasn’t arrived yet. I have just one day, today, and I’m going to be happy in it.”
Here’s how to maintain a positive thinking attitude:
- Speak words that induces strength and success
Just like Groucho Max said about, let your words evoke strength! You cannot afford to allow an event ruin your day; you’ve got better things coming. Life is coming with all the goodies you ever deserve and it’s coming for you.
- Learn to forgive yourself
You’re human, bound to make mistakes. And when you make one, the world won’t come to an end because of that. Don’t beat yourself up so hard it becomes difficult to even get up again and fight! Forgive yourself about the past, learn from it and face today!
- Develop a list of what happens when you succeed
When you have a handy list of the other side of success, it gives you hope and puts you in a perpetual state of positive attitude. You begin to think and move on the positive side of life because you can actually see yourself there.
3. How to Maintain a Positive Attitude
“Man often becomes what he believes himself to be. If I keep on saying to myself that I cannot do a certain thing, it is possible that I may end by really becoming incapable of doing it. On the contrary, if I have the belief that I can do it, I shall surely acquire the capacity to do it even if I may not have it at the beginning.” ~ Mahatma Gandhi
Maintaining a positive attitude is achievable in all areas of life. Like Mahatma Gandhi puts it above, when you believe you can do it, you will acquire the capacity to do it.
That leads us to the first point in maintaining a positive attitude:
- Believe that you can
It’s easy to brush yourself down because you do not have what it takes to achieve a thing in the beginning. But the irony is, when you believe you can have whatever it is you want, you will begin to attract the resources you need to achieve it. It may not come in the form you’d like it to, but it sure will come.
- See it as an opportunity
Opportunities don’t always come in shiny armours; it rather comes in ways we least expect. So see that setback as an opportunity to explore where you are at; there just might be some heaps of gold around the corner.
- Develop a personal mantra
Yes, that statement you live by, that reminds you to stay positive, that evokes strength and gears you up for the takeover. Words like “Today, I’m a fountain of inexhaustible supply”, “Today, I can do all things!” etc. Just come up with words that reenergize your inner strength and put you on the right path to a positive attitude for the rest of the day.
4. How to Maintain a Positive Attitude in Stressful Times
Be it because of some personal goals that are not forthcoming or unexpected twist and turns you never dreamt of, you can stay positive when stressed.
I love how McKayla Maroney puts it. He said “There’s a lot of stress out there, and to handle it, you just need to believe in yourself; always go back to the person that you know you are, and don’t let anybody tell you any different, because everyone’s special and everyone’s awesome.”
So, in maintaining a positive attitude when you are stressed out,
- Know and always be aware that you are awesome!
Yes. The fact that you’re at that spot right now doesn’t diminish for a second how awesome a human you are. Circumstances should never make you feel otherwise. Wear the mask of awesomeness and scaling through stressful times would be much easier.
- Watch your reaction to stress
I like the way Hans Selye puts it; “it’s not stress that kills us, it’s our reaction to it”. So how you react or respond to those stressful times has a huge impact on how everything eventually turns out.
- Look at the bright side
Every cloud they said has a silver lining and you have to find your own silver lining amidst the turbulence. Does that situation actually call for so much attention? Does it require that much money to be done? Look around things and don’t just dwell within it as though it’s the end of life.
5. How to Maintain Positive Attitude at Work
“My Boss doesn’t appreciate all the efforts I put into the organization”, “The guy on the opposite desk is so anti-social”. I know, right? How about you look at it like, “Even though my Boss doesn’t appreciate my efforts, I will make sure I leave this organization a better place” or “Dan is so anti-social, but I will make him feel at ease with me by focusing on him and allowing him dominate our conversations”?
Life is better at work when you learn to look beyond what your co-staff does to why they do what they do. People have issues, serious issues and you must understand not everyone have developed themselves to maintain a positive attitude. So here are few ways to stay positive at work:
- Always Sit Up Straight
As simple as that may sound, it’s been confirmed that how you sit influences your thoughts at work. Instead of slouching down in your chair when anything goes wrong, how about you sit it up straight? It gives you the feeling of a super hero; to look at any situation straight in the eye and deal with it!
- Ensure you are surrounded with positive images
What you see consistently forms your inner mind, so ensure your desk, computer screen and easy to see places are filled with positive images. It could be an image of you lovely spouse who makes you happy, that $15million house you’ve always dreamt of, etc. Just ensure whenever you see the images around you, you feel inspired to put in your best and maintain a positive attitude.
- Avoid negative coworkers
Nothing ruins a positive attitude like coworkers who bring out the negatives in everything. Avoid having a conversation with those you know will only make you feel worse.
6. How to Maintain a Positive Attitude in Sales
According to the legendary New York Yankees catcher Yogi Berra, “90% of baseball is mental. The other half is physical.”To maintain a positive attitude in sales, you have to become mentally conscious of your product, your company and yourself.
How do you achieve that?
- You must believe in your product
You own the product, right? If you as the manufacturer don’t have faith in it, would you expect your customers to? Your attitude towards your product has a long way to influencing the response you get from your end users.
- You must believe in your company
It doesn’t matter how small or the infrastructure available to you at the moment. You must believe in your company that your small beginnings will sprout into a conglomerate in the nearest future. That positive attitude is what strengthens you to do the unimaginable as though you already own a conglomerate.
- You must believe in yourself
Yes. That inner strength that you are well able to pilot the plane to the highest heavens and land it confidently at the due time must be there. Your personal believe influences your everyday decisions and actions as a sales person.
7. How to Maintain a Positive Attitude Every Day
No matter how brutal life is, you be able to “Write it on your heart that everyday is the best day in the year.” ~ Ralph Waldo Emerson.
It’s easy justifiable to not be happy with the turbulence, but the more you stay down, the more depressing it becomes. Every day has its own demons, but also, every day has its own blessings. How about choosing to enjoy the blessings of each day?
To achieve this:
- You must learn to say thank you
Regardless of where you’re at, you still have a lot of things to be grateful for. If for nothing, the fact that you can read this blog right now should make you appreciate where you’re at. Thanks the people in your life that make you happy. Living with a thankful heart is one sure way to live in a positive attitude.
- Be Playful
Everyone, no matter the age, has a child inside. Allow your inner child soar. Don’t suppress it. It’s okay to really play; in the sands, at the beach and everywhere you can fully express that child in you. It helps your inner peace and vitality.
- Appreciate the good in those you love
Do unto others what you want done unto you says the Holy Book. This applies to life and positive attitude than anything you can imagine. Tell me, how do you feel each time to appreciate someone? Yea, I know that feeling; see the stars in their eyes, the smiles on their faces. Those things are enough to revamp your positivity.
In conclusion, it’s okay to think life is harsh, brutal, and totally unfair, but it’s up to you to choose your reaction to it. Would you rather stay down or stand out?
In the words of Zig Ziglar, “You cannot tailor-make the situations in life but you can tailor-make the attitudes to fit those situations.”
In rephrasing that quote, you cannot tailor-make the harsh conditions, hurt, pain, unemployment, heartbreaks, depression, economic disaster, loss of a loved one and of course unfairness of life, but you can tailor-make a positive attitude to fit those situations.
Dear friend, brace up and Stay positive!
image courtesy of Stuart Miles at FreeDigitalPhotos.net
Image courtesy of Boaz Yiftach at FreeDigitalPhotos.net
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