The Time is NOW to Embrace All The Awesome a Positive Mindset Brings (including 10 Tips to Get Started!)

By Erika Fehrenbach Prell

Let’s clear up a misconception, DreamChasers. Having a positive mindset is not being ignorant that bad things happen or having your head in the sand, so to speak. Rather, you approach a negative situation in a positive way and believe the best will happen, not the worst. While some people do appear to be wired more towards optimism, a positive mindset is a skill or habit, so it can be learned.

Did you just roll your eyes? Are you wondering why you should care?

Judgement free zone, DreamChasers. A short 7 years ago that was me. I never called myself a pessimist, I believe I called myself a realist to feel better. But, I definitely took the “prepare for the worst” mentality; that way, anything else was a huge win. (Spoiler, that’s pretty negative thinking.) One of the best things that has helped me on the journey to my best life is to continually work on positive mindset skills and habits. I mean, in its simplest form, if you are anticipating an outcome, why not expect the best possible outcome?

You all might have noticed by now, I like to know the how behind things. Knowing how helps me to understand the why and the what. Add in a little science base to this, and, bam, you are really speaking my language. So, this shouldn’t be a surprise that I went looking for the how behind a positive mindset. There are studies showing a huge list of health benefits to being positive, including the following:

• Increasing life span
  
• Decreasing depression 
  
• Lowering the intensity of the feeling of distress
  
• Better physical and psychological well-being
  
• Better cardiovascular health (even decreasing the risk of death from cardiovascular disease)
  
• Better coping skills during hardships and times of stress
  

The interesting thing about these studies is the exact mechanism of why positivity has such profound effects isn’t known. It could be that positive people lead healthier lives in general with more physical activity, better diet, less tobacco use, and less overuse of alcohol. It might be related to coping with stress and decreasing the negative effects of stress on the body. Or, it could be the endorphins and other life-enhancing hormones and chemicals released in the body. Most likely, it is a combination of all of these things, which is why it is hard to nail down. Regardless, here’s the take home; if something as simple as being positive can improve your life this much, why not try it?

The first step to a positive mindset is getting control of your self-talk and that little jerk, the Inner Critic. (For more information on this, check out this blog ). Put simply, self-talk is the endless stream of unspoken thoughts that run through your head.  These automatic thoughts can be negative or positive; it might come from logic or reason while some comes from lack of information, typically resulting in a limited belief. When you stop to listen to this inner voice, you might notice a tendency towards positivity or negativity. Negative self-talk shows up in one of four ways:

1. Magnifying the negative part of a situation. For example, you did something great at work that your boss notices and gives you praise for. You ignore the compliment and instead focus on what more you should have done.
   
2. Blaming yourself for something bad happening. This is where assumptions come into play. For example, plans get cancelled with friends, and you assume it is because no one wants to spend time with you.
   
3. Expecting the worst outcome for any situation. This can be rooted in self-doubt and unworthiness. For example, you apply for a new position and immediately expect you will not get it.
   
4. Seeing everything as good or bad. There is no middle ground or gray area, and perfectionism often shows up here. For example, if you can’t play the guitar perfectly the first time, you are a failure and should give up.
   

There might be one or more of these that resonate with you; that is where a negative mindset is showing up in your life. My go-to was hands-down expecting the worst for any situation. Once I realized that was my roadblock to a positive mindset, I could dive into where it came from and start putting strategies into place to flip the script on that negativity. Here’s the thing, DreamChasers, this is just an automatic response or habit, which means, you can change it! Isn’t that powerful? Will it take practice? Yes. Will it take patience, grit, and perseverance? Yes. Will it be worth it? Yes. (Still not convinced? Go back and re-read the health benefits of positivity. That’s just the tip of the iceberg, DreamChasers.)

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Got your attention? Per the usual, SoulShine is here to help you on your journey. Here are 10 Ways to Shift To a Positive Mindset:

1. Start and end the day with a positive affirmation. This is when your subconscious is most receptive to this information.
   
2. Practice gratitude in order to focus on the good, however small. Start a gratitude journal and write down 1-3 things you are grateful for and why.
   
3. Identify what situations bring out negative self-talk or the Inner Critic. Common areas might be your job, relationships, comparing yourself to others, or physical appearance.
   
4. Check your mindset throughout the day. Negativity creeping in? Flip it from negative to positive.
   
5. Find reasons to smile and laugh. Just try to be negative while doing this!
   
6. Flip the script on failure and see the lesson.
   
7. Focus on the present.
   
8. Follow a healthy lifestyle. Exercise can positively affect mood and decrease stress. A healthy diet helps to fuel the mind and body. Managing stress positively affects your mind and body in multiple ways.
   
9. Surround yourself with positive people. It’s hard to be positive when everyone around you is negative.
   
10. Practice positive self-talk. A good rule of thumb? If you wouldn’t say it to someone else, you should not say it to yourself.
    

Now what? Start. Just start, right now. Start practicing that positive mindset and turn that Inner Critic into your Inner Cheerleader. Your future self is already thanking you!

Shine On!