Building a positive mindset can assist to shift your actions, behaviours and how you view the world, but self-improvement is a choice and one we have to make, but also follow through on in order to transform our life.
Creating and maintaining a positive mindset doesn’t mean you are immune to or will eliminate problems across your life, it just means that your approach to these sticky situations will be viewed through a more positive, logical and rational lens allowing you to explore options, negotiate and be more solution focused.
Starting this process is as simple as examining and amending your negative thought patterns, simply put you are basically forming new habits through:
What areas do I focus on.
- It differs for us all, identify your areas by jotting them down to focus in one area at a time, whether this is your employment or conflict within a friendship group? Remember that there will always be less than ideal situations that we come across, this process won’t eliminate them! Instead it is about exploring solutions and applying them to reduce the negativity associated with the action, activity or thought, give it a try.
Do you have a peak time
- May sound odd but tune into yourself sporadically throughout the day, you may start to notice a pattern whereby your thought patterns become negative and difficult to shift. At times for me it is late afternoon and early evening particularly after a chaotic day, try to identify yours as you can then put plans in place to manage. It will assist you to determine the cause whether it be a person, task, place or time? Be mindful, pause and evaluate your thought process to come up with solutions to shift or decrease negativity.
Is your tribe positive
- Ensure those who make up your tribe albeit friends, romantic partner, work colleagues or acquaintances have a positive disposition. Positive people will give you valuable advice, supports and perspective whereas Negative people will leave you doubting yourself, increase stress and advice provided is likely not impartial instead its formulated from their negative experiences and beliefs, so set boundaries to create a safe space with safe people.
Power of positive self-talk
- We often have negative self-talk whirling around in our minds which is plentiful when it comes to ourselves as we tend to hold ourselves to a higher account. I use this thought process to ensure I pull myself when I start to do this, I stop reflect to remind myself that I shouldn’t say anything to myself that I wouldn’t dare say to anyone else – for me it works, give it a try. We tend to have time for others, kind words and are able to put a positive spin on just about anything when it comes to another, practice this on yourself.
Building new habits can be challenging but then again so is anything that is new to us but overtime we master it and there is truth in the saying slow and steady wins the race.
It will take time but it will be worth it in the long run.
Positive thinking allows us to view the happenings in our life through a more rational lens that enables us to find solutions to either resolve, improve or learn from the experiences and problems we will be exposed to throughout our day to day lives.
- Kym Marsden is an accredited mental health social worker in Queensland
