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It’s becoming increasingly difficult to have a positive mindset, especially will all the issues going on in the world. Now it’s more important than ever that we move ahead with a positive mindset, even when times are tough. Although it can be really hard, a negative mindset really does nothing for us. Keep reading to learn how to develop and maintain a positive mindset, and start creating a life you love.
Continue reading to learn how to have a positive mindset, when things aren’t so great.
I want to preface this by saying these are the ways I have been able to turn my mindset and life around by developing and continuing to work on my mind. Trust me, if these can work for me, they can work for you too!
1. Practice Gratitude
Make a habit of gratitude journaling. Start by writing down a few things a day that you are grateful for, whether they are big or small. Celebrating what we do have and the positive things in our lives, brings more positivity. Being grateful and feeling positive emotions can only benefit you, you have nothing to lose.
If you prefer an organized, prompted journal to make gratitude journaling easier, try this adorable gratitude journal.
2. Laugh and find humour
Finding humour in difficult situations is a great way to ease difficult emotions sometimes. Learn to laugh at yourself and don’t take life too seriously!
There are legit health benefits that come with laughter, which you can read here.
3. Use positive self-talk and affirmations
The way you talk to yourself is SO important for your overall well being and mental health. Many people don’t really think about how they are “talking” to themselves. Pay attention to your inner dialog. Using positive affirmations may seem weird at first but it really is helpful to use some positive affirmations to get your mind in the right place.
Go ahead and give yourself a little pep talk!
Check out these posts on benefits of positive affirmations and 60 powerful positive affirmations.
4. Self-Care
If you’re burnt out and not taking time for yourself, it’s harder to keep a positive mindset. Try some of these self-care ideas, and take care of yourself! Self-care doesn’t have to be taking a bubble bath and doing a face-mask, although those things are great for self-care too.
Self-care comes in many different forms and means taking time to take care of yourself mentally, physically, spiritually, socially etc. If one part of you isn’t feeling great is brings down the rest of your vibe.
5. Start each day thinking about things you are grateful for.
I guess this is kind of the same as practicing gratitude in general but…before you even get out of bed or do anything else, make it a habit to think of 3 things you are grateful for each morning and start your day off with some positivity before you face the world.
Train yourself to start thinking of the good as soon as you wake up, and stop yourself from thinking about negative things that will bring your vibe down. For example, a lot of people will start their day thinking about how they dread getting up and going to their job…then they think about how they hope they don’t hit traffic…etc. you get the point.
The way you begin your morning gets the ball rolling for how the rest of your day is going to be and YOU are in control of this!
6. Avoid negative people
The greatest change I’ve noticed in my happiness has come from avoiding negative people and remembering if you can’t avoid them, know that you don’t have to live in reaction to other people’s opinions and emotions.
I tend to really become affected by other people’s emotions or moods. When I finally realized that I only need to worry about controlling my thoughts and emotions, the game changed. Just because someone you’re close to is negative or pessimistic doesn’t mean you have to take on any of their emotions.
7. Surround yourself with positive reminders and things that make you happy.
Surround yourself with what makes you happy. This could be as small as a handwritten positive affirmation on your mirror, or a picture that makes you smile in your office.
Some people might think some of the things that bring you joy are stupid, but that doesn’t matter. It’s okay to find child-like joy in the smallest, silliest of things. Learn to be your authentic self without fear of judgement and surround yourself with whatever makes you happy, no matter what that is!
8. Cut out and avoid negativity.
This can be easier said than done, especially if you have to work or live with negative people. However, there are ways you can cut out negativity.
- start with yourself, no negative self-talk
- shut off the radio in your car when the negative news comes on
- stop watching or reading media, news, etc
- unfollow accounts on social media that make you feel bad
- listen to happy music
- watch happy, funny videos
- avoid watching movies or shows that make you feel sad or feel negative emotions (I know this seems like a no-brainer, but sometimes it’s easier said than done)
Don’t live in reaction to other people’s thoughts, opinions, emotions etc. You are in control of how you feel and think.
9. Recognize your thought patterns & practice reframing your thoughts.
It can be really eye opening to take a step back and think about your thoughts. You probably don’t realize it, but the way we see the world is affected by cognitive filters that we subconsciously have in our minds.
During our lifetime, we have many different experiences that shape how we think and relate to the world. We see the world through different “lenses” based on these experiences. This can lead to cognitive distortions and mess with how we see the world and ourselves.
Some examples of filters that are not helpful for a positive mindset:
- Black and white thinking: All or nothing, something is either good, or bad, there is no room for in between
- Selective negative focus: Tend to pick out all the negative details and dwell on those, ignoring any positive details.
- Overgeneralizing: Make general conclusions, based on one incident or piece of evidence. Usually involves describing a situation with always, or never.
- example: You ask a guy out on a date, and he declines and you decide that no one will ever want to go out with you. Or you have a shitty boyfriend and you think/say that you’ll never find a nice guy.
- Jumping to conclusions
- Eg. making negative predictions. “I’ll never get the job promotion.” etc.
Take some time to really think about your thoughts and be honest with yourself. Is it possible that any of these cognitive-distortions are affecting the way you see yourself and the world.
10. Declutter your life, physically and mentally.
Get rid of anything that is weighing you down. Physically, get rid of clutter you don’t need in your work-space, car, bedroom, closet etc. Keep things that you love and use but don’t get weighed down by a bunch of stuff.
Mentally declutter by doing a brain dump. Have a journal or notebook where you can just “dump” and get out everything that’s on your mind. Worries, ideas, thoughts, plans, anything!
Get rid of anything that is weighing you down and doesn’t serve you and you will notice big changes in your mindset and productivity.
11. Practice visualization
Visualize how you want your life to be. Start with how you want your day to go. Visualize what you want and never what you don’t want to happen. Most people do the latter without even realizing when they think about the worst case scenarios, or what could go wrong. Always visualize what can go RIGHT, what you WANT and create an image in your mind of how your perfect day will go.
Visualization is a powerful tool that people often ignore. As adults, it seems, we lose our vivid imagination for the good (like when you’re a child) and just start imagining the bad…start getting back your imagination and use visualization to create what you want. (More to come on that soon…)
Final Thoughts
Figure out what works for you and what doesn’t and DO WHAT IS BEST FOR YOU.
Notice how you feel around certain people, things, etc. and if it’s always a negative feeling, you should probably cut that thing out.
There is never a “one-size-fits-all” approach. Nothing will work for every single person, so don’t get unmotivated or sink deeper into negative thinking because something isn’t working for you. Experiment, and find the things that genuinely make you feel positive and happy.
What tips on how to have a positive mindset did you find most helpful?
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