Learning how to have a positive attitude is essential to ensure you create and live your Ultimate Lifestyle, a happy life.
A positive attitude is a mental state of mind, just as depression and sadness are, but residing at polar opposite ends of the mindset spectrum. A positive attitude can be developed and strengthened with awareness and mindfulness and regardless of your situation.
For some, a positive attitude comes naturally. Perhaps they were blessed and their positive attitude was instilled in them when they were young by good parents, or they were surrounded by positive, healthy role models and learned their positive attitude from them. For others though, a positive attitude is a foreign concept having been raised in a world where fear and drama based media, gossiping and backstabbing are the norm. Some people have been conditioned to dramatize and exaggerate events just like in the old fable Chicken Licken, The Sky is Falling – justifying their negativity as “being realistic”, but it is a very fine line between “being realistic” and simply harboring negative and limiting attitudes and thoughts.
For every obstacle, challenge, setback, dilemma or problem, there are always three ways to view the situation :
1. Positively / optimistically
2. Negatively / pessimistically or,
3. Neutrally / fact based.
For example, a glass with a two pint capacity is filled with just one pint of water. You could say it is half full (positive / optimistic), half empty (negative / pessimistic), or simply that it is a glass filled to 50% capacity (neutral / fact based).
The negative / pessimistic reaction is the only viewpoint of the three potential views that has detrimental effects on your life, including your health. Reacting with a negative attitude fosters a stressed and anxiety based mindset which only amplifies worry and concern about the future as well. All these negative emotions release free radicals in your body and over time these negative emotions can lead to more serious health problems such as cardiovascular diseases, while on the other hand, the positive / optimistic and neutral / fact based reactions have a positive physiological and psychological effect on your life and health because you are more disposed to maintaining your level of happiness as endorphins circulate your body enhancing the feel good factor even further.
Harboring negative and limiting thoughts and attitudes are like cutting the legs of your horse at the starting line seconds before the start of a big horse race. You are dooming and sabotaging your efforts before the event has even begun. Not only does a negative / pessimistic attitude have adverse repercussions on your life and health, but from a rational point of view, this attitude is entirely unproductive, unattractive, undesirable and will never do you any justice. To continue living your life with a negative attitude is completely irrational and…stupid!
Richard Branson, the worlds most extravagant and eccentric Billionaire reinforces in his book “Business Stripped Bare” that “you have to prepare for the downside“. Preparing for the downside is “being realistic”, foreseeing any factual events or situations that could jeopardize your ambitions and then developing back up plans should these “what if” events occur. This is “being realistic” : based on neutral / factual information. This is dreaming big and moving from goal to goal, one step at a time and dealing with obstacles and setbacks as they arise. Being realistic is not being negative or pessimistic. Being negative and pessimistic is reacting as if the downside has already / is about to happen.
In every lifetime, there will always be times of dissatisfaction, anxiety and genuine cause for stress . Having a positive attitude does not make you immune from these life events, we all have to deal with the good and the bad, even the Kings and Queens of England, the supermodels, celebrities and the heirs to great fortunes, but having a positive attitude does shield you from the intensity and severity of these events. With a positive attitude you know that whatever is happening, will pass, that there are better days ahead and a positive attitude ensures that you deal with the tricky situations gracefully.
Having a positive attitude is about learning the lessons from the setback, then focusing on the ’silver lining around the cloud’, the positive aspects, the blessings in disguise and using your resourceful, creative and constructive thinking to solve the dilemma, knowing that there is a solution to every problem, expecting success, staying optimistic, motivated and focused until the problem is solved and never ever giving up because people with a positive attitude know that in the grand theme of life, failure is non-existent.
Essentially, having a positive attitude is a choice. If you are more inclined to view the glass as being half empty, then being aware of how you negatively perceive situations is the first step to change your mental attitude.
Next time you are faced with any situation – stop your automated reactions in their tracks and take a few seconds to objectively analyze the situation to identify each of the three views mentioned above : Identify the Negative / Pessimistic argument, the Positive / Optimistic argument and the Neutral/ Factual argument. Once your mind has identified with all three possible viewpoints, you then choose to associate with either the positive/optimistic argument, or the neutral/factual, in which case you deal with the facts with a positive and constructive attitude. It really is as simple as that. Every time you feel yourself inclined to react negatively, analyze the situation and override your habitual thinking with a purposefully optimistic and positive attitude. This reconditions your mind in alignment with a better life, your best life.
It takes much effort to pull yourself out of the darkness of your own negative emotions and mindset, but the effort is very much worthwhile. In a world with so much negativity, fear, hatred, indifference and animosity, a positive attitude shines like a beacon and draws others to you. People will want to be around you, they will want to speak with you and get your ideas and input on their projects. A positive attitude is a powerful, healthy mindset available to each and every human being on earth and best of all, a positive attitude does not need any qualifications or skills, is free to attain.
This is the life, this is your life. Doing something special with it starts with a positive attitude which will be the unshakable foundation you build your best life on, a happy life, your Ultimate Lifestyle.
