Stay Positive!
The last thing I wrote about was how to defeat negative thinking and the general concept discussed was simply to stay busy in order to keep your mind from wondering to negative thoughts. Well, I think this go around I am going to write about strategies to help stay positive.
Be in the moment. My mind wonders easily and often. It usually wonders off to the negative. Either about a bad experience in the past or something in the future that I am worried about. It is easy to get stuck in the past or in the future. I get stuck in the past a lot and dwell on what I could have done differently to have change my, or others, experiences. I experience a lot of guilt because of what I have done, who I hurt, what I could have done differently, and how doing it differently would have changed everyone’s future. As for the future, I stress and worry about it a lot. Generally, ambiguous events tend to cause worry and stress because we do not know what to expect. On a side note, try not to be the one who causes stress in others due to ambiguity (For example, instead of saying I need to speak to you. This sentence does not give much information and whoever you said this to could easily think that they did something wrong and you are going to get after them. Try to give the five ‘Ws’ (who, what, when, where, why) in these situations).
I combat my mind wondering by, besides staying busy, recognizing when I am thinking negatively and telling myself to be in the moment. I let myself enjoy what is happening now, being aware of the experiences that I am having now. I find that this lets my mind let go of the past and the future as I focus on what is happening in the present. In other words, be mindful of the present. It sounds like some Star Wars Jedi stuff, but it works. By recognizing that you are thinking negative and simply reminding yourself to enjoy the present moment you will find it easier to stay positive.
Do not dwell on the past. Just a few more words on dwelling on negative memories from the past. Other than saying you are sorry and doing what you can to rectify wrongs, what can you do about the past? Nothing. So, once you have apologized and did what you could to make amends stop dwelling on the negative things from the past. If you are going to think about the past, think of fun positive experiences. Make a memory of the good by writing in a journal, blogging or vlogging it, and sharing your good experience with others.
Plan for the future, but do not stress about the future. We cannot just entirely ignore the future, but we can change how we think about the future. In my own experience I often dread what is going to come tomorrow. Whether it is a lot of hard work that has to happen tomorrow, a boring meeting, a bill I know is coming due…you name it. Some of the worry could be due to poor planning and the worry that I won’t be prepared for the situation. Instead of worrying about it, come up with a plan for the future so you don’t have to worry about it and get back to enjoying the present.
Well, I hope that this made sense. It does to me and it has helped me tremendously when combating negative thoughts and working to stay positive. When you recognize that you are dwelling on the past or worrying about the future, stop, recognize what you are doing, and remind yourself to be in the moment. Take It Easy!
