The Strength of Smiles: How To Change Your Life By Being Positive.

“I knew today was going to be awful the moment I got out of bed” is something most, if not all, of us have uttered at least once in our lives. You get out of bed, feeling just awful, the hot water runs out in the middle of your shower, and then you burn the eggs, miss the bus, and arrive late for work. In the midst of all the depression, you nod to the voice in the back of your head that says “See? I knew you shouldn’t have gotten out of bed today”.
Yet, most of the time, it doesn’t occur to us that maybe our day turned out so bad because we’d already decided it was going to be the very minute we opened our eyes. A simple smile and a positive attitude can flip your bad days into good –maybe even great- ones. Read on to find out more about positivity, and how it can change your life.
Before I discuss how you can maintain a healthy, positive, attitude in your life, I’d like to mention a few of the health benefits of being positive:
1) Modern psychological research has shown that positive thinkers are less stressed, as they can better cope with stressful situations in their lives than those who choose to see the “empty half of the cup”. They are also at lesser risk of depression and anxiety disorders.
2) Positivity may even effect your body physiologically. Researchers have been able to prove that optimism and positive thinking reduce the risk of cardiovascular diseases. This is probably because positive thinkers lead healthier life-styles than negative individuals.
So how exactly can we become positive thinkers?
• Don’t listen to the grumpy voice: Sometimes we simply wake up feeling terrible. The problem is that this feeling is rarely left alone. Usually, it’s amplified by our “grumpy voice”. It reminds you of all the bad things that have ever happened to you, making you feel even worse as you trudge to the bathroom. It makes you think of all the things that could go wrong today, and then it starts dictating things for you to do on this awful day. What you should do here is simply ‘not listen to the voice, but defy it’. Because most of the time, half of what it says isn’t true until we believe it. So if it tells you today is going to be awful, think of a mental list of all the good things that can happen. You’ll make the best eggs in the world today. There will be no traffic so you’ll arrive early. You’ll finish that report today, and get to leave work early.
• Think of all the negativities of negativity: Think of all the time you waste by being negative, and all the things you could have done with that time. Think of all the energy moping around wasted, and what you could have done with it. Think of all the friends you could have made with a more positive attitude. After you’ve thought of all that, get up, and start doing all the things you could have done by being positive. It’s never too late to start, so start now.
• Fake positivity: This might sound like an awful thing to do, but sometimes –especially for people who have been negative their whole lives- faking positivity will lead to the real thing over time. Wear bright clothes. Colors like yellow, orange, green, and white, are some of the colors known to give positive boosts. Listen to upbeat music for a change instead of the Lux Aeterna you’ve been playing since it was composed. Watch a comedy, read some jokes, do the things that will make you smile.
• Look on the bright side: There’s always a bright side. And when I say always, I mean always. We will always have something that makes us more fortunate than others. If your job sucks, at least you’ve got a job. If you don’t have a job, at least you have the ability to work –you won’t remain jobless forever-. If you don’t have the ability to work, maybe there’s something else meant for you to do, something a lot better than just any ‘job’.
• Smile: Even if there wasn’t little traffic, even if you did burn the eggs, don’t revert to negativity. Smile. Keep smiling no matter what. I know it’s easier for our minds to revert to the black side of life, but remember, it takes time and effort for positivity to change your life, the same way it takes time and effort for exercise to change your body. Never giving up, and continuing positive thinking and actions will give you results sooner or later.
So, now that you have some basic guidelines on how to be positive, why are you wasting your time looking for answers on the internet? Grab a pen and paper and draw a plan, and start your positive life right this minute.