“The change of diet will not help a person who does not change his thoughts.
When a person purifies his thoughts, he no longer wants unclean food.. “
– How does a man think
We all have many thoughts in our head all the time, both positive and negative. Positive thinking generally engenders positive realitywhereas negative thinking generally generates negative results. Both ways of thinking are in constant tug of war in our minds, and the thoughts that dominate will manifest in our actions and perspectives. Positive thinkers tend to deal with life’s challenges confidently and are more likely to be successful than negative thinkers, who tend to look at everything non-constructively.
Obviously, we would rather put on our positive thinking cap most of the time and leave room for negative thoughts. However, like it or not, many thoughts keep running through our heads, including failure and other unhealthy activities. What we can do is train our minds to focus on the good things instead of the bad, the happy times instead of the sad, what we have instead of what we don’t have.
It is sometimes said that we will never really know what we have until it is gone. So should we wait for some things to disappear before appreciating them? No, in fact, we can train our minds to focus on the brightest things in life, no matter how small, so that negative thoughts don’t cloud our outlook for the future. Here are 20 positive thinking tips to start cultivating a positive mindset:
• love yourself. Before expecting other people to love and adore you, you must first love yourself. Make a positive commitment to improve yourself in learning, work, family, cultivating friendships, appreciating nature, and pursuing worthy causes. Praise yourself as much as others. When you start to feel confident, positive thoughts will flow naturally.
• know yourself. There is no better person in the world who can tell who you really are. Know your passions, desires, tastes and principles. Be sure to set aside some time each week for solitary self-reflection. If you know yourself well, you will be aware of how far you can go physically, mentally and emotionally.
• Balance your desires. We live in a place of opposites and duality: gain and loss, pleasure and pain, light and dark, man and woman, love and hate. This is life. We can never have all the good things in life at the same time. In love, sometimes someone gets hurt. In wealth, there will always be people richer and poorer than you. Moderation is one of the main keys to happiness.
• Be realistic. Make sure what you want is something possible. Waiting for something to happen that would never actually materialize in real life will only bring you disappointment. For example, you may want to lose weight. Therefore, you need to set a goal and act on the appropriate measures within a period of time to achieve what you want. No one can lose weight overnight. Don’t expect miracles or quick fixes, because they are rarely real.
• Learn from experiences. Learning in a classroom is very different from learning in real life. In school, one learns the lesson before taking an exam. In real life, one takes the test first before learning the lesson. The proof in real life is our experiences. If we fail that test, that is, the experience is not so good, we study the situation and learn the lesson. From here, we can avoid making the same mistake twice.
• Separate yourself from the result. Sometimes it is said that life is like a Ferris wheel; sometimes you’re at the top and sometimes you’re at the bottom. Inevitably, there will be times in our lives when some things don’t go according to what we plan or want. Do your best on the important things, but don’t get too upset if you don’t get what you want, as some things are not supposed to be. Don’t get too attached to results, as this single approach can only cause disappointment and disappointment. Sometimes it is the journey and the experiences that can be valued and treasured.
• Keep a list of your goals and actions. Set the goals you want to achieve and map out your plan to achieve them. When you are sure of what you want to do and accomplish in your life, a stronger mind and will will usually follow.
• Keep your mind focused on important things. Visualize the achievement of your goals. Develop a strategy for dealing with obstacles and problems. Focus on the important things that need to be taken seriously, but at the same time, take some time to relax and enjoy. With a fresh and clear mind, there is a greater chance of success.
• Plan the day ahead. Minimize avoidable mistakes that will lead to lost productivity and negative results. Plan your work first and then work your plan. Have clearly defined goals for today, in the medium and long term as well. You can refine your daily goals even before you get out of bed every day, so that you can avoid firefighting problems that could have been avoided with proper planning and thought.
• Start the day with joy. How you receive the morning largely determines your outlook for the rest of the day. Receive it with energy and good humor, and it is likely that things will work out well and you can focus on achieving what you want.
• Ask for guidance. Only God knows what awaits us on any given day. You will surely appreciate a few minutes of prayer. Ask Him for guidance in your daily prayer. Have faith that He is more than willing to grant our requests as long as it is for our own good and in accordance with His Will. With God as your guide, negative thoughts will be much less likely to dominate our day. I can get through this day. Nothing is impossible. After all, God is with me.
• Try new things and challenges. See learning and change as opportunities rather than something to fear. Attitudes and routines are worth changing as long as they improve yourself and the things around you. Doing new things might include considering more options for a project, meeting new people from different places, asking a lot of questions. Through this, the flow of thought is directed towards improvement and negative thoughts are minimized.
• Laughter. Enjoy and have fun. Looking on the bright side of life begins with entertainment and pleasure. Laughter is the best medicine and that is very true in many cases. Whether you have a physical or emotional ailment, a few laughs and giggles can help ease some pain or lift heavy luggage like anxiety, disappointment, or nervousness.
• Associate with positive people. In every classroom, workplace, or just anywhere you go, look for upbeat people and partner with them. There are many, I am sure. They can help you build self-confidence and self-esteem.
• Be open. We have to accept the fact that we don’t know everything. And that we continually learn in all the places we go, with people we meet every day. Our mind is so spacious that it is impossible to fill it completely. Therefore, we must open our minds to new experiences and knowledge that can help us become better people.
• Get in the habit of asking questions. This should be compared to ignorance; rather, it should be associated with seeking more information to understand matters more clearly. With more knowledge, comes more power.
• Have confidence in other people. While it may seem difficult and risky to trust someone, trusting people is key to dispelling negative judgments and doubts. Develop a keen sense to identify and associate with trustworthy people. This will help you establish harmonious relationships with your colleagues, friends, and people around you.
• Forgive. Mistakes and failures are the root causes of negative thinking. If we somehow learn to let go of the pain, agony, and fear that we are trying to keep inside, it will be easier to express our good intentions and reach out to other people. Forgive yourself and others for making mistakes and at the same time learn from them.
• Count your blessings. Focus on what you have rather than what you don’t have. Focusing on our desires that don’t materialize will only bring time-wasting discontent and disappointment. Instead, be thankful and appreciative of all the blessings we receive.
• Leave your worries behind. At the end of each day, before going to sleep, there is no need to keep bad experiences and unhappy moments that have happened in the day inside of you. Let them go, throw them out the window and kiss them goodbye, and you will have sweet dreams. As a new day unfolds, new hope arises. Keep believing and always have faith.
Here are some positive thinking tips I can think of. You don’t have to practice all of them, in any particular order. Just adopt a few of them and you should start to see some noticeable changes in your attitude and life.
