Negative thoughts drain you of energy and keep you from being in the present moment. The more you give in to your negative thoughts, the stronger they become.
I like the imagery of a small ball rolling along the ground, and as it rolls, it becomes bigger and faster. That’s what one small negative thought can turn into: a huge, speeding ball of ugliness.
On the contrary, a small positive thought can have the same effect blossoming into a beautiful outcome.
When we start to have negative thoughts, it’s hard to stop them. And it’s much easier said than done to shift your focus to positive thoughts. But it’s the only way, especially if you want to avoid going down a path that is painful and unnecessary.
Overcoming negativity
Here are 10 things you can do to help overcome any negative thoughts:
Meditate or just have some quiet time first thing to set the tone for the day
Take your focus away from your thoughts and bring your attention to your breathing. I like the app HeadSpace (free for first 10 days). Stay present to the here and now instead of jumping to what could happen. Also by de-stressing, your cortisol levels drop and your body will avoid constantly being in ‘fat storage’ mode.
Smile
Sometimes this doesn’t happen so easily and we may have to almost force ourselves to smile. It really does help to change your mood and relieve stress. You may also feel lighter because it takes fewer muscles to smile than to frown! And there’s always the ripple effect ……
Surround yourself with positive people
Call a friend who you know can give you constructive yet loving feedback. When you’re stuck in a negative spiral, talk to people who can put things into perspective and who won’t feed your negative thinking. Choose wisely whom you spend the most of your time with – think radiators and not drains.
Change the tone of your thoughts from negative to positive
For example, instead of thinking, “I am going to have a hard time …….”, think “I will face some challenges, but I will come up with solutions that I will be happy with.” Reframe your language to reframe your thoughts.
Don’t ‘choose’ to feel so hard done by
Life can be challenging but you are the author; you create your life—take responsibility. There is always a way out. We will always have the choice to make change happen, if need be. You might not always be able to change the situation but you can always change your attitude.
Help someone
Take the focus away from you and do something nice for another person. Make up a box of food and donate it to the Salvation Army or local food bank. Mow your neighbour’s lawn for them. Offer to babysit for a friend to give them a break. It’ll take your mind off things and you will feel better for helping someone else.
Remember that no one is perfect and let yourself move forward
It’s easy to dwell on our mistakes. The only thing you can do is learn from your mistakes and move forward. Remind yourself that you definitely don’t want to experience ‘that’ again. It’s feedback not failure – simply a learning experience.
Sing
I don’t remember lyrics very well (ha ha! have you seen/heard the Peter Kay sketch about misheard lyrics?!) but every time I do sing I always feel better. When we sing, we show our feelings and this provides an amazing stress relief.
Read positive quotes
I like to place Post-It notes with positive quotes on my computer, fridge door, mirror, and phone screensaver as reminders to stay positive. Reinforce positive language behaviours by repeating them out loud. Often.
List five things that you are grateful for right now
Being grateful helps you appreciate what you already have. Here’s my list: my husband and kids, my health, my business, that it was just a new battery my car needed when it broke down last week, the success of my online members. Write your own list and then get into the habit of doing this every single morning on waking, or every evening before you go to bed. Set a positive tone to your day (at the start or the end) – and practice this daily. You’ll not only be amazed at how different you feel but also the success you achieve as a result of a positive mindset.
