Becoming an Optimist

Imagine it's your birthday and you have a whole day of activities planned. You are having a great day when sometime in the afternoon, someone important to you says or does something that is very hurtful to you. No matter what the outcome, here is my question to you...when you look back on that birthday, do you think first of the hurt or the great day? I think it's human nature to dwell on the unwanted, the painful, the hurt, and honestly, I don't know why. Imagine how much happier our memories would be if we just dwelled on the positive. Did you ever have one event ruin your whole day? Now of course, some events warrant the stigma of ruining the whole day, but I think that most do not. In fact, I would venture to guess that most events would hardly scratch the surface if not for our thoughts giving attention to them. Our thoughts on anything are like fuel to a fire. Think about how quickly a minor infraction can turn into a huge argument when you focus your thoughts on the infraction. Quite frankly, I think it's easier to allow negative thoughts to run wild in our minds than positive ones. It's much more of a conscious decision, but a decision you can perfect. In fact, you can make a habit of focusing your thoughts on the positive side of any situation...many people do, we call them optimists. I'm not talking about burying your head in the sand, I'm just saying you have a choice. Your thoughts are going to fuel the fire...it's up to you which fire.

So try this, throughout your day, take a moment here and there to notice how you feel (happy, angry, frustrated). Once you've examined how you feel, pay attention to what you were thinking about. If your mood is a positive one, put those thoughts on a mental shelf to be brought out and thought about when you are feeling down. If your mood is a negative one, examine the thoughts you were thinking and see if you can find a bright side...if not, simply change the subject of your internal self talk. Be easy on yourself. Habits take time to form, but it is worth it. Optimistic people live happier, healthier lives...isn't that worth the effort?