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One of the things you might want to work on seriously in your personal development is improving your outlook on life first. It is not going to be an instant process that happens overnight. Many people have gone through several backward during the transformation into what we call positivity in life.
The most obvious challenge is how to resist negative thinking that often haunts you in almost every situation. Overcoming negativity is not an easy task to do. Those negative traits usually stem from early childhood to adult development. It also often acts as a trauma response. However, with more and constant practice of building positive habits, you will eventually reach the point when you have that optimism and constructive outlook.
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Anyone can learn the most effective way to be more positive in everyday life. Little things build up into more visible results if you keep going and never give up. No matter how challenging it is, you can practice positivity in your life if you put your mind to it.
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The relationship between positive thinking and self-talk
Positive thinking does not mean you completely ignore unpleasant situations and experiences then you will be full of positivity all day. It just means that you take a more optimistic and productive approach in handling those negative matters. You focus on the best outcome, not the opposite one.
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Self-talk is one of the things that stimulate positive thinking. What is self-talk anyway? Self-talk is a continuous stream of hidden thoughts in your mind that have an endless possibility of what it is. That is why it can be about something positive, but it can also be the other way. Some of the human self-talk originates from logic and reasoning. Some might come from misconceptions as a result of a lack of information.
Since your thought is the center of what controls your emotion and action, it is essential to think positively. That means you take an optimistic approach in life. While negative thoughts, on the other side, can lead your life to be full of pessimism.
Health benefits you can get from positive thinking
Researchers continuously study the outcomes of positive thinking and optimism outlook in life, particularly from a health perspective. Since the human mind heavily influences the body, healthy benefits we can get from positive thinking include these points.
- Reduce depression level
- Eliminate stress symptoms
- Increase lifespan
- Strengthen resistance to sickness
- Enhance the quality of psychological and physical state
- Improve cardiovascular health and its related function
- Elevate the coping mechanism during difficult times and situations
The existing theory about this engagement between positive thinking habits and health benefits is that practicing a positive life outlook when facing hardships and stressful circumstances can make you cope more healthily and reduce the harmful effects of stress and anxiety on your body.
Experts also observe people who carry this optimistic outlook tend to lead a healthier and better lifestyle. They are physically active, follow a clean diet, cut off junk food, alcohol, and cigarette.
Identify negative thinking behavior to prevent it as a habit
When nobody around you tells you that you are doing a negative behavior, you will unconsciously keep doing that toxic action. So, you must know these traits to realize the thinking pattern and get out from it when things start to harm you mentally and physically.
These are some negative thinking habits that you need to recognize.
- Personalizing
You tend to blame only yourself when things go wrong and feel like you should be the one who is responsible for all the mistakes. You cannot see things clearly at first and automatically burden yourself with feelings of guilt. It seems impossible for you to try objectively weighing the situation and find the initial conflict. You always have the urge to condemn yourself continuously.
- Filtering
This trait might appear not too dangerous at first but actually can lead to another form of self-deprecating. If you keep indulging in this kind of behavior, you will slowly lose a sense of self-respect. It is something you should avoid because self-respect is necessary when it comes to living a positive mindset.
What is the actual meaning of filtering? Filtering is when you remove all the positive aspects in a situation and only magnify the negative ones.
For example, when you get an achievement and people around you compliment you a lot, you tend to let those positive things pass by just like that. You hardly appreciate your achievement and only focus on doing other tasks and responsibilities. Ignoring your achievement can be harmful because you also need praise from other people and even yourself as a human.
- Polarizing
You either see things as good or bad, and there is no middle ground. That means you need yourself to be perfect, or you are a failure. This trait can hold you back from opening yourself to changes and learning opportunities. Try to be more flexible in assessing your capabilities.
- Catastrophizing
You only focus and wait for the worst thing to happen. When something goes wrong in the morning, you tend to think the rest of the day will be a massive disaster.
How to focus more on positivity
You can shift the way you think from negative to positive thinking by cultivating optimistic and productive habits. It will take time to incorporate this behavior into your daily routine because you are practicing new habits after all.
- Identify the aspects of your life that you need to change
Know which areas in your life that you often think negatively. That can be about work, family, or relationships you have. From this point, you can slowly adjust your way of thinking to a more positive one.
- Periodically check and evaluate yourself
You need to stop and check on what you are thinking periodically. When dwelling in negative thinking too much, turn it into something positivity that can change your entire mood.
- Seek humor in everyday life
Find humor in daily life to make you less stressed out. It is okay to smile and laugh for a while during a difficult time. It can also recharge your energy so that you are ready to be a more optimistic person.
- Indulge in a healthy lifestyle
Exercising can have a positivity impact on your mood and body. Cutting off junk food and eat healthier food can also support a good lifestyle.
- Surround yourself with positive and supportive people
Having a positivity support system is very important, such as your family and friends. They can give you constructive feedback and motivate you to do better. Negative people can only make you feel bad about yourself.
