As a daily positive thinker, life’s distractions, negative people, and other external “brain drainers” can leave you faced with challenges to conquer. The good part is, you can learn to train your brain to help stay positive when times are tough.
Try these 7 tips to help train your brain to stay positive:
1. Daily Gratitude
“Gratitude is the fairest blossom which springs from the soul.” – Henry Ward Beecher
Place your journal, a pad and pen or your phone with the gratitude app next to your bed each night. When you wake up each morning, make it a habit to write down at least three things you’re grateful for. It can be anything from family and work to a good night’s rest or the morning sunrise. Whatever is positive in your life deserves a little thank you note from your soul. When we focus our attention on gratitude, that thankfulness will expand.
If it’s difficult to think of something right away, realize that something JUST happened that you can be grateful for… you woke up today. Not everyone gets that opportunity.
2. Stay Centered
Staying centered throughout the day will help keep you from being derailed by negative energy that tries to consume your confident, positive attitude. You can find balance in many activities, such as yoga, meditation, deep breathing, walking in nature or any other activity that puts your mind at rest. When the mind ceases the negative thoughts, you permit your soul to speak. The calming energy produced from a good centering exercise surrounds the body. Thus, you develop an unshakable spirit that will surely help you stay positive.
“Within you, there is a stillness and a sanctuary to which you can retreat at any time and be yourself.” – Hermann Hesse
3. Stay Active
The adage “An idle mind is the devil’s workshop” couldn’t be more true. When the mind is focused on completing the day’s schedule successfully, negative energy is powerless. Now you may ask “but what about the external shocks from other people or experiences that go sour?”
There are always things that may come up when you are staying active and focused on positively completing your day, but that’s where the other exercises like staying centered are ultimately going to help you stay positive throughout.
4. Eat, Drink Well & Sleep Well
It has been known for hundreds of years that our intake of food, water, and sleep can greatly affect our mood and mental health. A study has found that just vitamin deficiencies alone can cause declines in mental health that can lead to stress, anxiety, depression, addictions, and other psychological disorders.
Use this article and vitamin reference to learn how to use food to stay positive
And when it comes to sleep, evidence suggests that when people are sleep deprived, they feel more irritable, angry, and hostile. Sleep tight rather than stay up all night and you’ll be feeling happier, more friendly, and more refreshed each day. Little tweaks and additions to your routine like these can make a big difference. Eat whole foods, drink lots of water, and sleep 8 hours or more as often as you can.
5. Help others
Sometimes, the best way to help yourself stay positive throughout the day is to help others stay positive as well. When others are down, that’s when they need positivity the most. Instead of avoiding their negative energy in fear of it spreading to you, jump in headfirst. Use your positive mindset and help shine the light to brighten their day! You will leave the situation knowing that you have created a ripple effect and multiplied the positive energy in your environment. In turn, this energy will return to you tenfold.
6.Subconscious re-training and inner healing work
Sometimes, to have a positive experience on the outside, we have to uncover and release the past negative experience trapped on the inside. Exercises like tapping, affirmations, NLP and mirror work are all great places to start. The journey of discovery from within has the ability to heal the original wound that could have been created from our childhood, a bad relationship, or a traumatic experience.
“The fact is, you can transform your life. You really do have that power.”
When the affected area is showered with love and positive energy, the emotional wound can be healed and the fear released. This work will help you not only attain a true positive mindset without facade. However, this will make it easier to maintain positivity moving forward.
7. Follow your passion
One of the greatest things you can do to stay positive throughout each day is to make sure you’re doing what you LOVE! If your job or hobby involves something that makes you feel guilty, or something that takes you further from where you desire to be in life, it’s time to switch it up.
Write down three things you love to do, followed by three positive changes you’d like to see in the world. Compare this to your current lifestyle and see how they match. Being in alignment with what your soul calls for is one of the most important aspects of staying positive throughout life. Trust us, it makes it a WHOLE lot easier!
Practice these 7 exercises to retrain your brain to stay positive through any challenge and live a life you truly desire!
If you already practice some of these exercises, share with us how they’ve improved your life – we love hearing from our community!
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