The sound of the alarm wakes you up in the morning as you drag yourself out of bed, ready for another long day ahead. You get to your bathroom, and the water is too cold for your shower. In the kitchen, there’s no breakfast available. You turn on your television, and all you see are violence, corruption, and gossip about celebrities. Outside, the rain is pouring cats and dogs, and there are endless traffic jams to your workplace facing the dreaded Monday morning. When your everyday routine starts like this, being positive is almost a distant dream. But positive thinking isn’t a mind trick. You can reverse negative thoughts. In this article, you’ll learn how to be more positive and how to generally become a more positive person.
How to Be More Positive: 20 Ways to Be a More Positive Person
1. Meditate
In a world where everyone is in a rush, it pays to pause and reflect on everything around you. Guided meditation allows you to focus on one thing at a time. When you meditate, you connect with your inner self, your mental state, giving you a sense of calm and oneness with your whole being. Too often, you are caught up saying things you don’t mean or want to do something but do not dare to do so. Meditation helps you look at things from a different perspective allowing you to see the bigger picture rather than the small details. As such, it rejuvenates your spirit as you tackle your day head-on. People who meditate daily are more likely to be positive people.
2. Replace negative thoughts with positive ones
For those of you wondering how to be more positive, a positive person isn’t always born that way. Sometimes, you learn from life experience that you can transform negative thoughts into positive thoughts. And the more frequently you do that, the more naturally positive thinking will become for you. Most mental health issues are thought disorders. When we think negative thoughts, we tend to become depressed. And when we always think positive thoughts, we tend to be happy. However, you have to catch negative thoughts before they spiral into rumination. Otherwise, you’ll find yourself struggling with the transformation in your head.
3. Keep a journal
A journal provides an avenue where your emotions and thoughts can run freely without the fear of being judged. It can also share your outlook on life over the years. Your journaling habit is a safe outlet that allows you to unravel all those hidden or pent up emotions as well as uncover and plan for your goals and aspirations. Not just a virtual confidante, it can even serve as a personal counselor. Through journaling, you can often find the answers to all the questions that you have been asking for. It’s a constant reminder that your book is not yet finished. Sometimes you need to close a chapter to start a new one. Journaling is one of the coping skills you can use to manage your negative outlook to become a more optimistic person.
4. Promote happiness
A positive life starts with positive actions. Nearly three years ago, I started doing a good deed every single day. I haven’t missed a day yet. Through these acts of kindness, I’ve noticed my life transform. Instead of constantly thinking a new negative thought, I was focused on how I would make someone else’s life better. How could I make someone happy today? When you think about others happiness on a regular basis, your happiness shines through. It doesn’t mean that you need to not do things you’d like to do in a form of self-sacrifice, it more so means you just want to help others feel good too. If you pay close attention, you’ll notice most people feel unappreciated, unhappy, and unfulfilled. So aim to be the person that reverses that for people.
5. Exercise
Exercise brings out endorphins inside your body, which makes you happy. You will be amazed by how much a movement can improve your mood. Also, it allows you to relax tense muscles and nerves throughout your body, making you feel alive and happy. Rather than sulking, pick up those running shoes and go on a 20-minute sprint. If you are suffering from insomnia, try jogging or hitting the gym regularly to de-stress and help your anxiety level subside. Plus if you need to work out, consider spending time outdoors for added Vitamin D (thanks sunshine) and fresh air. Physical activity will always boost your overall mood, especially if done on a daily basis.
6. Practice mindfulness
One of the best strategies to boost positivity is to practice mindfulness in all your interactions. When you’re living in your head you tend to live either in the past or the future. However, when you’re mindful, you’re living in the present moment. Reap the benefits of peacefulness and calm when living in the moment. It’s easier to manage difficult times, when we’re living in the moment. Positive things happen all the time, when you just pay attention, and stop thinking so much.
7. Be grateful
A gratitude list can be a great way to reflect on things you’re grateful for. Expressing gratitude every morning, or in a gratitude journal, can be a liberating experience. Those who feel grateful for life and all that they have tend to be glass half full people, which means they’re generally the most positive person you know. Thinking about things you’re grateful for will help you develop a more positive outlook and practice more positive self talk. It’s easy to look on the bright side when you have an attitude of gratitude. Who do you feel gratitude towards? What do you feel gratitude for? Allow all the good things in your life to be front and center.
8. Get enough sleep
Those who are sleep deprived are less likely to maintain a positive attitude. Think about yourself when you’re feeling sleepier than usual, you might be more likely to snap in a moment of anger, or experience frustrations faster. However, if you get a good night’s sleep every night, you’ll wake up feeling good, and so it’s easier to experience positive moments, and create more positive experiences for yourself and others. So, yes, sleep does matter when it comes to staying positive. If you find yourself being more of a glass half empty kind of person, aim to go to bed a bit earlier than usual, so you can get the rest you need to be at your best.
9. Have a positive mantra
As silly as it may sound, having a positive mantra helps you deal with the mundane of life with courage and hope. You can create a visual affirmation and places them in locations that are visible to you, whether it be on your mirror or cabinet. To make it work, you must repeat the mantra every day until it instilled in your heart. Beat the negative self-talk and overshadow them with positive ones. Remember that the most important conversations are the ones with yourself.
10. Aim big
Finding the silver lining in a difficult moment is key to being a positive person. If you want to transform your mindset from negative thinking to positive thinking, you’ll need to make big life changes. Happiness is possible for everyone. Focus on doing as much good for others as you can. Volunteer at local shelters, food banks, or even your local library. Helping others will help boost positivity. Think about the past year, and think about what you’d like to keep doing and what you’d like to stop doing. Focus on making changes to those areas. Be a good friend to everyone, even complete strangers. Show up for people who need love and support. The more good you put out, the more good that’ll come your way. Focus on your personal growth as a person to become the best version of yourself. It’s hard to not become positive people, when you realize everyone is trying their best. Plus, investing in your personal growth is good for your mental health too.
11. Find your happy pill
Finding a hobby that makes you happy will help you control your emotions. Whether it be a skill you want to enhance or a new hobby, you want to learn, making this a grand excuse to dive into the challenge finally. A hobby gives you a sense of fulfillment for every accomplished task, such as when you bake your first cake or finally play a song on your guitar. Others find joy in creating something out of nothing, such as drawing or painting. And instead of keeping all the pent up emotions to yourself, redirect those feelings. Finding something that improves both your physical and mental health can be the best of both worlds, so carefully think about hobbies that might be a good fit for you.
12. Reduce stress in your life
Positive people work hard to reduce stress in their lives. They’ll try to diffuse tense situations before they cause chaos in their lives. They might practice self care during tougher days. Meditation is typically part of their daily routine to help them focus on the present instead of having their mind wander into the past or future. They’ll take care of their physical and mental health to ensure they’re in top physical and mental shape. And they’ll practice positive self talk. When you’re kind to yourself, the stress tends to slide away, and positive energy enters.
13. Enjoy nature
Nature is an excellent reminder of the beautiful things around the world that are yet to be explored. Be mesmerized at the beautiful landscape and interact or observe wildlife. It reminds you that there’s someone out there taking care of mother nature. When you stand in the middle of the forest, you realize that you are a speck in the universe. Whatever you’re going through, these things will pass. Rather than be negative, be a positive contributor to the world we are living in. It doesn’t need to be anything complicated either. Just get out there and take a simple mindful walk through your local park or even just outside your home.
14. Improve your self esteem
Positive people tend to have high self esteem. They stop negative self talk in its tracks to ensure that they invest in their well being. High self esteem is all about treating yourself well so you have more positive emotions flowing through you. People who practice gratitude are more likely to have high self esteem in their own life too. Aiming to tell yourself at least one positive thought for you to ruminate on, can also improve your self esteem. Plus, all of this is helpful in managing stress.
15. Smile
A smile is a simple gesture that could bring sunshine in a dull man’s world. And it is one of the simplest ways to spread light and positivity to people around you. Smile even to strangers as you wouldn’t know the difference you can bring into their day. Despite the gloomy weather or unfavorable circumstance, smile still. Fake it until you make it. Because your smile is worth a thousand words that can attract good things in your life.
16. Be mindful
Observe yourself and find your trigger points. Uncover circumstances or situations that make you angry, frustrated, or even happy. Rather than being caught in a vicious cycle of endless worries, you have to identify the starting point. Once you have unveiled the cause, it would be easier to handle it head-on rather than allowing it to devour you.
17. Mind your inputs
You have to make sure that you keep filter all the information that goes to your mind. Be choosy in what you watch or listen to. Garbage in garbage out. If all that you listen to are gossips, then expect to be always suspicious, rubbing you off with a peaceful mind. But if you spend your time listening to podcasts or watching inspirational stories or reading books, it can alter the way you think and see the world.
It doesn’t help that we’re inundated with a ton of negativity online through news outlets and social media apps. If this stuff is weighing you down, consider taking a social media detox.
18. Spend more time with a best friend
One of the healthy ways to become a bright and sunny kind of person is to spend more time with your best friend. You need to cut toxic people from your life to bring more positivity in your world. Fortunately, spending time with people you care about can help boost more positivity in your life. There’s nothing wrong with talking out your problems with someone who cares about you. You might hear an enlightening response that helps make life feel good again. So, find a good friend you can laugh, cry, and celebrate life with; it’s worth it.
19. Escape the bucket full of crabs
Avoid the crab mentality. So this means you need to get rid of or at least try to make minimal contact with negative people instead find your tribe. Look for positive friends or influences that can help you have a positive disposition and outlook in life. One reason why mental health has lately become an issue is that people allow themselves to be swallowed with the negative comments around them. Their sense of belonging is based on the number of likes and friends they have on their social media accounts. Don’t waste your energy impressing the people you don’t even like. Instead, spend more time with people who matter most to you.
20. Watch your words
You are what you say. What you say can be a sword to another’s heart or a shield that gives them hope. Can you imagine a day where all you hear are people complaining? What a dreadful day it is, and you feel your energy creeping away. Rather than just whining, do something about it period find a good thing to say or even try to compliment other people and see their faces transform.
The truth is you will not always get everything that you want in life period, so when life gives you lemons, make lemonade.
Conclusion
In this article, you learned twenty tips on how to be more positive. We hope that you take these tactics to heart and implement changes in your life to overcome negativity and bring out your true sunny nature. Just because you face obstacles doesn’t mean you need to look at life as a glass half empty situation. Remember, all things in life are temporary. So practice gratitude for the good things in your life, meditate to calm the mind, and spread kindness into the world, and you’ll see your life change for the better. Check out this meditation for positivity.
