So, how to keep a positive mindset? It is said that a positive mindset is connected with optimism, courage, and kindness, according to the idea of a positive mental attitude. It is essential to maintain a good attitude and not give up hope when one is confronted with challenging circumstances. An optimistic person interacts with their emotions in a hopeful and constructive manner when the going gets difficult. Having a positive attitude is a choice you can make. You’ll build a better reality for yourself if you choose to see the positive in any situation and make the most of it. Here are the best tips to upkeep a positive attitude every day in your life.
Useful Tips to Maintain a Positive Attitude Everyday
When we talk about positivity, we often don’t know where to start. It can also happen that we tire ourselves by following what works for others. Find out the 15 best tips to practice positivity in your life and find out what works best for you.
1. You Determine Your Reality
For at least several decades, the statement “you build your reality” has been part of the Western lexicon. Originally a statement advocated by those with a more positive attitude on life, the concept underlying the phrase may today be found in novels, television, popular music, and films. The key to manifesting your dream life is to align yourself with your intentions. You may align yourself to get you where you want to go if you make a conscious effort to be self-aware of your ideas. Pay attention to your thoughts and the feelings they evoke. Determine your triggers and what causes you to become frustrated, upset, or anxious. Then, make choose your battles and win them too.
2. Start Your Day Strong
Starting the day with a clear head and a positive attitude is easier when your morning ritual supports your long-term goals and mental health. Many people who have achieved success in their lives have a morning ritual they follow and use as “me time.” There’s a good chance that affirmations and statements will help you. Intentionally using your voice to speak good words over your life is a powerful tool for overcoming negative thoughts and invalidating ideas, giving you a positive mental attitude. Exercise in the morning is a great way to jump-start your body, mind, and soul for the day ahead. When you know you’ve already met your daily target by 7 AM.
3. Exercise Is the Natural Feel-Good Drug
The majority of us are aware of how exercise affects our bodies. We increase our muscle mass or endurance. We see how regular exercise makes daily tasks like climbing stairs simpler. However, the link between our brain and our mood is less obvious. Workouts release hormones like norepinephrine, which help to boost cognitive thinking, learning, and mood. However, exercise isn’t the only benefit! Exercise-induced increased heart rate has the potential to repair stress-induced brain atrophy. Physical activity also forces the body’s many systems to interact more effectively, inculcating a positive attitude and helping the body to respond more effectively to worry and stress. One study found that among groups who participated in high-intensity interval training, moderate continuous training, and no exercise, those in the second group experienced the greatest drop in depressive symptoms and stress[1].
4. Get Inspired by Books, Audio, and Videos
There are moments in our lives when we fail to appreciate what we have right now because we are so focused on what is ahead. As soon as you start reading a motivational novel, you will be on the road to recovery reminiscing won’t bring it back to us any faster. Worrying about the future simply makes us feel more helpless and anxious. And that is not how to keep a positive mindset. Books are the ultimate solution to a bad day. Reading a good book is better than sweets, a nice movie, or retail therapy to boost confidence and self-esteem. Those pages will give you hope and motivation to get things done once you’ve finished reading them. Also, nowadays, social media is flowing with many creative videos and audios curated with the content from such books that appeal to the young and old generations alike.
5. Hang out With Positive People
In times of crisis, having a support system is critical, and negative people typically fail to supply this. It’s critical for your health to have a positive group of friends to lean on during physically and emotionally trying times. Positive people are frequently adept at offering a sympathetic ear, encouraging advice, and other assistance! If having positive friends makes you happier, and as a result, you make more friends, you’ll be able to spread your happiness to new people and keep the positivity going. So, with optimism, pay it forward and discover how it may enhance your life and the lives of people around you! We can’t do everything ourselves, no matter how much we’d want to believe we can. To keep motivated and on track, we need the love and support of those around us. Positive energy is contagious. According to research, whether you’re creating a network or hosting a fun event, it’s always crucial to have a community you respect around you on a regular basis. [2] Choose your friends carefully; their level of positivity—or lack thereof—can greatly impact you. So if you want to be fit, then start to hang out with fit people. Want to start a business? Then hang out with business owners. And if you want to be positive, make sure you’re hanging out with positive people[3]. Emotions are contagious, and surrounding yourself with happy people can help you significantly!
6. Have an Open Mind
It is our propensity to take everything for granted. As a society, we tend to focus on the negative aspects of our lives rather than appreciate the positive aspects, such as our health, our relationships, our capacity to participate in sports, and our potential to get an excellent education. The never-ending cycle of dissatisfaction can be broken via appreciation. It provides space to find calmness in the hustle of life. How to have a positive attitude among such thoughts? Obstacles become opportunities when they are seen with gratitude. The potential to learn and develop lies in overcoming obstacles. With an open mind, you might approach the problem with an optimistic attitude rather than one that’s pessimistic. That is the secret to developing a positive mental attitude. Gratitude is a powerful force for good fortune in your life. Practicing gratitude in all aspects of your life, including your relationships, sports, school, and home, creates a pleasant attitude. When you show your appreciation towards others, their morale will rise, and they’ll be more motivated to work hard.
7. Rewire Pessimistic Thinking
On occasion, we’re all prone to pessimistic thinking. Even when things appear to be going well, we often focus on the few things that aren’t. It takes time and practice to learn how to have a good attitude and quit focusing on the unpleasant aspects of one’s life. For some people, worrying about the future or thinking adversely about others is an everyday occurrence, but for those who do so regularly, it is necessary to develop a set of behaviors that will halt these thoughts in their tracks. That is how to have a positive attitude. Be inquisitive, not critical of your own thoughts and actions. This is a way to be gentle with yourself when you’re having unpleasant thoughts. Allowing yourself some time for self-compassion can be a way to retrain your brain’s neural pathways. One particular study found that people who sent letters of gratitude experienced significant increases in happiness scores[4].
8. Practice Gratitude
In both direct and indirect ways, gratitude can have a positive impact on your health. Gratitude has been shown to strengthen the immune system, lower blood pressure, and produce a sense of relaxation. Those who are thankful, on the other hand, are more likely to adopt healthier lifestyle choices, such as upping their nutrient intake, getting more exercise, and avoiding dangerous behaviors. Individuals with a good attitude have better outcomes following medical operations, which is why it is important to cultivate thankfulness.
9. Turn on Some Music
This may seem apparent, yet it’s worth emphasizing the natural chemical rationale behind it. Be aware that it just takes 10-15 minutes of listening to your favorite music for a natural high if you are ever feeling low. This is because when you listen to music you enjoy, your brain releases dopamine, a neurotransmitter that causes sensations of euphoria, excitement, and joy. Some people believe that is how to have a positive attitude when life weighs you down with negativity at times. For some time, music has been suggested as a means of reducing or managing stress. As a result, people may go to meditative music as a means of calming their brains and relaxing them. It’s good news that this is one trend that is backed by the scientific community. Music can thus be a useful technique for coping with stress. You can learn more about how to shift your mindset and negative attitudes in the following video:
10. Accept Where You Are in the Present
Happiness, according to evolutionary psychologists, served as an adaptive advantage in the course of evolution. When we are happier with a good attitude, we are better able to adapt to our surroundings and our social circles; we are also better able to pass on our happiness genes to our offspring. In the beginning, the pleasure was just a genetic variant, but as with all evolutionary adaptations, it has endured because it has helped us survive. Acceptance is the first step in the process. True happiness is a state of mind in which one accepts reality for what it is and even comes to appreciate and enjoy it. As a result of this acceptance, people feel content with a positive attitude. In order to truly be happy, one must accept the fact that things are as they are and that change is unavoidable. Those who are truly content with their lives are more likely to be adaptable because they are willing to accept change as an inevitable part of life. Understanding that both good and bad are fleeting in the grand scheme of things means that truly happy people have an appreciation for the fact that “this too shall pass.” One study found that reflecting on past experiences with a sense of gratitude can lead to increases in both hope and happiness[5]. That’s a great reason to give it a go today. You can find more ways to practice gratitude in this article.
11. Recharge Your Batteries
Because of the enormous amount of pressure people face in today’s society to reach a certain status, riches, or physical attractiveness, it can be easier to focus on our shortcomings than on our successes. To achieve perfection might lead us to neglect our basic needs, such as psychological empowerment, companionship, and personal creative expression. Loving yourself is not selfish. The essence of self-love is the recognition of the necessity of prioritizing our own well-being over the well-being of others, as well as the pursuit of self-improvement rather than self-sacrifice. You can cultivate an attitude of acceptance when you truly love yourself. You learn to accept and take responsibility for the phases and circumstances of your life. You can also pinpoint the source of your feelings of love, joy, ardor, and sincerity. It’s easier to enjoy your life when you realize how much control you have over it. Being content with your life has a significant psychological influence and helps to reduce stress in your life as a whole, and maintain a positive outlook towards life.
12. Find Your Unique Meaning in Life
When you have lost it all, a positive mental attitude can help you regain the strength to find your purpose again. It’s the best way to live and learn. Recognizing the power you have to carry on, make the best of things, and keep going when everything inside you wants to quit will lead to more success. You can’t always have it all, but you can always cultivate positive energy. That power keeps you grounded and safe. For example, say you lost someone to a disease. Instead of just thinking about the loss and seeing it as the end, a positive person may decide to contribute to a cause dedicated to that disease. In doing so, the positive person becomes a beacon of hope, which gives them power over their hardship through positive emotions. This is how people keep going: meaning. Meaning creates power over our emotions so that they do not define us. Positivity affects one’s stress levels and overall health. When you are positive about a situation, you are less stressed and calmer and can reason better to solve the problem in front of you. Cultivating this power is about realizing that a sense of meaning can be derived from all circumstances, even senseless tragedies. You don’t always have to have a reason for why something happens, but you can use whatever happens for a greater cause.
13. Avoid Toxic Positivity
Avoid the white-knuckling type of positivity where you don’t acknowledge your struggles or pain (as they also serve you). You don’t just want to tell yourself to move on because that equates to repression. Emotions are part of positivity. You want to sit with your feelings, acknowledge them, and give them a voice. Instead of telling yourself to move on, let your emotions lead to a breakthrough that helps you cope with the changes in life.
14. Make Time to Be Alone
I initially said, “take time just to be alone.” I changed it because if you don’t ensure you can take a break, you’ll surely be interrupted. Being with other people is something you can do to make you happy, but I don’t include it in this list because nearly everyone finds time to talk with friends. On the other hand, spending time just with yourself is almost considered a taboo. Take some time to figure out who you are.
15. Find a Way to Measure Your Progress, and Then Measure It
Video games are addictive for a reason; filling up an experience bar and making it to the next level is immensely satisfying. I think that it would be really cool if we could apply this concept to the real world. I put this near the bottom of the list because, unfortunately, this hasn’t been done too often in the real world – startup idea, anyone? So you would have to do it yourself, which is difficult when you don’t even know how much you’ve progressed. For a while, I kept a log of the runs I had taken and my average speed. It was really cool to see my improvement over the weeks. (Also, I was exercising. Combining the two was fantastic for boosting happiness.)
Final Thoughts
It is easier said than done, but maintaining a positive attitude in life can help you get over various struggles by giving you an optimistic view of situations. You may be going through a tough time right now, but try to focus on all the good things in your life rather than dwelling on your problems. Make a list of things you can remember when things get tough. As a person who is fortunate enough to have a home, a roof over your head, food on your table, and the ability to enjoy life while others struggle, you may feel glad for all of these things and more. Reminding yourself of all the good things in your life will help you feel more positive. Featured photo credit: Pepe Cast Zam via unsplash.com
