It can be laborious for me to stay positive at times, especially when things take a slight turn away from how we imagine our plans should turn out. But what really matters is staying positive most of the time, not letting the fears of what ‘might’ happen control you into getting worked up and stressed out. Incorporating positivity into your life has many benefits some you probably didn’t even know about!

“It makes a big difference in your life when you stay positive.” Ellen DeGeneres

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For me when I was younger (late teens, early twenties) you could say I was a positive thinking person to the point where people used to ask me whenever a crisis occurred, what are you going to do? Aren’t you worried?

I always stayed positive and knew the outcome would be ok, but as I got older this wasn’t the case with more responsibilities to take on at work and home and becoming uncertain about my future my fears took over leaving me not knowing what to do until I remembered how I used to deal with this kind of circumstances. That was to stay positive, no matter what. You can too by following the ‘5 ways to stay positive’ revealed within this guide as well as exploring the benefits of being a positive person. While some people are more positive than others you can become a more positive person even if you think this is not true.

Why Should I Bother?

Why shouldn’t you! For a start research shows you can live longer just by being a positive thinker as well as a smaller chance of becoming depressed or distressed and not to mention, you’re less likely to catch a cold. Overall positive people are happier and healthier. Learning to become more positive will also allow you to cope better in stressful times.

5 Ways to Practice the Art of Positivity

1. Affirmations

Which are known as positive statements, let’s try some out:

*I am so happy and grateful for _______ (fill in the blank)

* It’s so wonderful to ________

The truth is that every day, people subconsciously or even consciously make thousands of negative statements about ourselves or about the circumstances in our life. So in order to stay positive, we must consciously make positive statements that also use words that have an emotion like ‘happy’ or ‘grateful’ as I used in the example affirmations above. The key is to try and ‘feel’ the emotion of the words used.

2. Expect The Best

What is the outcome you want? This question relates to a goal, your day or your life. Do you always expect the worst and then get it? Begin now to expect the best by focusing SOLELY on the outcome you want.  Use positivity. NO. MATTER. WHAT.

3. Surround Yourself With The Right People

“We are the average of the 5 people we spend the most time with” – Jim Rohn

Motivational speaker Jim Rohn once said “we are the average of the 5 people we spend the most time with”. Think about it, how you feel, what you say and what you think depends on who you are with most of the time. When I spend my time around happy and positive people I feel energized. I am also a lot more optimistic about my future.

4. Make a Good Start to The Day

“The first hour of the morning is the rudder of the day.” ~ Henry Ward Beecher

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According to research (and experience) how you start your day determines the rest of it. Do you dread what lies ahead or do you wake up thankful and excited?

Make a good start to the day by first by giving thanks to see another day, second for the bed you slept in! Then think about all the great possibilities your day could bring. Don’t just take my word for it, try it.

5. Gratitude

Gratitude will keep your mind on all the good things in your life so you don’t have time to think about the negative. Be grateful for everything, not just saying the words but feeling them too. As you can see ‘The art of staying positive’ could be life-changing, all that is required is some time to make it a habit and best of all the benefits are worth the effort!

Will you make the necessary changes towards positivity today?