6 Ways to be Positive in Any Situation

The power of remaining positive, whatever the situation, can never be underestimated. We are all here for a limited period of time, is it worth it to spend any of that time in a dismal mood? Being negative?

The true test of an individual to remain positive is when challenges become difficult. Remaining positive keeps one’s mind in the right state of balance and often opens resolutions to the problems at hand. Negativity is contagious; not only does it affect the individual, but it spreads to anyone they interact with. When only the negative perspective is in focus, the resolution process is impeded.

Eliminating negativity, or rather, being positive is a mindset that can be found at any moment, and turned into a habit. Here are some tips that can help you in shifting your mindset:

1. Shift Your Thoughts – Be conscious of your thoughts. Especially, when life just isn’t going your way. The moment you see that you are diving into frustration, agony, sorrow and low self-esteem – shift your thoughts, by thinking about something completely unrelated. This breaks the pattern of self-pity, mind-created stories, and negative downward spiral. What makes us different from other mammals is our ability to control our thoughts and think for ourselves.
2. Find the Lesson – There is a lesson to be learned from every situation. No matter how unfortunate the situation may appear, recognize the beautiful lessons waiting to be discovered. Sometimes lessons are expensive, but every problem is a learning opportunity in disguise. You may have made a mistake, but now you can accept it and continue, knowing that you will make a different decision in the future. Understand this and be appreciative for the experience.
   
3. Attitude of Gratitude – You cannot be both angry and grateful at the same time. Start counting the blessings and miracles in your life, start looking for them and you shall find more. What’s there not to be grateful? You are alive and breathing! Realize how lucky you are and all the abundance in your life.
4. Positive Affirmations & Visualization – Practice seeing yourself in a positive and confident light. Do this whenever you have a few minutes (examples; Waiting for a friend, sitting on the bus, riding an elevator.) Self-affirmations (list of positive statements about yourself and your self image) are another simple and powerful tool to train your subconscious to see yourself in a positive light. This is important, as many of us can be so hard on ourselves though social conditioning. I am guilty of being extra tough on myself, but have learned over time to recognize my gifts rather than finding false and self-imposed inadequacies.
5. Inventory of Memories – Keep an inventory of memories that can immediately make you smile. Occasions where you felt happy, appreciative and cheerful. When you were at peace with the world. Whenever you are in a negative frame of mind, consciously and deliberately pick up any leaf out of this inventory and dwell on it. Reminiscing those happy moments gives a balanced perspective to your situation. You realize that what appears negative today will change tomorrow. Nothing stays the same.
6. Criticizing Detox Diet – Change your approach and attitude. See if you can stop criticizing others and situations. Our cultural conditioning teaches us to find flaws and problems at all times. Shift from fault-finding to appreciation-finding.

Whether you are positive or negative, the situation does not change. So, we mind as well be positive.

As with any habit, the habit of remaining positive in all situations takes practice and a commitment to yourself to take control. But start small, start paying attention to your emotions, start by wanting to change. I am working on this constantly, and I am here with you, working towards better understanding of my emotions and becoming a better person. Keep going at it, and you will gradually become a positive energy source for the others around you! Wouldn’t that be empowering?

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70 Responses (50 Comments, 20 Trackbacks ):

Comments

1. Tina Su

   Oct 17 07, 7:35 am PDT

   1

   By the way, the photo is of Tommy, my little 3 years old dog (Pomeranian). In the picture, he is smiling. :) He’s one of the happiest dogs I’ve met, always cheerful, always playful and always smiling. Even if he’s in trouble, he’ll get over it instantly and start smiling again. He’s an inspiration for me to “Take it easy. Don’t be so Serious.” I thought the image was appropriate for this article. Enjoy!
   For more pictures of Tommy, you can find on my page at Flikr: http://flickr.com/photos/tinasu/

2. Jean Browman - Cheerful Monk

   Oct 17 07, 11:32 am PDT

   2

   Adorable dog! Thanks for the smile. :)

3. Mohamed

   Oct 17 07, 3:22 pm PDT

   3

   Hi, nice words, i really like it!

4. Tejvan Pettinger

   Oct 17 07, 4:16 pm PDT

   4

   Nice blog, with good article and photos.

   It does make a big difference to be positive

5. Tina Su

   Oct 17 07, 5:17 pm PDT

   5

   Thank you Mohamed and Tejvan! I appreciate your comments and readership. Best, Tina

6. Matthew Spears

   Oct 17 07, 10:53 pm PDT

   6

   I’d add that surrendering to the experience is absolutely necessary. Being in a state of acceptance about the situation helps a shift to something new.

   Loving Awareness

7. Tina Su

   Oct 17 07, 11:04 pm PDT

   7

   I agree, Matthew. Beautifully worded! You are a great writer. I’ll be watching.

8. Dave Schappell

   Oct 18 07, 11:17 am PDT

   8

   Tina — your blog has really grown into an impressive collection — it’s amazing to me that you only started a few weeks/months ago! I just wanted you to know that I’m a loyal reader… I know I should comment more regularly, but you know how it goes :-)

   I really enjoyed this post… as I experience the highs and lows of startup world, I’ve become very aware of my own emotions/attitudes, and this post reminded me how much control I really do have. When working at large employers, I think I tended to blame others a lot more — now there’s no one else to blame so it makes me much more proactive about making positive changes.

   Hope you’re doing great,

   Dave

9. Tina Su

   Oct 18 07, 11:50 am PDT

   9

   Awww, Dave. That’s so sweet. Thank you for the message and encouraging words.

   Yeah, I did a complete shift in my approach on where I wanted the blog to go. I wanted to use my time wisely and to positively impact as many people as possible, thus, the ‘re-branding’ of my personal blog into a blog focused on helping people find productivity and happiness. And I wanted to thank you again for inspiring me to start a blog to begin with. :)

   I am doing great! Thanks for asking. Hope the startup is moving as planned and you are enjoying the process. I’d love to hear about lessons you’ve learned along the way.

   Best,
   Tina

10. www.scottfusco.net - Personal development coaching

    Oct 18 07, 4:32 pm PDT

    10

    Tina,

    Great!!! we are definitely on the same wavelength and you gave me a bunch of great ideas in this post.

    One comment – You wrote about “mind-created stories” – this is so true. It is unbelievable how unnecessarily difficult we can make our life if we do not keep our thoughts in check.

    Another tip related to #5 – Figure out which friends or people in your life are “uppers” to you and call them on a regular basis, especially when you need that boost or support.

    Cheers!
    Scott Fusco

11. Tina Su

    Oct 18 07, 4:56 pm PDT

    11

    Hi Scott, I love your tip with the people in your life. That’s so true. We tend to gravitate towards happy people and stay away from the negative ones. But it’s worthwhile to note to keep a conscious list of these people in your life and making a point to keep in contact with them. I shall remember this point for a follow up article. :) Thanks for the comment!

    Best,
    Tina

12. Jackie

    Oct 19 07, 2:48 am PDT

    12

    Congrats on getting to the raw Vegan stage, I am still working on adding more raw to my Vegan diet.

    Great post. I am still working on the happiness element in my life, being now retired I find it getting easier as I can do things I have always wanted to do but never had the time like being creative … not very good yet but getting better.

13. Tina Su

    Oct 19 07, 5:55 am PDT

    13

    Hi Jackie, focus on the “Happiness element” in your life and not the “not very good yet” part. :) That will help.
    Thanks for the comment! I appreciate your words, especially about raw veganism.

    Love,
    Tina

14. Patricia - Spiritual Journey Of A Lightworker

    Oct 24 07, 11:51 pm PDT

    14

    Tina Su, great article. I followed you here from your comment on Evolving Times. These are really great ideas. I have used them all in dealing with a very negative family member who would suck me back into my old negative ways of thinking and speaking until I was finally able to stop allowing it to happen. It was a slow process but I can today say that his negativity doesn’t affect me other than to remind me of how I used to be.

15. Tina Su

    Oct 25 07, 12:04 am PDT

    15

    Thanks Patricia! Thank you for sharing. The trick for me when dealing with negative people is to not argue. People often want to be acknowledged. So Acknowledge them.. love them.. and accept them and their opinions without judgment (I realize this is challenging). Over time, your positive energy will influence them in ways they may not want to admit. :)

    Thanks for the comment!

16. A negative guy

    Dec 05 07, 5:37 pm PDT

    16

    Very wise words. I love these articles. Reading one after the another after another through the links at the end of the articles pring light to my life. I appreciate this.

17. Sara Adelmann

    Dec 05 07, 6:19 pm PDT

    17

    I loved this article! I work with peds/adolescents in mental health. This artcile reminds me of CBT (cognitive behavior therapy). At work we do a lot of teaching about this topic, they call it “ANTS” or automated negative thoughts and for each negative thought there is a ANT species (I know it sounds a little cheesy). We work a lot with the kids and their self-esteem trying to help them replacethere negative thoughts with a more rationalle thought. A lot of the kid’s don’t want to work on this because they don’t think it will help. This article might help:)

18. SHARLA

    Dec 08 07, 6:33 am PDT

    18

    I STUDY POSITIVE THINKING AND PRACTICE IT CONSTANTLY! I CAN TRULEY SAY I AM GLOWING WITH HAPPINESS NO MATTER WHAT HAPPENDS! I FEEL LIKE A WHOLE NEW PERSON. NOTHING CAN BRING ME DOWN. AND THE KEY TO LIFE……NEVER LET DOUGHT IN YOUR MIND FOR A SECOND! ONCE YOU HAVE MASTERED THAT. YOUR IN ANOTHER KINGDOM.

19. A negative guy

    Dec 09 07, 6:10 am PDT

    19

    actually i cant. I find myself failing everytime. Sometimes I wakeup and i feel the wright of the world on my shoulders. Iwake up and look at things and feel that feelingin my stomach. I dont know what it is. i have been trying to be positivein my life for the past 4 years. Sometimes it works for me. Other times it is useless.

20. CG Walters

    Dec 09 07, 12:06 pm PDT

    20

    Very good article, Tina.
    I particularly like “shift your thoughts”–our perspective defines our experience, so if I am in a ‘angry’ mood, all I see makes me angry (or the way I see makes me more angry).
    Also Inventory of Memories…that was very good.
    Thanks,
    CG

21. John J.

    Feb 01 08, 8:20 pm PDT

    21

    Teee-naaa what a LOVELY little dog you have !
    Thank you so much for your wonderfull advises,
    I would like to meet you to discuss about those
    in much more details… btw are you single ?

22. jd

    Feb 14 08, 11:36 pm PDT

    22

    Hey Tina -

    “Find your lesson” is my favorite technique. As one of my mentors put it, “if this situation were never to change, what’s the one quality you would need to fully enjoy it?” — it’s a recipe for growth.

23. Chris

    Jul 19 08, 10:06 pm PDT

    23

    Great post! I recently have realized that getting exercise makes me so much more positive in every part of my life. It’s crazy how often we don’t do the things that are best for us even though they aren’t that difficult. We live in a culture of distraction. We are constantly distracted from our own wellbeing it seems.

24. Belle

    Sep 26 08, 4:39 am PDT

    24

    Quite helpful. the ideas are comforting

25. Belle

    Sep 26 08, 4:40 am PDT

    25

    i am particularly embittered by the action of someone right now, but i feel better when i shifted my focus on some other things. Thanks

26. Tony

    Sep 29 08, 1:31 pm PDT

    26

    I’m working hard on #2 and #3, and find that #5 helps a lot. #6 is hard for me as I find myself critical by nature, but I see the value in making an effort to view things positively.

    As a Christian, #2 and #3 remind me to just remember that God is in control, my time is in His hands, and to be thankful no matter what the current situation or circumstance. In the hardest times I remember to just have faith. It is all according to plan, and it’ll work out in the end.

27. Nicholas Powiull

    Nov 02 08, 4:59 am PDT

    27

    the easiest way to stay positive in negative situations, is to understand what negative situations are as a reflection of yourself, that are there to empower you as an infinite potential being in remembrance. The way to heal any negative situation, is to heal yourself by taking responsibility for it as part of you. If you truly take that responsibility within yourself, then it is your responsibility to help heal all your ‘other’ selves as well.

    Thank you for the empowering article! :)

    P.S. You have an adorable pet!

28. dml

    May 30 09, 2:43 pm PDT

    28

    this is an awsome article. thank you very much. stay positive.

29. sandeep

    Jul 08 09, 8:00 am PDT

    29

    I think it was a very nice six points that i read and i feel that following it will definitely change ones attitude towards life,to see life more positively. thankyou very much

30. Mobin

    Aug 14 09, 5:41 am PDT

    30

    Thanks for that…really you have it in yourself to be what you want and how to be positive even in the darkest hours…my main positive will be to become more positive and to appreciate everything good in life and deal in a more positive way when i am feeling negative….the past cannot be changed but the future can be made better. Just smile and tell yourself everything will be ok no matter how hard or tough it gets…I have been so negative in the past months and let myself down and others around me….they are only being good and letting me know that they are there and always will be and that i just need to put in the extra effort and dtime to make that a good thing instead of bad….i promise i will smile if things are bad…and i will win back the hearts of people who i have genuinely upset and not understoodand just thought they were trying to upset me and judge who i am…they wasnt they were telling me that we are still here…smile and be happy and go for what you love in life and dont take no for an answer.

31. RICHARD RYKER

    Sep 02 09, 1:19 pm PDT

    31

    YOUR WORDS ARE OF GOD, THANKS

32. Yasso

    Sep 11 09, 5:39 pm PDT

    32

    It so useful advices, Do u know Dr. Ibrahim El feky?!, specialist in Human development. He says same words, same meanings, Iam so happy to read that from u, and hear the same from him.

    Thank you…

33. Catherine

    Oct 14 09, 11:13 am PDT

    33

    As positive as I am, sometimes I lose control of my thougths and this article today make my day, Thanks a lot, I grateful to you :) Continue to share everything you believe that could help , it is because of people like you that we will become a better world.

    Catherine

34. donna

    Nov 05 09, 10:55 am PDT

    34

    I hear everyone say be positive, think positive. I do not know how to do it when everything seems to be going wrong. I have no family close by and no close friends. I have been out of work for two years. I am willing to work but no one is giving me a chance to prove I am a good choice to hire. I have no income. No job. Very few calls for interview.
    HOW HOW HOW? How do I stay positive?

35. Gitesh

    Aug 08 10, 2:42 am PDT

    35

    Great article. Thanks.

36. Neha

    Aug 29 10, 8:58 pm PDT

    36

    Thank you so much for the kind words. I feel so much better :-)

37. Jay

    Nov 17 10, 6:18 am PDT

    37

    Just a note, from the perspective of somebody with a negative mental attitude. The dog pic is a really bad idea, unless you are only interested in people who already think in a habitually positive manner reading this.

    You’ve got to remember that people who think in a habitually negative manner are prone to cynicism. The smiling little dog essentially serves as a barrier between the habitually negative thinker and the article.

    Those who feel otherwise probably don’t need to read the article, beyond killing a bit of time reading something they know they’d already agree with; they knew that the second they saw the doggie pic.

38. James

    Apr 26 11, 7:11 pm PDT

    38

    Great article!

    Depression is one of the major diseases affecting our society today. There are ways to change gear into a positive mindset and this website has listed some great ones.

    If you have a story that you would like to share of how you changed ‘one of those days’ into ‘one of those great days’, write to us at stories@oneofthosedays.org. We would love to hear from you and share your stories with the world.

    ~James~

39. Larry

    May 04 11, 1:14 pm PDT

    39

    I deeply thank you for this. I am familiar with many of the principles and practice aspects of these for years. However, having been creator/director of my own successful program; in optimum health; financially sound (all of these for many years), then having them taken away from me, some by others outright Evil(!) it has been the most difficult time of my entire life, emotionally, physically, mentally, etc., challenging all I had believed in.

    Yet….I go on….somehow….someway. In good part with the help of loved ones and friends, but, also, with my remaining hopes.

    Thank you very much for these needed reminders and may all of the potential blessings of Life come our way, and Humanity build a world of Peace, Love, Justice, Health and Truth…
    Warmly,
    Larry

40. Chelsea

    May 16 11, 1:04 am PDT

    40

    I very much appreciated this article! also your pom is adorable!

    I grew up serious but have recently realized that I don’t want people to mistake me for a robot. We are human, let’s live!

41. sheila

    Jun 19 11, 12:02 am PDT

    41

    Thanks a lot for this beautifull article. some things and some problems are global. It doesn’t matter what country u live the solutions are the same.

42. ovi

    Jul 15 11, 1:00 pm PDT

    42

    im a negative person,and i have been that way forever.sometimes i try to be positive,but it seem so hard.is so cool that there is people out there,trying to make other people realize that positive is the way.im so glad i read this,cause just by thinking how bless im and my family, i know inside me is time to change…..god bless

43. Sshhhh

    Aug 30 11, 7:06 am PDT

    43

    Tina article is really nice but how to make ourself away from negativity if we are surrounded by negative people, my husnand keep on degrading me and gives me mental torture, how to avoid him…..sometimes i feel helpless. Can someone help me please by sharing some thoughts on this

44. Sivaranjani

    Dec 27 11, 8:26 pm PDT

    44

    First point mentioned is really helpful. I am very brave person. But,when i keep on hearing negative speech(when others say), i am becoming totally collapsed. Its taking long time for me to come out of that.

45. Michael

    Mar 28 12, 2:24 pm PDT

    45

    I really nourished the thoughts of reading your post on Positiveness, it enlightened my thoughts, as I live day by day being positive with any situation that arises , I find that a negative that arises in front of me ,an alarm bell is triggered off and I distinguish promptly to get rid of it completely and replace it with a positive one,I can tell you it feels fantastic to have that power to do so

46. Martin

    May 10 12, 8:21 am PDT

    46

    I find that like many my default setting is negative; but being aware of this, and being mindful of negative thoughts and emotions, goes a long way to preventing it being an issue. Sometimes I have a bad day, but don’t we all? I just pick myself up, smile and DO SOMETHING POSITIVE :0)

47. Shaheen

    Jul 27 12, 10:05 pm PDT

    47

    Hi Tina,

    Its awesome. I would also trying to get rid of negative thinking, attitude etc.

    Please pray for me to gain success.

    // Shaheen

48. Azim

    Aug 17 12, 6:46 am PDT

    48

    I m in most challenging situation today, worry,sad, self pity and etc. Your articles give me some comforting and i want to apply all the methods in this article.

    Many thanks Su.

49. Shary

    Mar 02 13, 1:51 am PDT

    49

    I like your ideas of being positive and how you put them in words. At a time of stress, other than self-help books, I need this. Thank you.

50. Yash

    Mar 14 13, 8:24 pm PDT

    50

    At this very moment, I am grateful to have seek positivity and to have landed on your blog. Thank you for the simple yet so profound explanation on how to incorporate a way of life that is beneficial for the human race. I do my best to practice your advice daily (prior to reading your blog) and you are absolutely right about the challenge on a day-to-day.

Your Thoughts?

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