As we come to the last couple of articles in this series, I am talking about healthy ways to deal with some of these unhelpful ways of thinking we exhibit in our minds.
Today’s topic is learning about FOCUSING ON THE POSITIVE AND GRATITUDE.
I know I talked about personal core values in the last article. Well if that concept seems hard or challenging for you, it may be because the whole premise behind writing out personal core values is based upon a person intentionally and consciously choosing to focus on better, positive, more life-giving beliefs.
I don’t know about you but my mind isn’t naturally wired to go towards the positive and gratitude.
Instead, my mind seems to be quick to focus on thoughts and beliefs that are negative and life-draining.
I suppose I could blame that on the past or on some of the challenges I faced in childhood.
But…having interacted with and worked with a number of people in my life, I’m convinced that everybody struggles with this sort of thinking to some extent or another.
A few years ago, at the suggestion of a men’s mentor I was working with, I purchased a journal where the first prompt for every morning is to write out three things I am grateful for.
This is the idea of a gratitude practice, the practice of regularly focusing on what you can be grateful for.
While this isn’t always easy to do (especially on not so good days), I have come to appreciate this practice in that it quite practically forces me to think about what I can be thankful for every morning no matter how bad I might feel on a given morning.
Over time, I’ve come to realize plenty I can still be thankful for, even on bad days or on days I don’t always want to recognize what I can be thankful for.
And then there’s the general concept of focusing on the positive.
Not only is this important for mind renewal and our emotional health, but focusing on the positive can also help in relationships, whether we’re talking about family, friends, co-workers, or neighbors.
After all, who wants to be around someone that is grumpy, negative, and miserable on a consistent or chronic basis?
So, let’s think about how this topic applies to you.
Here are some questions to ask yourself this week:
Do you have a gratitude practice?
If not, consider using a physical or online notebook or journal that you can use to start your mornings with gratitude. ( and if you want to take it a step further, consider writing three things that went well at the end of the day too).
As an example, the one I’ve been using the last several years is from this website: https://oakjournal.com/
When you think of areas of your life where you may be emotionally struggling, what are the positive aspects of this struggle?
Are there any positives you can focus on as you face challenges?
And when you take time to think about it, what are some positives in your life you can focus on?
See what happens when you start practicing gratitude and implement a focus on positivity into your life.
Let’s THRIVE in mind so we can THRIVE in life!
