Today’s the day! Learn why being optimistic always wins and how to look on the bright side in life. The definition of optimistic is: to be hopeful and confident about the future. There’s already too much negativity and self-doubt in the world portrayed in the news and media every day, today I want to focus on the GOOD!
Are you someone who is optimistic? Maybe from time to time? Does negativity always seem to get the best of you though? If so then keep reading! I’m sure someone has once said to you in a bleak situation “hey, look on the bright side!” Today that person is me.
Have you ever wanted to hang out with negative, low, and self-doubting people? Of course not… People want to be surrounded by others who are positive, supportive, and uplifting. Friends, colleagues, and peers who support you no matter what happens and always have your back!
Being optimistic is something you must strive to be throughout each and every day. Situations will always occur that you don’t expect, how you think about these situations will determine your actions towards them.
What about the left foot… kidding. But in all seriousness, the way you start your day has a huge effect on how the rest of your day plays out.
Think back to a time when you were running late for work, you drive into the drive-thru of your go-to coffee spot for a cup of coffee. You get your drink and go speeding off. Can you guess what happens next? You go to take a sip of your coffee and it spills all over you, down your mouth, on your work clothes, and your steering wheel. “Why me!” you scream with other curse words.
I’m sure all of you reading this on one occasion or another have had a similar situation happen to you. What happens to the rest of your day? Well, it’s usually a write-off. Bad situation after bad situation start stacking up, you start to feel bad and negative leading to more bad things happening. The cycle continues until you go to bed and you are defeated, exhausted, and frustrated.
This is why you MUST start your day off on the right foot. Give yourself some time to wake up, have a healthy breakfast or shake, read, exercise, or meditate. Do the things for yourself that are important to your mental and physical well-being. Focus on these tasks each and every morning (even on the weekend).
By waking up even 1 hour earlier each day you can do most if not all of these things. You don’t need to do an hour’s workout to get going. All you need is a quick 10 minutes of stretching or a nice 10-minute brisk morning walk.
Creating a powerful morning routine will help you to have a productive day. This is a set routine you do each day to enhance your physical and mental health.
If you find yourself getting upset because of your coffee spill incident what should you do? Being able to notice what’s happening with you and your attitude will help you to take the next step.
Remember a day where you have a poor attitude? Sulking about life and your overall situation. Snap out of it. You’re not helping anyone - especially yourself. If you need to take a bit of time to get over a situation do it, then be done with it and move on.
Your attitude will determine a lot that happens to you in life. If you can catch yourself when you start to feel that negativity and sourness arise, change your mentality. One way to do this is to firstly, take 3 deep breathes - this will help calm you and allow more oxygen to get to your brain. Secondly, visualize an amazing moment in your life - this will help you to get out of a poor negative mindset into a happy positive mindset.
Maybe it was when you graduated from college or university, married a loved one, or went on a once-in-a-lifetime vacation. Play out this moment in your mind like a video. See the people around you, how the air and sun felt on your skin, the feeling you had during that amazing moment, the joy and happiness. You will instantly smile and be on your way to changing your attitude. Immerse yourself in the moment once again.
If you don’t change your attitude you could be in for one rough day. I have had many days that have “owned me” so to speak rather than me owning it. My poor attitude got the best of me and I didn’t correct it.
Now that you're going to create a powerful morning routine and know-how to change your attitude it’s time to be thankful for what you already have in life.
One great way to feel better every day about your life is to express gratitude. This is a great way to be more optimistic. Gratitude will help you to be more present, thankful, and satisfied with your life.
Try writing down 3 things every morning you are truly grateful for. Maybe it’s another day to be alive, your family, friends, a new opportunity that awaits. When you express gratitude you can only be in one state - the present moment. You can only be here now in the moment which is critical to living your life to the fullest. The only time you can do something in your life is now, you can’t do anything in the past or the future. The only time you have to live is now.
If you want to take this step to the next level, write down 3 things you are grateful for before bed as well. This exercise is super simple and really does work. I’ve used it for many years and actually live a happier life because of it.
You can use a basic notepad or journal, better yet a planner. I’ve used many planners like the Panda Planner which has a space for gratitude. These are always very helpful when scheduling, goal-setting, and being organized.
Well, are you pumped up to live a happier, healthier, more optimistic life? Look at the leaders and successful people in the world. Arnold Schwarzenegger, The Rock, Ellen Degeneres, these people are always laughing, smiling, and having a good time. They are living optimistic lives.
Of course every now and then you will struggle, this is a part of life. If you are able to catch yourself when you start getting negative to turn things around by some of the steps we talked about you will be happier in no time.
Chris M Wilson
Chris M Wilson is a career coach, entrepreneur, blogger, author, creator, and doer. He is passionate about helping people leave the job they hate and jump into their dream careers!
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