Positive and success-oriented thinking helps you to give yourself more space for your personal development and to be more relaxed about your everyday life. It is widely discussed if just repeating motivational quotes really helps, when you don`t believe in what you are saying. Instead, try to look inside yourself and figure out by yourself how to make personal progress. That might be the better option to overcome negative thinking which disturbs your inner peace, reduces your courage to be ambitious and might even influence your health in a negative way. Read below how to start overcoming negative thinking and changing your perspective to benefit from the power of positive thinking.
“The will to win, the desire to succeed, the urge to reach your full potential… these are the keys that will unlock the door to personal excellence.”
Confucius
The power of positive thinking
Positive thinking can make your life easier and help you to understand how terrible situations can take a positive turn. Follow the slogan: “The sun can shine again after a stormy day.”
“We are responsible for what we are, and whatever we wish ourselves to be, we have the power to make ourselves.” – Swami Vivekananda
Many studies show that positive thinking can influence your motivation to lead a healthy lifestyle. Here you can find some health benefits, which positive thinking can promote:
- Increased general life span because of a better motivation towards a healthy lifestyle
- Decreased likelihood of depression and stress because of better coping strategies
- More stable health and well-being because of reduced negative health effects
How can you change your perspective?
Stay on top of things
Often, we use all our energy to rethink and resolve our own affairs. Like this you can easily lose the overview and get lost in details, because the world is not just about your problems.
Take a short break and watch the news. What is happening in the world right now? Keeping well informed about the world news will help you to relativize your own problems. Certainly, at the other end of the world, something is happening that is far worse than what you think is your biggest problem right now. There are people who do not even have the bare essentials to live and would like to switch with your current situation.
By directing your focus to the fate of others, possibly by helping them to solve their problems, it will be easier for you to put your own situation into perspective and make the best out of it. Do not lose heart. “Problems” can also be understood as “challenges” that life keeps putting on you and that you can master with the right dedication.
In addition, you will realize that it is good to help other people.
“The best way to not feel hopeless is to get up and do something. Don’t wait for good things to happen to you. If you go out and make some good things happen, you will fill the world with hope, you will fill yourself with hope.”
Barack Obama
Accept things that you can not change
There are so many things in life that we can not influence. Why, for example, think about what other people think about us, if we do not know without a doubt what they really think? When you begin to accept that you can not change certain things in your life, you are freeing yourself from a great burden. Then you are on the right path to your inner peace.
“Life is a series of natural and spontaneous changes. Don’t resist them; that only creates sorrow. Let reality be reality. Let things flow naturally forward in whatever way they like.”
Lao Tzu
Believe in yourself
The belief in oneself is a crucial success factor in life and strengthens the power of positive thinking. There is hardly a successful person who has not believed in himself and his success before it has come to pass. In the very rare cases, success is based on negative thinking, since it does not mobilize the energy which is necessary for great success. Believing in yourself mobilizes this energy, prepares you for disappointments and keeps you moving until you reached your destination. First, you need to be confident in your abilities before you can convince others of yourself.
“How long you can continue to be good at something is a result of how much you believe in yourself and how much hard work you invest in it.”
Jason Statham
Look inwards
Meditation offers a great opportunity to look inward, to better understand yourself and to change your life. A daily 10-20 minutes meditation can have a big impact on all aspects of your life. Through meditation you become aware of your thoughts and feelings. For many people, this awareness is the first step to more calmness in dealing with themselves and their environment.
Meditation is easy. Start today. Just finish everything you are doing, sit back, close your eyes and free your mind from any thoughts. Concentrate on the void. You’ll be amazed at how much 10 – 20 minutes of meditation can change your perception of yourself and the things around you.
If you have difficulty meditating, try a guided meditation in a class or on an audio file. This can help you get used to the tranquility.
“Within you there is a silence and refuge, which you can enter at any hour and be at home with you.”
Hermann Hesse
Spend more time in nature
We spend too much time of everyday life in offices and apartments, which narrows our thoughts and the view of things. Expand your view of things with regular excursions into nature. A walk in the park, a forest run or a bike ride have a calming effect on us. The fresh air, the natural sounds, the many greens, the tranquility and the movement help you to process stress and calm your thoughts. The new impressions will also bring you new ideas that can help you get things done more efficiently.
“Nature does not hurry, yet everything is accomplished.”
Lao Tzu
Use the power of laughter
When laughing, the power of positive thinking is noticeable and something fascinating happens. Laughter causes positive effects in many ways. In addition to providing a positive atmosphere, laughter is good for your health.
More than one hundred muscles are involved in laughter, the body cells are supplied with more oxygen, the metabolism is stimulated and the body muscles relax. Stress hormones, such as adrenaline and cortisone, are broken down and, on the other hand, the happiness hormone serotonin is increasingly released.
Anyone who laughs does not only spread good mood, but initializes at the same time a small health cure. It is an important and success relevant lesson to laugh more about annoying situations and also about yourself, too. The path to inner peace is much easier if you do not take everything so seriously.
“A day without laughter is a day wasted.”
Charlie Chaplin
You are not alone with your thoughts
So many people before you have been worrying about the same things in life and looking for the power of positive thinking. Find a selection of quotes from the qiii.media editorial team on this topic. Do you have a favorite saying about “Positive Thinking”? Please leave a comment!
“There are two basic motivating forces: fear and love. When we are afraid, we pull back from life. When we are in love, we open to all that life has to offer with passion, excitement, and acceptance. We need to learn to love ourselves first, in all our glory and our imperfections. If we cannot love ourselves, we cannot fully open to our ability to love others or our potential to create. Evolution and all hopes for a better world rest in the fearlessness and open-hearted vision of people who embrace life.” – John Lennon
“Wanting to be someone else is a waste of the person you are.”
Marilyn Monroe
Related Links
Forbes: Forget Positive Thinking: This Is How To Actually Change Negative Thoughts For Success
Mayo Clinic: Stress Management
Spiegel Online: Das Ich – Das Seelenorchester
