While some people argue that always being positive makes humans delusional, I believe that taking things from a more positive approach allows you to be more happy, open-minded, and respectable to yourself and the world. This does not encourage you to take unethical or law-breaking actions but yes, it does allow you to be more acceptable and peaceful with your life and the world.
My friend used to advise me to be more realistic rather than optimistic, so we devised a challenge to determine whether strategy is superior: realistic or positive. I advise my readers to use this strategy as well since it will aid in mental clarity and improved self-awareness. This is an exercise you might undertake with a friend or by yourself.
To begin with, you will need a pen and journal. Alternatively, you can write in a mobile note, which is what I personally prefer because it's portable. Next, list one or more incidents that occurred during the previous 24 hours once every 24 hours. My friend and I used to debate the scenario over the phone before writing our plan of action. He would express his ideas on the subject realistically since he took a practical approach, whereas I would write my thoughts from the perspective that I saw the scenario. For a month, we recorded our daily thoughts on two distinct scenarios—one that included him and the other that involved me—and once we wrote it down and after writing it down we did not share it with each other.
When you are writing your thoughts on the matter try answering the following questions:
What was the scene?
How did it affect you or people within the scenario?
What was the outcome of the matter?
How does this outcome affect your life?
How do you feel about the matter? ( Name any emotion that you feel, like happy, sad, frustrated, angry etcetera)
Now, when responding to these questions, just answer with the first thought that occurs to you. We put the answers to the questions on daily sheets with a date at the top. A month later, we all sat together and discussed each topic in detail.
We saw that the matter was resolved amicably and constructively in 90% of the cases. Together with the other individuals involved, I felt more content and joyful, and we were able to make better judgments to prevent a situation like this from happening again. After reading the responses, my friend acknowledged that he had never considered the matter in that way and that things may have turned out differently for him if he had adopted a more optimistic stance.
When you are reflecting back on your answers, if you are doing this activity alone then try thinking of a more positive side of the situation, for example, if someone said something to you that was hurting, then try considering that they might have meant something totally different then how you perceived it. Now if you are thinking that this sounds delusional then let me ask you, how does what that person actually meant affect your life, even if they meant it in a bad way then it does make you who they call you? Or does it change how you are in your life? No! Instead, if you take what they said positively then you may be able to work in a similar situation in a better way, feeling encouraged by this one.
My friend became happier and more content with himself and his life after he started adopting a positive outlook on life. In addition, he was able to look within and care less about what other people thought of him. What matters is how you want the world to go, not where or how it is already going! Where would you like to go with it? Because life is too short to be constantly pessimistic and negative, embrace every aspect of it and learn to be content with it. Ultimately, this planet is a lovely place—we just see it through a dirty lens.
Comments
Post a Comment