POSITIVE THINKING

I was chatting with my friend this morning about men (our favourite topic), positive thinking and laundry. I'll save the other exciting topics for another day and focus on the positive.

I've always considered myself a positive person - which having lived in Manchester for 15 years, is quite a feat in itself. I've been up and down emotionally these past few months. I've felt a shift happening recently and I must say, it's good to be back.

Thinking in a positive way is not always easy as we are bombarded with negative images 24/7. Turn on the news or read the paper and the feel good stories (if there are any) are tucked away near the back. Advertisements everywhere are urging us to buy items we can't afford, to lose more weight, to live life at 100 miles an hour and still keep it all together. They would have us believe that being ourselves and accepting ourselves the way we are, is not good enough.

Why do we take notice and keep feeding the negative thoughts? Because that's the way our minds have been trained and it's easier to slip back into those bad habits than it is to start making new, healthier ones.

A positive environment and surrounding yourself with positive people helps a lot. Hubby and I have a friend who is miserable and negative, never a good word to say about anyone. I could be in the best mood and spend five mins with him and feel depressed. We decided we would spend our time with people who make us feel good instead.

I remember when my step-daughter took part in http://www.outwardbound.co.nz/, she came back a different girl, full of life and raring to go. After a week of being back with her old friends and old life, she felt she was right back where she started. She decided to come back to live with me and her Dad so she could get back on track.

One of my favourite books




It's packed with inspirational quotes and has a fun exercise for every day of the year. I dip into it when I need some guidance.

One of the first lessons is to keep a gratitude journal. It's something I love to do. Each night, before bed, I write down at least 5 things I am grateful for. Some days my list Will be full of amazing things and other days, I'll write down the basics...having a bed to sleep in etc.

I love doing this because it makes me more aware of my surroundings and focuses my mind on picking out the positives during the day rather than dwelling on the negative. I'm more 'in the moment'.

I know there will always be negative aspects of life which can't be ignored and have to be dealt with but being in a positive frame of mind makes moving forward much easier.

So how do we work through the negativity and stay positive? You have to work at at it, every day and the more you do it, the easier it becomes. Focusing on the positive or the negative is a choice only you can make.

ALWAYS LOOK ON THE BRIGHT SIDE OF LIFE!