Positive Thinking Day

Affirmations and your brain

Your thoughts directly impact your mood, attitude, and behavior. Negative thoughts tend to create bad moods, bad attitudes, and unsuccessful behaviors. On the other hand, positive thoughts lead to positive actions and positive actions lead to positive outcomes. This is why it is important to keep your thoughts positive and focused on the things you want in life. The repetition of positive thoughts – or affirmations – will literally change your brain and help you create the life you want.

Affirmations are short positive statements that help re-pattern your self-talk and rewire your brain. Be sure to create your affirmations in the present tense and clearly state what you want. For example, “I succeed in all I do.” The key to successful use of affirmations is repetition. By repeating these positive thoughts over and over, you are rewiring your brain. Brain cells that fire together wire together. Using affirmations will help you literally create new neural pathways in your brain (neural nets). This is like creating a new groove on a record or wearing a path in the grass. It takes some time - and repetition - to create these new neural nets, but with patience you will rewire your brain for success.

As you stay focused on the new positive thoughts, the old negative neural nets will wither away and the positive neural nets will strengthen. This will make it easier for you to stay positive and take the necessary positive steps to reach your goals.

Beyond Positive Thinking

I am encouraging everyone I know to go BEYOND Positive Thinking in 2008. Why? Positive thinking is merely the beginning of the journey, not the final destination. Instead, positive thinking should be understood as the foundation for something greater: Positive Action!

All Dreams, Goals, and Projects, both grand and small, are accomplished first by conceiving, then through achieving. As a result, the end-game for positive thinking involves getting one's hands dirty.

My mantra for PTD 2008 is small but powerful: THINK IT. DO IT. 

Use PTD to Review Your Style

Folk wisdom has suggested that some individuals always see ‘blue skies’ while other envision ‘dark clouds’ more often than not. While a few recent scientific studies have supported the idea that some people are more naturally positive thinkers, everyone should be able to improve their ability at this useful skill. Professor Martin Seligman, a leading researcher in the field of Positive Psychology, has proposed that Explanatory Style greatly impacts the way an individual interprets problems.

Seligman suggests that there are three general attributions: Personal, Pervasive, and Permanent. For example, if a pessimist got a ticket for speeding, they might view this one episode as a major failure:

• Personal: I’m stupid; I’m not good at driving. Why do I always go too fast?
• Pervasive: I’m horrible at all aspects of driving. I’m bad at parking and signaling too.
• Permanent: I’ll always fail to obey the speed limit and I will problem lose my license one day, perhaps forever.

A more optimistic view would include the following:

• Not Personal: The speed limit sign was not well posted and anyone could have made this simple mistake of going 10 miles over.
• Not Pervasive: I am a safe, careful driver in most situations. Perhaps I did make big mistake this time; however, it does not impact other parts of my life.   
• Not Permanent: This is my first ticket and I can make sure I that I am more careful about going slower in the future.

PTD is an excellent time to do a short self-audit and review your own explanatory style for a variety of personal and professional domains within your life. Then work to avoid the three Ps, if needed.

No stinkin’ thinkin’ challenge

We all have thousands and thousands of thoughts everyday. Have you ever noticed how many of those thoughts are negative? In honor of Positive Thinking Day, I challenge you to go for 24 hours without a negative thought.

Believe me, this is much harder than it sounds. It will require serious effort and honest commitment. To begin, pick a day and time to start the challenge. Use whatever tools you think will help you - affirmations, books, inspirational photos, etc. Once you start, you need to be on the lookout for any negative thoughts. If you have one, then counter it with a positive thought. Then you will need to reset the clock and start again. It may take you many attempts before you are able to go one whole hour without a negative thought. If or when you successfully complete one hour, you could up the ante and use the same process to go for 2 hours… then maybe a day, and so on.

Give it a try… the only thing you have to lose is your stinkin’ thinking.’ Remember that this challenge can be very difficult. If you have trouble with one hour, try a smaller time frame and then build from there. Keep at it, even if it takes a lifetime. After all, you will be making progress and that’s what counts. The fewer negative thoughts you have each day the happier and more successful you will be.

Let’s get as many people to do this as possible. Ask your family and friends to join you in this challenge. Share your stories and experiences here so that you can gain support and feedback from others.

Affirmations can help you stay positive

Positive affirmations are a perfect way to help you develop positive thinking patterns.  The point of of using affirmations, is to change your negative patterns of thinking.  It is like creating a new pathway in your brain.  It is re-wiring your brain for success.  Repetition is the key when using affirmations.  The goal is to replace the negative self-talk with new positive self-talk.  It is like recruiting and strengthening a new muscle.  Just as it would take time to build up strength in this new muscle and it takes time to re-pattern your thoughts.

ipopin one-minute affirmations make this process fun and easy for everyone.  Our customers (at www.ipopin.com) agree that ipopins help them keep a more positive mindset.  In honor of PTD, ipopin.com will donate 30% of the sales (between now and September 14, 2008) to the Christopher and Dana Reeve Foundation.  We think this is a good deal - you get the very cool and transformational ipopin one-minute affirmations AND you will be helping to find a cure for spinal cord injury! 

Remember we are giving you the following ipopin affirmation to celebrate PTD - I choose to create a great day.

Check out this post for more specific information about affirmations.  You can also go to Think Positive! Blog to read more about affirmations. 

Banish your doubt

Banish your doubt How many times have you been stopped in your tracks by self-doubt? How often do you doubt yourself and your abilities? For many people self-doubt is a serious problem – a barrier to success. Self-doubt can paralyze you and keep you from moving toward your dreams. Research has shown that chronic self-doubt can lead to low self-esteem, mood swings, depression, and anxiety. If you suffer from self-doubt, you are not alone. It is a very common problem that keeps people from achieving their fullest potential.

Fortunately, there are some simple ways to banish the doubt and cultivate confidence in yourself and your abilities. The first thing is to realize that self-doubt is simply unproductive thoughts coming from your ego self. Your essential spirit (aka core self, higher self) does not entertain self-doubt. Your essential spirit only recognizes your potential, your unique gifts, and your talents. When you become aware of thoughts of doubt, try saying no. Do not allow yourself to continue wallowing in these thoughts. Shift your attention to your essential spirit and your inner potential. This is difficult at first, but with time and practice you will be able to stop self-doubt, rather than allowing self-doubt to stop you.

After you have stopped the thoughts of doubt it is important to replace this old self-talk with new more positive and affirming self-talk. Create some affirmations that you can repeat to keep your thoughts positive. You might try something like – I can do anything I set my mind to or I believe in my abilities and trust myself. As you lose the self-doubt you will find that you are able to move toward your dreams with confidence and personal power.

Make room for the positive by Curt Rosengren (Guest Writer)

When it comes to positive thinking, I’m not a big fan of the “sweep-the-shit-under-the-rug” school of thought. Let’s face it, sometimes life gets bumpy. Sometimes things go wrong. Sometimes things happen that just plain suck.

For me, maintaining a positive focus is less about pretending that the bad stuff doesn’t exist, and more about making sure I acknowledge that it’s only one slice of the pie when it happens.

Somehow when things go sideways, it’s easy to let the negative swell up to monumental proportions, minimizing and even obscuring whatever positive there is in our lives. We end up with a case of the sure-buts. “SURE this good thing is happening, BUT look at this crappy part of my life…” And with that, our mind is off to the races, focusing almost exclusively on what’s wrong.

Somehow, when we experience a negative, it can be hard to acknowledge that the positive has any importance. It’s like we have to have it black or white, and can’t let them both exist at once.

But the reality is that both positive and negative *can* exist simultaneously. I can have a part of my life that is really stressing me out, and that doesn’t diminish another part that I can really be grateful for and happy about. The only thing that diminishes that positive part is my lack of attention to it.

So next time you find yourself supersizing your negatives and neglecting your positives, stop and do a reality check. What’s positive in your life? What can you be thankful for? What do you enjoy? What is working well?

Then think of it as a pie chart, where all those things, plus the negative, add up to 100% of the pie. Is the negative *really* taking up 98.7% of the pie, or are you exaggerating? (Hint: You’re probably exaggerating.) The more you can keep the proportion of the negative in perspective, the easier it is to fully appreciate the positive.

Guest post written by Curt Rosengren - Passion Catalyst (tm) - web: http://www.passioncatalyst.com

Positive thinking makes good financial sense

If you are here at Positive Thinking Day, you are likely an optimist or working to be more optimistic, so I don’t need to convince you about the benefits of optimism. However, as a positive psychologist, I think it is pretty neat that research is catching up with what we (optimists) have known for a long time - positive thinking is good for us! There is a lot of research to support the idea that positive thinking can help improve mood, increase happiness, reduce pain, enhance immune function, and boost productivity. Now there is evidence that optimism can improve your financial situation.

An article from Science Daily suggests that positive thinking (up to a point) makes good financial sense. According to this article, new research from Duke University's Fuqua School of Business indicates that optimistic people tend to make good financial decisions and show prudent financial behaviors. The researchers found that optimists work longer hours, save more money, tend to pay their credit cards balances on time, plan to work longer, and believe their income will grow. I am not surprised by these findings. I believe that optimism helps in every area of life.

I was a bit surprised that this research also suggests that too much optimism may be associated with poor financial decisions. According to the Duke study, the “extreme optimists” were more likely to work fewer hours, save less money, and not pay their credit card balances regularly.

I find the concept of “extreme optimism” interesting. What do you think? Can a person be too optimistic? Do you think that you are too optimistic?

Inspirational video

PTD is getting close... only 26 days away! 

As you probably know, we are working very hard to raise money for the Chirstopher and Dana Reeve Foundation.  The Reeve Foundation is dedicated to curing spinal cord injury by funding innovative research, and improving the quality of life for people living with paralysis through grants, information and advocacy.

Watch this video and you will have a better understanding of why we chose this Foundation to work with for Positive Thinking Day.  (If you are reading via email, click here to view video).

Wow!  Angela is such an inspiration.  She represents the balance between acceptance and pure determination to heal.  Let's all work together to raise some money for the Reeve Foundation to continue their research and work to help folks who have spinal cord injuries. 

There are 2 ways you can help:

1) Make a purchase at www.ipopin.com between 9/7/08 - 9/14/08 in honor of Angela and others who have sustained a spinal cord injury - 30% of the proceeds will go directly to the Reeve Foundation. Pretty sweet - you get cool affirmations AND get to help a very worthy cause.

2) Please help us spread the word about this event by posting on your blog and telling at least 5 people you know about this chance to make a difference for people with spinal cord injuries. (you can also put the logo link on your blog to become an official PTD supporter).

It feels good to do good!

4 Invaluable Aspects of Positive Thinking by Jennifer Abbott (Guest Writer)

What is positive thinking? There are a lot of misconceptions out there about what positive thinking really is. In fact, some people get so frustrated with it that they give up on positive thinking all together. One of my teachers passed along some invaluable lessons about positive thinking that I am now privileged to teach to others. I would like for us to take a look into four of these essential aspects that, if applied, will yield great seeds of positive changes in a person’s life.

1. Look at the overall picture. This includes keeping your focus on what is really important. When making every day choices, ask yourself, “How can I act on the things that really matter to me?” This keeps you from getting distracted or bogged down in trivial unimportant matters. You know what is important and you live it. Clearly laying out your values, priorities, goals and vision for your life is a great way to get started.

In the same way, when you are in the middle of a trial, take a step back and see things in perspective. Is this going to matter at the end of the day, in one week, in one month, in ten years? If not, resolve to let go of it. If it is going to matter, then act on it in a constructive way if it is indeed something over which you have control. A good question to ask is, “How important is this in the whole scheme of things?” If it is important, ask yourself, “So how can I take care of this in the best way?”

2. Do not set yourself up for failure. Once you become aware of this one you may be surprised at how often you do set yourself up for failure. I know I was. Watch your words. Are you constantly telling yourself, “[This] will happen,” or “[This] will turn out [this way].” Let’s all face it; things happen that we have no control over. If something is likely to turn out different than you want, then do not tell yourself it will turn out exactly how you want or expect.

Example: Let’s say that your friend lives 2 hours away and you are going to go see him. You plan to arrive at his house at 6pm. Automatically, you say to yourself, “If I leave at 4pm I will get there at 6pm.” Makes sense, huh? Well, what happens if you have car trouble along the way or you get stuck in traffic because of an accident or some other event over which you have no control? Are you frustrated? Very likely you are. The longer it takes to take care of the situation the angrier you become. How could you have avoided this? Change your language. What if you said to yourself, “If I leave at 4pm and everything goes as planned, I will arrive at my friend’s house at 6pm.” That changes everything. It might even help to leave early if possible in case something does happen.

Just last week, I forgot this lesson and I set myself up for failure and got very frustrated. I was working on a business project. I said to myself, “I’m going to finish this in a few hours.” Three days and several complications later, I had gotten very frustrated and finally finished the project. (This could also be a lesson in planning wisely). Plan and execute, but realize life happens. Be prepared for anything and watch your frustration dwindle.

Are you planning on being on the internet all day? What if your internet goes out for the day?

I try to remember to tell myself each morning, “Anything can happen today. I can handle anything that may come up.”

*Note: This is not an excuse to avoid planning and expecting great things for your life.

3. Look Ahead. People who are focused on the future are not stuck in today’s problems. If you always have forward thinking and a hurdle does come up you will know how to handle it. As a matter of fact, you will know how to use it for your advantage. Some good questions to ask are, “What good can come from this?” “How can I use this to my advantage (or for good)?” and/or “What can I learn from this?” It has always amazed me that when I get my mind focused on how to solve a problem, it goes crazy with positive thoughts to work out a solution. Try it. You may just amaze yourself.

Napoleon Hill reminds us that “Every adversity, every failure and every heartache carries with it the seed of an equivalent or a greater benefit.” We simply have to look for it.

4. Think about good things. Very similar to point number three, it also never ceases to amaze me that when I begin thinking about just a few good things, that my mind automatically starts thinking about more good things. Usually people are stuck in the rut of negative thinking. One negative thought leads to another and another and ……. If we can simply switch the gears of our brain to think about one good thing, then that can lead to another and another and…. It multiples before you know it.

One thing that helped me the most was writing down my blessings. Once I wrote down just a few then many others came to mind and I had a long list. I reviewed these daily and thanked God for them. Pretty soon I was humbled at all my blessings and became very grateful.

Guest Writer - Jennifer Abbott blogs regularly at http://principlesforpeace.com. You may visit her blog there to read more about positive thinking and obtaining peace in your life. You may also wish to subscribe to her feed by clicking here or sign up for email subscriptions via her blog.