How to avoid negativity

Negative thinking can hold you back from making a success of your life and achieving your dreams. It also has a significant effect on both our physical and mental health; research has demonstrated that people who have negative thought patterns experience fewer opportunities and more stress and physical illness.

If you decide to be more positive, you'll soon begin to encounter people and situations that are also more positive. The secret to getting rid of negativity is to fill our lives with positive thoughts, experiences and people. Here are a few ways to rid yourself of negativity and pessimism and become more optimistic and positive.

1. Don't be entitled, be grateful

Entitled people believe that everything revolves around them and their needs and that they deserve everything they have. People like this are sometimes known as "energy drains" because they only look at people and situations to see what they can get out of them. So whatever they've got, it's never enough.

If you're not content, it's almost impossible to live your life positively. So start by appreciating everything in your life that you receive, whether it's your family and friends, the roof that shelters you or the car that takes you to work every morning. Your attitude will shift from discontent and frustration to one of gratitude and appreciation.

As you become open to the concept of receiving rather than taking, you'll find that your relationships become more harmonious and positive, and your life is more rewarding.

2. Take life less seriously

When you've got a demanding job or a busy family life, it's easy to develop an overly serious attitude to life that may result in negativity. You may find yourself becoming extremely sensitive and easily offended by mild sarcasm or jokes. Try cutting yourself more slack, and look at things positively.

As the saying goes, laughter's the best medicine. Laughing reduces the effects of the stress hormones that cause depression. We all make mistakes, so learn to laugh at your own, and you'll find negative thoughts are driven away. If you often feel stressed, and as if you have the weight of the world on your shoulders, Bach Flowers can help you look at things from a positive point of view.

3. Help other people

One of the most effective ways of driving away negativity is to stop being self-centred, look outside your own life and start helping others. You can start small: ask someone how they are before they ask you, or let a person with just a few things go ahead at the supermarket checkout.

Doing things for other people gives a purpose to your life and increases your self-esteem and positivity. And other people will like you more for it.

4. Replace negative thought patterns

We're often harder on ourselves than on anyone else. A negative inner voice that bombards us with a stream of self-criticism corrodes optimism and positive energy.

Next time you find yourself thinking negatively, conscious try to replace it with a positive spin. For example, when you find you're thinking, "I did so badly in that test - I'm a total failure, and I'll never pass it ", tell yourself, "So, I messed up, but I know I can do better if I revise more next time."

5. Don't hang out with negative people

When you surround yourself with negative people, you'll be very likely to emulate their behaviour. It's hard to think more positively if the people you spend the most time with don't behave positively or support you.

If you start to think more positively, you may find that your friends respond by also becoming more positive. Or they may drift away. While the thought of change can be scary, cutting out people who drain your energy is an essential step in driving away negativity.

6. Take a break

When you're feeling anxious and overwhelmed by a problem and can only think about it negatively, try walking away for a while. When you're feeling calmer, take a piece of paper and write down some actions or solutions to the problem.

Moving away from an emotionally fraught, negative situation to a positive, action-focused mode will help you solve your difficulties more rationally. And even if your problem can't be solved quickly, taking a break from a cycle of negative thoughts will help you to think about it more clearly.

7. Take responsibility

Don't hamper yourself with a victim mentality. You're responsible for your own thoughts. When you blame others or circumstances, you're only creating a barrier to changing negativity into positive thinking.

Owning and taking responsibility for your thoughts, actions, and life is one of the most crucial steps in avoiding negativity. You and you alone can change your thoughts and change your life. Once you accept that you have a choice in the way you respond to people and situations, you'll find that no one can make you do or feel anything.

A final word

It can be challenging to let go of negative energy. We are socialised to need more and more, and we never seem to have time to appreciate and be grateful for what we have. But if you can change your habits, take a step back and avoid negative thinking, you're creating more space for positive energy, and you'll be able to live your best life.

Sources:

https://www.mayoclinic.org/healthy-lifestyle/stress-management/in-depth/positive-thinking/art-20043950

https://www.webmd.com/mental-health/positive-thinking-overview

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