Being positive and not entertaining bad vibes at all is not as easy at it seems. Since the day that I promised myself to always be positive and spread the good vibe to other people, I've been attracting good vibes to myself too. Everything seemed better, my mindset, the functionality of my brain, MONEY, and most especially my personal relationships to other people. I started smiling more often, I lost 90% of the zits and allergies all over my face, I attract jobs and other opportunities to earn now more than ever. My haters surprisingly disappeared, well I still have a few and I consider them blessings, imagine some people actually give up their good vibe just to hate me. That makes me a special person, I think.
Anyway, I still had a few bad moments. Some bad vibes are easy to forget just by smiling and simply ignoring. Some are a bit heavier and I would have to spend some time to relax just to make myself feel better. I'm quite lucky to have two lovely babies who can immediately take all the bad vibe away. Well there are still some events that are not just too easy to handle.
It was mentioned in the film The Secret (
awesomemoneymachine's The Secret) that if you really focus on just thinking about positive things, it can drive you crazy. Imagine having to exert effort with your feelings and thoughts when these are supposedly voluntary. There will always be external factors outside of yourself that can contribute to negativity. So how do you keep positive? Here are a few of my tips:
1. Stay away from the news and avoiding reading the newspaper.
Well unless it's your job then you'd have to find another way to stay positive. But for me, this is one of the things that I do. When it's time for the prime time news, I turn off the television. Why? It is but common knowledge that majority of the daily news is always bad news. Some show a bit of good news but mostly you'll just watch about political problems, murder, tragedies, etc. Don't get me wrong, I know it's important to be aware of the things that are happening around you but really, how does the murder of someone you don't know miles away from you affect you? Or if the Senate is debating about a corrupt General, really, do you have to know about this? If something so important happened that you need to know, like a war going on or a tsunami approaching, you will know about this in some other way. There's Twitter, Facebook or your family or friends who would have known about it, they'll tell you. My point is, a huge source of negativity is coming from the news! So just quit the news! You can follow the news on the internet if you'd like so you can choose what kind of news you'd like to read or watch.
2. Indulge yourself. Enjoy!
There's nothing wrong if every once in a while you do things you really like. Go on a vacation. Buy that mobile phone you always wanted or that dress that you absolutely adore! Remember, we are born to live and not just to work. In other words, we work to live and not live to work. The money you have in the bank will not make you genuinely happy if you just settle on staring at your bank account statements. Just save some for emergency purposes but make sure you set aside something for yourself. Being materialistic is different from loving yourself. Know your limit. You have to be generous to others, but it's also important that you are generous to yourself!
3. Do what you like.
I know someone who studied Nursing in college just because everyone was telling her that's what's better for her. When she got her license she worked as a nurse for awhile, but she never lasted in one place. Then she finally decided to do what she likes, which is to be an entrepreneur. I've never seen her this happy, she has lots of money and she is no longer complaining about her job. If you're doing what you like then there's no reason to complain. Less negativity! As Jack Canfield said, "
If it ain't fun, don't do it".
4. Listen to happy music, watch funny shows, read feel good quotes and stories, etc.
Self-explanatory. Just an example, do you notice the difference in your thoughts and feelings after watching a funny or a feel good movie, compared to a heavy drama or thriller movie?
For some time, I loved a certain band and listen to their music everyday because their usual lyrics are very similar to what I was going through in my life during that time. Listening to them makes me feel sad but I continued because I thought it made me feel better that someone shared my sentiments. Little did I know that what I was doing was actually putting me into more sadness instead of putting a stop to the negativity already. Now, I just listen to feel good music and funny radio talk shows. It feels so much better!
I am an avid Twitter fan and I am on Twitter most of the day. I follow people who tweet funny quotes and those that are motivational. I un-followed those who are mostly negative. By the way, I know I lost a lot of Twitter followers in the past because I used to rant and spread negativity there. But now, I try my best to only share positive thoughts. (most of the time)
5. Give a specific time limit to your negative thoughts/feelings
I personally do this. Since it is very impossible to stop all negative feelings and thoughts, give it a time limit. I limited mine to 15 minutes. 15 minutes is enough time to relax and let go, believe me 15 minutes is longer than you think. If you give yourself a 1 hour limit, that would just leave you with 23 more hours of your day, not including the hours you're asleep. Imagine, if there's at least one negative thing that happens everyday, then your 1 hour becomes 365 hours in a year, that's approximately 15 days, more than 2 weeks! Do you really want to waste that much time being angry? 15 minutes should be enough.
6. Distance yourself from negative people
Hide all posts of your friends on Facebook that are negative. Or if you want, you can also spread the good energy by making a comment on how everything will be better. But be careful with that, I've tried that and it was taken negatively. Stay away from your colleague who complains about the job everyday. Spend less time with your friends if all they do is gossip and talk behind people's backs. If these people are important to you, why don't you try starting out the good vibe with them, they might just change.
7. Get a pet, especially if you live alone
Dogs and cats have this super positive energy that simply makes you feel happy. There was never a point in my life that my family didn't have animals in the house. So you don't like fur or feathers, maybe you can get an aquarium. Research has proven that staring into an aquarium with fish actually make people feel better! This is more important when you live by yourself. The moment you come home, your pets are there to welcome you. Whatever your problem is, they can absorb it. They can become your family if you let them.
There are many other things to help you keep the good vibe going. But let me give you one important rule you must never forget:
SMILE! Smile and the world smiles back at you. What you give is what you get and more. So just give the world your best smile so that you also get the best for yourself! You'll be amazed at how your life will change if you follow these rules.
"I never will understand all the good that a simple smile can accomplish" -Mother Teresa
