Living Positive in a Negative World
It is possible to live a positive life even with negative people all around you. It is POSSIBLE, but it ain’t easy!!!!
I live with several negative people around me every day. I see the half full glass and they see the need to buy milk at incredibly expensive prices and paying out the ear for gas to get there (the scary thing is that I’m NOT exaggerating).
It would be easy to fall down to their level. Finding the good and positive in situations (and especially in people) is not always the fun way to live. Choosing to nag, complain and basically pass out blame like Pez is a much easier path to take. At least it seems to be easier.
The truth is that positive people live healthier, happier and longer lives. That’s what I want for my children. So I choose to see the silver lining no matter what the grumblers and complainers may see. I choose to see the rainbow and admire the colors and not complain about the rain. I choose to see that our needs are met and not complain that we don’t have a million dollars in savings.
It has taken me years to work out a system, but I have developed ways to protect my positive attitude from the negative forces that often surround me.
1. Avoid negative news, movies and television shows. The attitudes you put into your eyes and your ears will fester in your heart and eventually come out of your mouth. Guard your mind!
2. Give up trying to make the people around you be positive. Live your life the way you know it should be lived (putting God first, putting others second, and then looking out for yourself as well). They will eventually come around or run away.
3. Find at least one positive outlet for your life (like this blog 😀 ). You need to be recharged and lifted up or the negative forces will suck the life right out of you.
4. Make a decision to stay positive for the next hour – and keep doing it for every hour of the day. A little at a time does not seem like such a big hurdle.
5. Being positive does not mean being perky. It is okay to be upset about a situation or to even be sad (because of a loss or a pain). It is what you do with those emotions that make the biggest difference between a positive person and a negative person. Do you take out your emotions on the people around you or to you begin to look for things in your life that you are truly grateful to have?
It is all about choice. The life that I live and that I teach my kids can be the one that is healthy, happy and full of life or it can be one of clouds, complaints and darkness. It seems like a simple enough choice, but every day I watch as people around me choose the dark over the light.
