The Wellness Universe Quote of the Day by Don Shapiro

True positive thinking is not the absence of negative thoughts. It\’s the ability to feel negative when you have to and still maintain enough hope to keep on going. Life throws us twist and turns that can make us feel bad. You don’t have to block negative feelings that simply show you are human. Just make the choice not to let them hold you back. A positive person never allows the reality of the moment to stop them from seeing a better future and climbing as many mountains as it takes to get there. 

Recently, a 20 year research study was released by Gabriele Oettingen, Professor of Psychology at New York University, that shows how obstacles are the best motivator. She discovered that people who just think positive thoughts don\’t usually accomplish much. Her research shows this creates “relaxation complacency.” Instead, she found, those who have positive thoughts while honestly exploring all the obstacles become motivated to find ways to overcome those obstacles and figure ways to address them.  

She calls this approach “mental contrasting.” As she concluded: 

“The solution isn\’t to do away with dreaming and positive thinking. Rather, it\’s making the most of our fantasies by brushing them up against the very thing most of us are taught to ignore or diminish: the obstacles that stand in our way.” 

It is a combination of remaining positive while realistically exploring how to climb all those mountains that leads to achievement. This balance between remaining positive and hopeful while confronting all the obstacles in your path can truly help you to find and pursue the forks in the road that will lead you to a better place. 

There is a school of thought which says you should call a problem an opportunity to frame it in a more positive way. Nothing could be worse. When you make an obstacle seem less daunting and difficult, you actually rob yourself of the energy you\’re going to need to tackle it. You also rob yourself of the greatest sense of accomplishment. What do you want to say when you succeed…you handled an opportunity or you solved a terrible problem? Which would make you feel better? Don\’t make light of what you face if you want to actually address it and do something about it. 

Of course, you also have to be careful not to let your negative thoughts consume you. That can block you from taking action. You won\’t see paths and opportunity. You don\’t believe anything will help so why bother to try. You give up. There is a difference between having negative thoughts, seeing obstacles, looking at problems and feeling normal frustration versus allowing these things to discourage you and take over your existence.  

Maintain a positive and hopeful outlook based on faith in yourself and the universe while staying completely grounded in the reality of what you face. It\’s okay to feel frustrated, bad, sad or cry. It\’s much better to let the reality of the what\’s happening wash over you instead of trying to repel it, resist it, and pretend it\’s not affecting you. This will make you much stronger, wiser and far more effective in tackling whatever life throws at you.