Choosing The Positive Can Make A Big Difference

How do you see the world today? People don’t see rainbows and puppies as they push through their stressful, overworked days. More and more people are seeing struggles they have no control over.

Another mass shooting, endless violence, wars, intense heatwaves, droughts, food shortages, water shortages, and political controversies that are never-ending grab and hold our attention. Countries are suffering economic threats. We continue to hear about a forthcoming recession. Worst of all, the people we once turned to for hope and guidance are no longer trustworthy.

The generations all call times like these the worst in history. Yet, with each generation comes new problems and old ones that reach levels hitherto undreamt of. So, what can you do to protect your sanity and get through it all with some resemblance of happiness intact?

What do you throw at problems affecting you deeply? Is the solution a change in your finances, a lifestyle change, a change in jobs, a change in your social situation, or something more complicated? What if the first step is something easy and enjoyable?

Amid all this chaos and struggle, what is it that makes you happy, and gets you to smile?

The Choices We Make: Good Versus Bad

Struggling to see the world in a good light can be because you chose to pay too much attention to negative influences. When you objectively consider life, what’s your take on things? Are you the glass-half-full or glass-half-empty sort of person?

We’re presented with choices every day. From the time you open your eyes, you are presented with an opportunity to see a positive, if you choose to see it that way. The simplest example is that you wake up. You have more time above the dirt before being buried in the ground.

So it starts with opening your eyes. Then, you have another choice and another, and all through the day, you’re making choices. That’s what life is about. It’s the choices we make that determine our quality and even our quantity of life.

What if you started to improve your choices? How might that change your outlook on life? Now, ask yourself, how does your outlook on life affect how your days go?

The Power Of Your Choices

Ultimately, you have the power to choose how things go in your life! By choosing to be thankful for the small things you can train yourself to be more positive and have a more positive influence on people around you. Positivity is appreciated in the world.

You also have the power to limit the negativity you allow into your circle. However, that takes work and commitment. It all starts with making decisions that steer you away from things that are affecting your mindset.

Things that negatively affect people’s mindset:

• Negativity in News: For years we have been fed a steady diet of negative news stories and these are causing anxiety in many people and social interactions.
• Financial Stress: Struggling with financial problems since the pandemic has become more common. Many people have experienced rising debt, business losses, and inflation has caused financial stress not seen since the 80s.
• Disasters: There have been a constant string of disasters that almost yearly have given people a reason to feel stressed and worried, not to mention threats that are more commonly talked about on the internet.
• Injustice: We’ve all witnessed injustices and unfair treatment at a more common level than in the last century. These have led to feelings of a two-pronged justice system, culture clashes, and racial violence that have plagued the news at rates not seen just 20 years ago.
• Environmental Stressors: Living in an unsafe or polluted environment has taken a toll on many, as cities are overrun by crime, grime, and slime. That would be the politicians and street criminals. Then we hear daily how climate change is destroying our future. In 2023, fires from another country polluted the air in the United States and across the Atlantic.
• Substance Abuse: Thanks to the opioid crisis, and then the fentanyl crisis, more people than ever have experienced the effects firsthand or through the addictions or death of loved ones.
• Traumatic Events: Experiencing or witnessing a traumatic event, such as violence, can lead to post-traumatic stress and have long-term negative effects on a person’s mental health.

Those are just a few things people focus on, thanks to the news and the system we are currently forced to endure. Most people have little control over any of these events. The events are changing our world and affecting our future, but we don’t appear to get a vote in the matters.

While it’s good to stay apprised of current events, there’s a choice about how much of current events you can do before you start to suffer the consequences. How long do you wait before you disconnect and focus on more positive influences?

Positive Things That Are Good For Wellness

Shifting your focus to a more positive mindset can help to ensure a better quality of life, and potentially your quantity of life. Because of physical issues associated with stress, negative influences take a toll on our bodies. We need a level of balance between positive and negative to enjoy happier, more productive, and fulfilling lives.

• Social Interactions: Spend time with supportive friends and family members. This can boost your mood and provide emotional support and comfort.
• Get Outside: Spend some time in nature, whether it be a walk in the park, hikes, enjoying the fresh air, or fishing with a buddy. This can help reduce stress and improve your mood.
• Exercise: Exercise is a great way to naturally release endorphins which are mood enhancers.
• Laughter: Do things that make you laugh. Spend time with funny friends or enjoy a comedy show.
• Hobbies and Play: At some point, we’ve all enjoyed something that made us happy. Whether it was playing a game, drawing, escaping into the world of comics, or whatever the case may be, get back to doing things that you might have forsaken.

These are just a few examples of things that are positive in the world you can focus on instead of dwelling on the negatives we are bombarded with.

Final Thought

Focusing on positive influences is a healthy choice, much like what you eat and the amount of exercise you get. It’s a choice that everyone can make and is one of the few things we have control over in a world that often appears to be spiraling into the abyss. We have to remember our history when the times seem hopeless.

How we choose to view the world based on lately doesn’t change the fact that the world sucks at times, then it gets better. Earth and its lifeforms have seen more than one apocalypse and somehow keep spinning. So spin positively rather than negatively and help yourself get through things easily.

Spend time with your family. Laugh at the silly side of children. Enjoy your hobbies. Explore the lighter side of things. There’ll be enough time to deal with the darkness when it’s a situation you can control.

Remember, as long as you wake up above the dirt, you’re not in the dirt. That means there’s still a chance for a better day.