The Power of Positive Thought

Or, can you? Is every successful person you know an optimist? Are they truly happy? I think this depends on our individual definitions of success and happiness. To me, success is getting the most out of your life, that is following your dreams, sharing your passion and fulfilling your goals. I believe happiness is a state of mind, it's about enjoying your journey to success and being content through the good and the bad. I suppose that also depends on ones goals. If one of your goals in life is to become an Olympic Gold Medalist, is positive thinking alone going to get you there? Hell no! A whole lot of hard work combined with optimistic thought will, however.

Some of us seem to confuse optimism with unrealistic thought. Those who call themselves a 'realist' are just wearing a mask to hide their pessimistic attitude. You can be realistic and optimistic, believe it or not. So another question I will ask is, did the successful people you know get to the top with a negative attitude? My guess is, probably not. A person who continually says 'I can't' plain and simply never will. I do believe our thoughts can hinder us from achieving what we desire to.

I was diagnosed with clinical depression when I was sixteen. Since then I have been treated successfully and my entire outlook on life completely changed. My grades significantly improved, I was eating super healthy and became a fitness junkie. I even gained a number of friendships and real ones at that. However, since becoming pregnant and unable to take medication, things seemed to have changed that ultimately shouldn't have. I cry more, my insecurities have been heightened, I eat horrible food (not just when I'm having a craving) and I've become the girlfriend from hell. I can't blame hormones for this. Because, while it's true that pregnancy hormones do cause mood swings, food cravings and the weight gain can make us feel less attractive, the way everyday life for me has changed is beyond that, I blame my negative mind. It's only now I've realised what a difference to our lives we can make by changing our thought pattern, even if we need a little medical help.

Right now, I'm actively trying everyday to change my mind-frame. I want to wake up everyday believing that today is going to be a good day, no matter what. Here's a few things that are helping me along:

• My Positive Thoughts Board on Pinterest

This is a collection of positive quotes that I love to read when I need a little shove in the right thought direction.

• Daydreaming about the future

Sometimes I find that refocusing on the things I want to achieve in my lifetime makes me happy. Taking your thoughts away from the past, bringing them to the present and focusing on how you can achieve your goals can be a real mood booster.

• Write a list of (or mentally note) everything you are grateful for

There are a lot of things that we all possess that others wish they were fortunate enough to have. I'm grateful to have a loving family, supportive friends, an amazing partner and a baby on the way. It's hard for me to comprehend my life without any of these things. But the reality is, some people don't have their family, or very few real friends or the ability to reproduce. I consider myself extremely lucky to have all of these things.


In turn, I guess it is true - you can't live a positive life with a negative mind.