7 - Develop your positive attitude | Benefits of a positive attitude!

Reason for this Goal and benefits of a positive attitude:    Your positive attitude will ultimately determine your success in your life and contribute to your overall level of happiness.   There are people who have predominantly positive attitudes and those that have predominantly negative attitudes.  The analogy of whether you think of your glass as half-empty or half-full is a classic one.  

Studies reveal that a person with a positive attitude will excel in all areas of life, often by a significant factor. 

It is easy to let your attitude slide from positive to negative, since much of the news and people we are exposed to daily is negative!    

The people that you enjoy being around the most are the people that have a predominantly positive attitude!

Benefits of a positive attitude!

Following are the top benefits of a positive attitude: 

1. You will be liked by more people - People are drawn to people who have a positive outlook on life.  It's not always apparent that this is the reason, but think about the people you like the best and reflect on if they have a positive attitude.    
2. You will be promoted easier - Most leaders have predominantly positive attitudes.  No-one wants to be led by managers or bosses with negative attitudes.  People who leave their jobs most often list their boss as the reason.  My bet is that if you dislike your boss, he or she has a bad attitude!   
3. Your health will be better - With all other things being equal, you will likely have better health and live longer than someone with a negative attitude.  Studies on heart disease actually show a reduced risk of heart disease amongst those with the most optimistic outlooks and positive attitudes.  
4. You will make friends easier - Friends will be easier to make when you view each other from a positive mind set.  If you like being around people with negative attitudes, its time to do a reality check on your own attitude. 
5. You will attract more success - With positivity comes higher expectations.  When you have higher expectations, all aspects of your life will respond accordingly.  When you expect things to turn out well, they most often do.   In some circles, this is referred to the law of attraction.  
6. You will sell more - At some level, we are in all sales.  We start by "selling" ourself to others in projecting who we are.  People with positive attitudes are naturally better sales people.  If you are good at sales, you have significantly higher income potential in your career.  

Things you can to do improve your positive attitude:

Here are some practical things you can do to receive all the benefits of a positive attitude:

1. Hang around other positive attitude people and avoid those with negative attitudes
2. Listen to motivational and self-help podcasts and other audio/video content 
3. Read self help books
4. Read other inspirational materials that up-lift you
5. Listen to music which puts you into a positive mind set
6. Avoid reading or watching negative news (most news is negative)
7. Make the decision that you will eliminate negativity from your thoughts
8. Act and move confidently - It may seem like reverse logic, but the following expression "To think confidently, act confidently" is true.  Act the way you want to feel.  
9. Smile - the simple act of smiling will also boost your positivity!
10. Establish one of your core values to be optimistic or positive 
11. Develop an enthusiastic attitude.  It is contagious
12. Use positive affirmations (see below)
    

Affirmations to program your positive attitude!

A great way to help improve your attitude is to change the self-talk that is happening in your thoughts every day, by introducing positive personal affirmations that you repeat to yourself daily.   

A positive affirmation, which I learned over 30 years ago and still repeat almost daily, is, 
“I am happy, healthy, wealthy and wise.”      

There are numerous other examples of positive affirmations that you can use, such as . . .

• I have the ability to accomplish any task I set my mind to.
• I am connected to an unlimited source of abundance.
• I accomplish anything I set my mind to.
• I produce great ideas
• I am joyful and happy
• I speak up for myself
• I create my own destiny
• I am more than enough as I am
• Each day is an opportunity
• I am outgoing, bold and confident
• I love myself
• I am worthy of trust
• I am happy, healthy and wise
• I am focused on the positives
• I'm blessed
• I choose happiness
• I tap into unlimited abundance in all areas of my life
• My life is a living masterpiece
• I create my own unlimited wealth
• Good things happen to me every day
• My life is an adventure in achievement

Search the web for examples of positive affirmations you can introduce into your life.   Select a few that align with you the best, and start saying them to yourself every day.  Understanding the benefits of a positive attitude is the building block from which to build your attitude.  Many people have sucky attitudes.  Don't let that be you!

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Suggested Target Goal:  Develop 3 positive affirmations and repeat daily.

Outrageous Goal:  Be the most positive person of anyone you know.

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Listen carefully to your inner voice to ensure you are thinking predominantly positive thoughts.  This is crucial to being able to live out these 100 life goals. 

One of the things I’m currently struggling with is my desire to keep up with the news.  The challenge is that the news is predominantly negative and really distorts the amount of negative news in the world, versus all the positive news that is of less interest to follow and doesn’t sell newspapers. While I believe it is important to know what is going in the world, it’s important to not let that influence your desire and need for a predominantly positive attitude.   

Another great approach to life, I recently read about, is to decide whether you are an energy giver or an energy taker.    Think about it in terms of when you are interacting with other people—are you leaving them with more positive energy, or less, once you leave their presence?  

I’ve decided that I want to be an energy giver, and to be one of the most positive people I know.   How about you?

Return to personal development goals.

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Last Updated:  August 4, 2020