I get it all the time: "Kelvin, how do you stay so positive?"; "Kelvin, are you always like this? Is your cup always half full?"; "I was down; I needed my Kelvin fix..."; "Oh, just what the doctor ordered, Kelvin; I knew you'd have a positive slant for me." "Hey, can you Kelvinize that?" "You're just naturally positive..."
Actually, I'm not just naturally positive -- at least I wasn't in the beginning. I was positive, first, by decision, and by choice. I've conditioned myself over the years to cultivate a positive outlook. Tony Robbins says that nothing in life has any meaning, except the meaning we give it. So you can choose to give life a meaning that empowers you, rather than cripples you. Zig Ziglar says that positive thinking won't let you do everything; but it will be let you do anything better...than negative thinking will.
So here's the short list of what you can do to be more positive, if you want to make this a life philosophy:
1. Make a decision!
Yes. DECIDE to be positive. How many happy, negative people do you know? Make the choice to be positive and uplifting and your life will change immediately. Make the decision to do what you need to do, to cultivate that winning attitude.
2. Turn off the news ! All of it.
I took a challenge many years ago to stop listening to the news -- radio, tv and newspapers. We are assaulted daily with all the bad news there is from around the WORLD -- a constant barrage of negative -- delivered with intensity and emotion -- and, 99% of it, you have zero power to change and the majority of that is not even in your city or state ! Turn off the news, and tune in to your own power.
3. Associate with positive people. Period.
Birds of a feather flock together. It's hard to fly with the eagles when you're surrounded by turkeys. Associate with people who love life and concentrate on the possibilities in life -- not the liabilities in life. Seek them out! If you need help finding some, let me know. I can help :-)
4. Refrain from negative conversation -- especially self talk.
This might sound redundant but it's easy to be drawn into negative conversation and you'll find yourself processing that. When you find yourself in or about to enter a negative conversation... disengage, have an appointment, go to the bathroom or whatever you need to do, to disengage. Gossiping around the water cooler at work... is deadly. More importantly, you spend hours and hours each day chattering to your yourself, in your head. See what disempowering things you're saying to yourself that you don't realize.
5. Read something positive every day -- on purpose! (note: this does NOT include a newspaper)
Especially just before going to sleep at night. Spend 15 minutes reading something positive, uplifting, empowering. Then the last thing on your mind before sleeping is something positive, and when you wake up in the morning you'll have a different mind set, because your brain had that positive to work on all night.
6. Do something nice for someone -- and don't let them know it was you ;-). I don't have to explain that. Y0u felt good just thinking about it, didn't you? Admit it.
7. Lastly... (*this is a bonus) find the song by Rare Earth; "I Just Want to Celebrate, Another Day of Living." It's on their Millennium album. Listen to it first thing in the morning -- on the way to work would be awesome -- and a couple of times during the day. I defy you to listen to that song (fairly loud, too) ... and not feel better. I defy you.
That's enough for now. I've got some recommended reading, but if you want to know about that, check out my web site for the three books that changed my life. Okay?
Follow this prescription for two weeks... and you'll never stop. Experts say, it takes 14 days to develop a new habit. Do this for 14 days. Make a habit of being positive, and I promise you your world will change.
Have an awesome day.
Kelvin
