Your thoughts create your tomorrow.
Positive thinking is well known to be a foundation for successful application of the Law of Attraction to manifest your desires. Research has shown that positive thinking (especially when enhanced with meditation practice) results in better emotional management, increase satisfaction with life and ability to cope with setbacks. Overall, cultivating positive thoughts can lead to a better quality of life and help you achieve a state of mindfulness and clarity.
The fact remains that keeping your mind active with positive thoughts is arguably as important (or even more important) than just being physically healthy. In this post I would like to suggest 10 effective positive thinking exercises that you can employ in your life.
I have been using these exercises over a long period of time and they have proven to be really helpful in curbing negative thoughts, re-framing the mind at the start of each day and even providing much needed positive perspective during difficult or challenging situations.
Powerful Positive Thinking Exercises
Here’s how you can start thinking positively by applying these 10 powerful positive thinking techniques.
1. Set Aside 5 Minutes a Day Thinking Positive – preferably at the start of the day when you just wake up so that it puts you in a heightened state of mind. Sometimes when we wake up in the morning, the realization of reality kicks in and get a little moody. This is the best time to force yourself to think of 5 positive things in your life. They can be anything at all! Just 5 things that you are looking forward to in the day.
2. Use Positive Affirmations Daily – positive affirmations affect your internal well-being and enable you to bring out your best potential moving forward. Positive affirmations provide a huge boost to your morale and also influence your subconscious mind to think and act in a positive manner. Ideally you should use positive affirmation statements that begin with the words “I am….”. See this guide I’ve written on how to craft the best affirmations for yourself and apply them effectively.
3. Consciously Remember to Use Positive Words – Whilst affirmations help you to frame your subconscious capacity, you should also make a conscious effort to simply be a more positive person throughout the day. Speak things that come from a place of love when interacting with others and describing your experiences. Cut out negative words like “can’t”, “don’t” and “no” (there are so many other more tactful and effective ways of rejecting a request!). The idea here is to just make an effort to inject more positivity into your life and the life of others.
4. Use Your Greatest Weapon: Your Smile 😊 – After numerous studies, psychologists believe that the act of smiling increases positive feelings and makes you happier! The action can actually precede the emotions and feelings which ultimately suggests that both the action and emotions are self-reinforcing. What this means is that “forcing” yourself to smile even when you don’t feel like can actually make you happier, increase your quality of life and reduce stress. Cool isn’t it? The best part is that smiles are contagious and benefits not just you but those around you! So go ahead and spread your joy to the world with the power of your smile (:
5. Practice Gratitude Daily – There are you can be grateful for in life! Sometimes we just need a reminder or a change in perspective. Being grateful almost automatically raises our positive vibration and puts as in a mindful state of awareness. It also sets the stage for more positive things to come. When we are grateful for the things we have, our thoughts and positive energies are communicated to the Universe and we become attracted to more positive outcomes. A good exercise is to list down 3 things that we are grateful for every day. You can even keep a gratitude journal to document all the things in life that you are grateful for.
6. Practice Mindful Meditation – take some time to meditate or pray every once in a while so that you can get more grounded with your positive energies. There have been numerous research articles that show people who mediate tend to have more positive emotions. When you focus your thoughts during meditation, you gain greater self-awareness and mastery of your emotions.
7. Don’t Brood On The Past – Trying to be more positive doesn’t mean we can totally ignore any negative events or experiences. Of course we are likely to have encountered negative events in the past that might have affected us. The important thing is to overcome this negative resistance by accepting it, and then moving on. Some people are so bent on living in the past that they don’t see the promise in the future in front of them. You don’t want to be the one holding on to past hurt or bad experiences because they keep you from going where you want to go. Instead focus your thoughts on the future and know that you have to power to create your own positive reality.
8. Let Go of Limiting Thoughts – Sometimes our subconscious limiting thoughts hold us back from being positive and optimistic about the future. Make it a point to curb your negative thoughts every know and then to re-align your mindset with positivity.
9. Visualize a Positive Future – Don’t underestimate the power of visualization! As they say, a picture paints a thousand words. This positive thinking exercise can be really effective if applied correctly! The more you visual a positive reality for yourself, the more your mind acts to bring that into your reality. Taking some time to visualize a future that makes you happy has powerful psychological and emotional benefits both in the short and long term.
10. Say Words of Affection to Someone – How often has it been since you praise someone or told a loved one that you love him/her? Using words of affection can be easy for some, but harder for those who have difficulty expressing their emotions. The truth is once you start doing it, it only gets easier! Being positive is also about spreading positivity to others. One of the best ways to show appreciation and gratitude for the people around you is to affirm them and use words to express affection. Especially with your close family members, make it a point to use a affection words with them at least one every single day and you’ll notice the magic happens!
