The Power of Positivity!

The Power of Positivity!   If anyone had reason for a pity party or to suffer from the “poor me” syndrome, it was Bethany Hamilton. The thirteen year old lost an arm to a shark while surfing in Hawaii. She refused to be negative about the accident. Only ten weeks later she was surfing again at national competition level and came fifth in her age category. How positive is that? Positive thinking brings opportunities, it creates optimism. It allows us to overcome serious obstacles. We can think big and entertain possibility-thinking. It creates an attitude of “I can do this if I put my mind to it!” Limitations become self-imposed. I once read “where your attention goes, your energy flows!” Goals become more believable and achievable.  One sees the good and recognizes the potential. Positiveness brings with it a brighter outlook. A negative attitude produces the exact opposite. It finds obstructions. It sees hurdles where there are no hurdles. A negative view of oneself is like a mountain. But mountains are not insurmountable.  In fact, with a positive attitude mountains can become molehills.  The road ahead may still be uphill but you sense the wind in your back. It would be wrong and nonsense to suggest that having a positive attitude removes all problems and obstacles because that is not true.  One still has to face circumstances which cause concern but somehow the worry aspect seems to be reduced. Positivity allows us to face situations with logic and sensibility and helps us to rise above them. Last week I read about a man who was laid off from work. It was winter and difficult to find other work. Instead of sitting at home bemoaning his fate he went out for walks and tried to think through his situation. On one of those walks he discovered an elderly lady trapped in her house because there was no one to clear the snow. He freely shoveled her driveway. Noticed by a neighbor he was requested to shovel her driveway, then another and another. They willingly paid him which helped pay the bills. Spring came and he was requested to do clean-up work including clearing basements of unwanted items, some of which he discovered were antiques. The end result was he became the owner of a landscaping business and an antique store, earning far more than his previous job. He said getting laid off was the best thing that ever happened to him. It’s all in the attitude. We can’t help what life throws at us but we are responsible for how we face it and handle it. Positivity wins every time.