Sometimes life is difficult. Dealing with certain people is trying. Staying positive amid negativity is challenging. Here are six guiding principles that help me through this journey called life.
1-Ignore the Naysayers
Personally, I can’t go through life listening to people who try to bring me down. I must ignore the people who tell me that I can’t do something. Who are they to tell me what I can or cannot do? Some people are sanctimonious and belittle for many reasons. Their level of education may be higher than mine or their bankbook is fatter than mine. Sometimes, naysayers project their own fears and doubts. I distance myself from the negative nellies in my life.
I’m not saying that I don’t listen to people’s advice. Sometimes people can offer valuable perspectives. But I don’t lose sight of my own goals and values. I empower myself to focus on my visions and dreams. There’s a true power in positive thinking to stimulate success and happiness.
Tune out the naysayers, tune into your own courage, and take a bold step toward the passion-filled life you really want. ~ Oprah Winfrey
2-Time heals if I let it.
There isn’t a single person on earth that doesn’t experience pain or heartbreaking events in life at one point or another. Overwhelming waves of negativity can fill our minds and hearts, paralyzing emotions not only at the time of the event, but for a long time after. This is normal. However, we mustn’t let any event destroy us. I make a conscious effort to move on for my heart to heal.
How do we move on after a devastating heartbreak? By filling our time doing mindful things. Some good choices may be: meeting up with friends, going on a trip, reading, going to the gym, doing yoga class or meditation.
Writing in a journal is therapeutic as it helps me to get negative thoughts and feelings out of my head and on to paper. No one needs to see it, unless it will help. The most important thing is that I do something to help myself heal. The show must go on.
It’s okay to admit that your wounds are still open. That you are still healing. It takes time. It takes time. ~ Alison Malee
3-I don’t compare myself to others.
Social media, television and magazines all make it hard not to compare ourselves to others. It’s also just human nature. We see people with better bodies, better jobs, better houses, better educations — oh, the list goes on. If I focus on what others have, I’ll always feel like I’m missing out on something. It would be a never-ending cycle of dissatisfaction. It’s a waste of time and energy.
Each one of us is unique. The path to happiness already lies beneath our feet; where we stand now. I’m grateful and I think positively about what I do have.
Read my article titled The Power of Gratitude for more on what I believe is a conscious choice.
4-It’s okay not to have everything figured out. In time, we’ll get there.
I’ve always been against the school counselors that pressure kids to pick a vocation before they graduate. Life is hard enough, especially for our youth in this day and time. Experiencing life is what will enable career decisions.
Life is messy. No one has the perfect life. Making choices that turn into mistakes is a part of the journey. These aren’t failures, they’re lessons. We all fall sometimes. Then we stand up and take another path.
Even when we think we’ve found our life’s journey, it might change. Many people spend twenty or so years in one career, then decide they want to do something else. And, that’s okay too. Mine is changing as I write. I’m starting to think about voice over work and recording. Stay tuned.
Everything will be okay in the end. If it’s not okay, then its not the end. ~ John Lennon
5-I’m in charge of my own happiness.
I’ve been married for 41 years now. People ask me what our secret is to the longevity of our marriage. My answer is always: We are two people who have chosen to journey through life together. In other words, He and I are two individuals. Yet at the end of the day, we come together as one.
No one can make you happy. People can make you smile; they can make you laugh, they can make you feel comfortable and safe. But, as an individual, we’re responsible for our own happiness and the choices we make for joyous lives.
To be happy, you must be your own sunshine. ~C.E. Jerningham
6 – Hand problems off to a higher power.
Even though I’m not a religious person, I do believe in a higher power. I discovered that to live a happy life, I need to hand some of my problems over to that higher power. Some problems just can’t be solved. If I hold on to those issues and dwell on them, the only resolution is daily discouragement.
How do I hand them off? I deliberately give that problem to my God. I tell myself that there is nothing more I can do about the issue. One issue had to do with my infertility. I dealt with it for a decade. I finally realized I had to give it up if I were to have any peace. So, I told myself to hand it over to my higher power to deal with. Amazingly, it worked. Once I deliberately removed the burden from my shoulders, I began to feel peace.
Before you go to bed, give your troubles to God. He will be up all night anyway. ~Anonymous
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