Remaining positive throughout the day is an important component of your personal growth. When the day gets the best of us, we may find it a little difficult to be optimistic about our personal growth. Here are 5 ways to counter negativity and pessimism and instead, introduce a little optimism and positivity in your life!

1. Watch your physique
Keep your back straight when you sit and stand, walk fast, confidently and take big steps. Even if you don’t feel optimistic and positive - fake it and you will make it. Walking with a slouch and small steps reinforces negativity, a lack of confidence and pessimism. So, if you have to, fake it until you make it. Instead of changing your mind to change your physique, start changing your physique for an instant lift!

2.  Change the way you speak
Much like our physique, the way we speak tends to affect our mood. Not necessarily just the other way around. When you act happy, you feel happy and it is so much easier for happy people to feel positive. So induce cheerfulness by speaking in an upbeat voice. But it’s not just the voice that you need to inject cheeriness into — it’s the speech vocabulary you choose to use as well! Be aware of the words you use and consciously select upbeat, positive ones instead of more upsetting and pessimistic words. For example, problem vs. opportunity. Once you change your speech vocabulary, you may realize that it’s easier for your brain to create instant positive associations.

3. Focus on solutions.
All of us have problems. But what differentiates a positive person from a negative person is his / her focus. People with positive attitudes focus on the solution instead of the problem. Contrary to popular belief, our brains were not made for complicated multitasking. Choosing to focus solely on solutions forces our the problems, whining and groaning. In addition, working to fix something automatically helps us feel better about ourselves and helplessness induces feelings of pessimism and negativity. So start focusing on the possible solutions and keep thoughts of your pressing problems at bay.

4. Look for inspiration
Whether it’s from a picture, a song, a quote or a person - try to start your day with it. If it’s a picture, set it as the desktop background of your work station or print it and pin it to the wall in front of you. If it’s a song, listen to it first thing in the morning, on your drive to work or at the office when you feel a little down. Inspiration can be found in every corner and via many mediums - it’s just up to us to go searching for it.

5. Be grateful
Make the daily expression of gratitude a habit. Whether it’s gratitude for something small like a great dinner, good friends, or something bigger like a pay rise - express it. Make it a daily habit and watch as your perception of your seemingly monotonous life turns positive. When you focus on the positives of the day, you automatically start filtering through negativity and pessimism, opening your eyes to the beautiful, happy occurrences that happen throughout your day.

Positivity is an important companion ofpersonal growth. I hope these 5 ways will help you overcome negativity and pessimism and aid in your journey of becoming a more positive individual.

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