How can you develop positive thinking attitude? What are the best positive thinking exercises? Can negativity be completely eliminated from a person’s mindset? What practical steps can I take to develop a positive thinking mental attitude? Well, I will advice you read on. In this article, I will be highlighting 10 effective practical steps to developing a positive thinking mental attitude.
I am sharing this information because I want you as an entrepreneur to change your orientation in the positive direction and a good way to go about it is to develop a positive mental attitude. Before I go any further, let me do a quick rundown on the need for entrepreneurs to develop positive thinking mental attitude.
Why Entrepreneurs should develop positive thinking mental attitude
Entrepreneurs are a set of individuals who are constantly on the edge; meaning the life of an entrepreneur is all about surmounting business challenges. If there’s any group of people who definitely needs to be in a positive mental state at all times; that group will be entrepreneurs.
“There is little difference in people but that little difference makes big difference. The little difference is attitude. The big difference is whether it is positive or negative.” – W. Clement Stone
We as entrepreneurs need positive thinking mental attitude the most because of the nature of our calling. We are constantly tackling business challenges and societal problems all in a bid to make the world a better place. Practicing positive thinking allows us as entrepreneurs to focus on our strengths and accomplishments, which increases happiness and motivation.
This in turn, allows us to spend more time making progress; and less time feeling down and stuck. The following tips below provide practical suggestions that can help you shift into more positive thinking patterns.
12 Exercises for Developing Positive Thinking Mental Attitude
1. Take Good Care of Yourself
You are an entrepreneur and I believe you know that running a business can be stressful and challenging; so the first advisable step to developing a positive mental attitude is to take adequate care of yourself. It’s much easier to be positive when you are eating well, exercising, and getting enough rest. Don’t over stress yourself to avoid fatigue. It’s nearly impossible to be in a positive mental state when your body is stressed out.
2. Remind Yourself of the Things You Are Grateful For
“Like success, failure is many things to many people. With positive mental attitude, failure is a learning experience, a rung on the ladder, and a plateau at which to get your thoughts in order to prepare to try again.” – W. Clement Stone
Stresses and challenges don’t seem quite as bad when you are constantly reminding yourself of the things that are right in life. Taking just 60 seconds a day to stop and appreciate the good things of life will make a huge difference.
When you are down or on the verge of failure; close your eyes and remind yourself of intricate problems you have solved in the past. This action will boost your morale to face your challenges in business squarely. It’s called “drawing inspiration from your past exploits.”
3. Look for the Proof Instead of Making Assumptions
A fear of not being liked or accepted sometimes leads us to assume that we know what others are thinking, but our fears are usually not reality. If you have a fear that a friend or family member’s bad mood is due to something you did, or that your employees are secretly gossiping about you when you turn your back; speak up and ask them. Don’t waste time worrying that you did something wrong unless you have proof that there is something to worry about.
4. Refrain from Using Absolutes
Have you ever told a partner “You’re ALWAYS late!” or complained to a friend “You NEVER call me!”? Thinking and speaking in absolutes like ‘always’ and ‘never’ makes the situation seem worse than it is, and programs your brain into believing that certain people are incapable of delivering. If you want to develop a positive thinking mental attitude, then you need to radiate positivity; you need to watch your words.
5. Detach From Negative Thoughts
I believe this is a little bit self explanatory. Your thoughts can’t hold any power over you if you don’t judge them. If you notice yourself having a negative thought, detach from it, witness it and don’t follow it.
6. Squash the “ANTs”
“When we direct our thoughts properly, we can control our emotions.” – W. Clement Stone
In his book “Change Your Brain, Change Your Life,” Dr. Daniel Amen talks about “ANTs” – Automatic Negative Thoughts. These are the bad thoughts that are usually reactionary, like “Those people are laughing, they must be talking about me,” or “The boss wants to see me? It must be bad!” or “my employees are whispering, they must be up to something mischievous.”When you notice these thoughts and realize that they are nothing more than ANTs; squash them!
7. Practice Loving, Touching & Squeezing on your Friends and Family
You don’t have to be an expert to know the benefits of a good hug. Positive physical contact with friends, loved ones, and even pets, is an instant pick-me-up. One research study on this subject had a waitress touch some of her customers on the arm as she handed them their checks. She received higher tips from these customers than from the ones she didn’t touch.
8. Increase Your Social Activity
By increasing social activity, you decrease loneliness. Surround yourself with healthy, happy people; and their positive energy will affect you in a positive way.
9. Volunteer for an Organization, or Help another Person
Everyone feels good after helping. You can volunteer your time, your money, or your resources. The more positive energy you put out into the world, the more you will receive in return. Helping a person in need will lighten your spirit and give you a positive mentality that you are contributing your quota to helping the world.
10. Change your friends and associates
“Be careful of the environment you choose for it will shape you. Be careful the friends you choose for you will become like them.” – W. Clement Stone
Do you want to develop a positive thinking mental attitude? Then change the friends and associates you keep. Try to keep friends who possess negative attitudes at arm length. Positive or negative attitudes are contagious habits; I am sure you don’t want to get infected with the negative ones. Severe friendship with pessimist and cynics; befriend those with the “I can do it” kind of attitude.
11. Change your environment
“Bondage is subjection to external influences and internal negative thoughts and attitudes.” – W. Clement Stone
I don’t know how to explain this but what I want you to understand is that you are a product of your environment. You environment will directly or indirectly influence your thoughts and actions. To further make you understand the point I am trying to buttress, try to answer the following questions.
- Why does united states have the highest number of billionaires in the world?
- Why does the United States have the highest number of successful immigrants?
I know your answer to these questions might be different from mine but if I am to answer these questions; I will say the secret lies in the mental attitude of the Americans. I am neither an American, nor do I reside there but I can feel their patriotism and positive attitude just by watching them on T.V. It’s this same positive mental attitude that made a Kenyan; in the person of Barrack Obama emerge president of the United States.
So where’s all these illustrations pointing to? Well, it’s pointing to one lesson, which is; “be careful of the environment you choose.” If your environment doesn’t radiate positivity, please relocate.
“You are a product of your environment. So choose the environment that will best develop you toward your objective. Analyze your life in terms of its environment. Are the things around you helping you towards success? Or are they holding you back? – W. Clement Stone
12. Use Pattern Interrupts to Combat Rumination
If you find yourself ruminating, a great way to stop it is to interrupt the pattern and force yourself to do something completely different. Rumination is like hyper-focusing on something negative. It’s never productive, because it’s not rational or solution-oriented, it’s just excessive worry. Try changing your physical environment, go for a walk or sit outside. You could also call a friend, pick up a book, or turn on some music.
As a final note, these are my 12 actions steps to developing a positive thinking mental attitude. Try them out with consistency and I will see you at the top.