Finding Positivity and Goodness in a Negative World: A How-To Guide

Deborah Port
Mar 23
5 min read

The World We Live In

Let's be honest. It can be a daily struggle to maintain a positive mindset. Even if we have a great start to our day, we are bound to face challenges. The truth is, there is very little in our control. You may face anything from a friend having a bad day, a flat tire, a broken shoestring, someone being rude, getting devastating news, your expectations may not be met...

While we could make a long list of all the things that could and do go wrong in a day, there are just as many opportunities all around us to experience goodness and beauty. If we can learn to engage with positive thinking we will see benefits in our state of mind, internal sense of peace, relationships, and our overall physical health.

Let's take a look at some strategies for shifting your thinking towards the goodness that is around you.

What Feeds the Negative Mindset?

First, let's understand some things in your life that might be feeding the negative mindset.

Media influence and sensationalism - It is no secret that the narrative in the media focuses on everything going wrong and pointing out things you should be worried about. How often are you exposing yourself to media? If you are constantly listening to people who are angry and presenting doomsday scenarios, you will have a harder time experiencing the good.

Social dynamics - What kind of people are you surrounding yourself with in a day? Are you around people who complain a lot? Are you in a group where gossip is commonplace? Pay attention to the mindset you are encountering through others.

Personal traumas and past experiences - Do you have strong self-awareness of things in your life that have had an impact on your thinking patterns? There are times when talking to a therapist can help you gain tools to help with how you react in your thoughts and actions to undesirable situations you face.

Shifting Your Perspective

So much of our life experience is shaped by our mindset. What do you spend your time thinking about? The pathways in our brains get strengthened the more we use them. Think about working out your muscles at a gym. The more you do it the stronger you get. The more you notice all the negative, the more you tend to only see the negative. The more you develop a positive mindset, the more the pathways that help you see the good around you are strengthened. So, what does a thought pathway "workout" look like? Here are some things you can try:

Practice gratitude regularly to appreciate small joys.
Reframe negative thoughts into positive statements.
Engage in mindfulness to enhance present-moment awareness.

What Does this Look Like in Daily Practice?

Questions to consider as you look at your circumstance and determine the practical ways you can create space for positive mindset practices in your day:

Incorporating manageable habits into your routine- When will you practice gratitude during your daily routine? Can you write out a list? Do you need to set a reminder?
Rituals that inspire positivity- What are the things that fill you up? What engages your mind and spirit? What can you do that taps into your creative side? How can you practice self-care throughout your day?
Incorporating affirmations to boost self-esteem - What are the words that lift you up and bring you comfort? Keep your affirmations in front of you. Do you need to write it down? Send it to yourself in a message? Take a picture of things you find inspiring and encouraging so you can look at it throughout your day.
Setting achievable goals to foster a sense of accomplishment- It is far to easy to become overwhelmed. Celebrate the things you did! Prioritize so you know what can be left for another day without carrying guilt.
Time for self-reflection - Taking time during the day to journal or even just quiet time to reset is important. If we don't pause to evaluate our thinking, we can get caught in negative spirals. We can not think clearly when we are feeling overwhelmed or angry. Have a plan. If you are feeling angry, what can you do? Where can you go? Where is a quiet place? Do you have a journal you can keep with you?

Acts of Kindness and Contribution

There is great power in helping others. When we get stuck in our thinking, we are often struggling to gain a broader perspective or think outside ourselves. When we help others we interact with kindness. We get to engage in brightening someone's day. We gain rewarding feelings. We move ourselves to positive action and even if it feels like we are just going through the motions at first, we set ourselves on a positive path that reminds us we are not alone in this world. We are made for community and when our actions contribute, we regain a perspective greater than our problems.

Overcoming Setbacks

One of the most detrimental falsehoods is when we have wrongly convinced ourselves that everything in life will be easy and that we will never face obstacles. Let's be real; there is little in this life under our control. We all have bad days, challenging obstacles, emergency situations, and our life-path is rarely a straight line. We so desperately desire control that we convince ourselves that we can do or not do things to make our lives perfect. The reason this is so damaging, is that we will face struggles. If you have convinced yourself this isn't true, you may find yourself overwhelmed and floundering when the difficulty comes.

What is the alternative? We can have an understanding that there will be times we fail. There will be times people don't agree with us. There will be times nothing seems to be going right. With this knowledge, we can be ready to shift our thinking and look for the good that is all around us. How did you learn from your failure. How are you connecting with others through disagreements? How are you pausing to take times to rest and center yourself when you are overwhelmed? How will you dig into your creativity to work out another solution? How will you celebrate your victories no matter how small they may seem?

Take It With You

Goodness is all around you, but it is too easy to be caught up in the negativity of this world. We must find personal practices that work for us and our routines to be active in seeking out positivity in our thinking. What will your personal practices look like? What is one thing you can incorporate today?

We must recognize when we are off track. Be aware of those you surround yourself with. Be aware of your own thinking and actions that might be engaging in the negative messages in media, coworkers, or based in your past experiences. When you notice your thinking spiraling, pause and take a breath. Make your gratitude list, engage in community, reframe your thinking.

Be kind to yourself. Remember that this is a life-long journey and that you are not traveling it alone. You may stumble and fall, but you can learn and grow from the experience.