6 Mindful Ways to Transform Negative Thoughts

6 Mindful Ways to Transform Negative Thoughts
By Gilbert Ross • Feb 14, 2018

There are moments were life gets us in a bit of a crunch. A series of fallouts, undesired outcomes, pressing problems and things seemingly falling apart in key areas of your life can get you caught in a streak of negative feelings and thoughts. Negative thinking can get you spiraling into a general negative mindset that effectively changes your perception on life and the ability to respond to it.
Yet you do not have to struggle with negative thoughts throughout your life even in the gloomiest of Monday mornings. When we are caught down in the blues alley, we tend to easily forget that there are actions and thoughts that can get us unstuck from the dark clouds of the mind. There are always things you can do to keep all the bad stuff you are bearing with from affecting your life and keeping you from enjoying what you want to get out of it.

1.Look at the positives in your life at the moment.

The odds are there is something positive that you can summon up when you think about things happening in your life. Look at what you are going through and think about how there is always a silver lining somewhere even if you can’t see it right now. Never forget that it is just a moment – particularly a moment that you will come out of even though you don’t yet know how or when. So when you’re short of positive thoughts when the dark clouds are hanging over your head, this is the one universal positive thought that always holds true.
Perhaps several small things came together that helped you to have a good day without feeling worried. Maybe you might find that the impact of something negative in your life might not be as bad as it seems and quite surprisingly, it has actually developed into something new, something beautiful that you could not see before.

2. Work alongside positive people.

It is always easier to get through the dark hours and moments where negative thinking is at its worst when you work along with other people who are optimistic, resilient or have a general positive take on life. Besides, opening up to others who can understand your situation without being judgmental is always a good therapy in itself. We all need to be heard and understood sometimes. This gives you the initial emotional support and strength to untie yourself from negative thinking. Don’t forget that negative thinking will keep on getting stronger if we stay stuck in our heads, ruminating over and over the same problems. Get out and connect with others.

3. Help other people with their needs.

Another way to get out of the negative headspace (which is often fuelled by a me-focused energy) is to help others. You have to recognize that you are not the only person in the world. You need to get the energies moving outside of you instead of being stuck in negative thoughts inside your head. You can start helping people with various problems they might have even though you will initially meet a lot of self-resistance.

You could perhaps offer to do some volunteer work with a charitable organization to assist people in a way or another. You could also work on home projects for other people who need a helping hand. This can improve your sense of worth and make some new connections along the way which always brings in some refreshing joy, or better, make you forget you had problems in the first place.

4. Think about how realistic your negative thoughts are.

Take note of the negative feelings you are dealing with. Be aware and stay present with them for a little while. Do those feelings really sound sensible? Maybe you are just being a little too rough on yourself. You must look at how realistic some of those negative thoughts you are having are or if they are actually what they seem to be when scrutinized further with calm discernment. You might find over time that the things you are thinking are nowhere near as bad as you thought they were.

5. Be more relaxed and open to playfulness.

A good idea for keeping negative thoughts at bay entails looking at what you can do to be playful with your thoughts and actions. You can always be open to fun activities and be more open to casual new behaviors from what you are used to getting into. You should focus on being ready to do anything no matter how different it might be from what you are used to. It becomes easier for you to feel positive about your life when you are willing to look on the bright side of things without disruptions of any mental hang-ups involved in the process.

6. Be appreciative of what you have.

The last point is a powerful and evergreen antidote to negative thoughts and feelings. It is gratitude and it includes, among other things, looking into what you currently have and what makes it special to you. You might consider thinking about how the things you possess today and your skills help you to be a better overall person. How some things in the past have eventually worked out for the better and placed you in a position where you have gained things like insights, new relationships, better prospects or an overall wellbeing. This could be crucial for giving you a positive reinforcement and encouragement about your true values in life while also recognizing that you have accomplished many beautiful things along the way.
Author Bio: Sohail is passionate about traveling and exploring new places. He also love writing articles that motivates students to live a better life. Currently, he is associated with smiletutor.sg a private tuition agency in Singapore.


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