Sometimes life throws some curve balls at you when you least expect it.  You’re flowing along nicely when some sort of negative event or tragedy strikes.  You might be tempted to get discouraged and stay there, but that won’t do you any good.  Understanding that life entails some painful circumstances will help you to choose how you will react when those times come.  Will you be negative and angry or will you allow hope and optimism to arise?

Hope and optimism are very valuable traits in life.  To have hope that no matter what you are going through you will be alright is priceless.  Optimism is simply the belief that things will work out in the future regardless of the past or the present. Hope and optimism together remember all of the times you’ve made it through before and team up with faith that all will work out again for your highest good.

Here are some ways that hope, optimism, and future-mindedness will serve you well on your journey of life:

Make a decision to be optimistic.  If you make a decision right now to be optimistic no matter what comes your way, you’ll be saving yourself a lot of grief.  Difficult times are going to come. Pain will come. Make a decision RIGHT NOW to be hopeful and optimistic when those times come NO MATTER WHAT. Could it really be as easy as making a choice?  Yes.

Look at the good.  When tough times come, don’t throw the baby out with the bathwater. Take some time to look at the positive things in your life, the things you are grateful for, and remember the times you’ve come through tough times stronger and better in some way.

Make a list of bad decisions you’ve made.  If you’ve made some choices you aren’t thrilled with, it’s time to list them, forgive yourself, and let them go.  You can’t go backwards and undo what has been done, but you can purpose to forgive, learn from your experiences, and move on wiser and stronger.  This allows you to walk with hope in your pocket instead of rocks that weigh you down.

Reframe negative thoughts. When negative thoughts come, change them into positive ones. For example, if you tend to think “I’m such a failure” much of the time, reframe that thought to “I’m doing the best I can and I am hopeful for a great future!”  Retrain your brain to think positive instead of negative.

Purpose to succeed.  Where you attention goes, energy flows.  Focus on succeeding in every area of your life instead of allowing the past or present circumstances to keep you down. Being optimistic means believing the best about yourself, others, and your life!  Purpose to be a success!

A life devoted to hope, optimism, and future-mindedness will serve you well. You’ll feel happier and you’ll have more energy. Make a firm decision to be the kind of person that believes the best in each situation. Even when things seem very difficult and hope seems lost, dig deep to find it and remember your commitment to walking with it no matter what!  The only different between those that are optimistic and those that are not is a choice.  Choose optimism!

ACTION:

IN WHAT AREA OF YOUR LIFE HAVE YOU LOST HOPE?

WHAT CAN YOU DO IN ORDER TO START WALKING IN HOPE AND OPTIMISM TODAY?

 

from the Harvesting Happiness blog archives, originally published April 23, 2014