We all know that the most successful people are the ones who never give up. But in order for us to keep going— to make progress, to make money, to make a difference— we need to stay uplifted. In this post and video Michelle shares four tactics for keeping a positive mindset. Not only will this keep your business running at it’s best, but has the added bonus of making life happier too!
As creative business owners, we face a lot of challenges. We’re out there experimenting in ways that most people don’t dare. As a result, we need to be stronger than most. We all know that the most successful people are the ones who never give up. But in order for us to keep going— to make progress, to make money, to make a difference— we need to stay positive. It’s not one of the ways. It’s the only way to be resilient.
In this video, I’ll be sharing four tactics that I use to keep a positive mindset. These keep my business running at it’s best, but also has the added bonus of making life happier too!
Surround yourself with good examples and good people
Motivational speaker Jim Rohn so wisely said that we are the average of the five people we spend the most time with. So take a really good look at the people that you are most in contact with. Are they complainers? Is there always a new problem? Do they think everyone is out to get them?
Even if you don’t share the same feelings, it is our human nature to take on the qualities of people that we spend a lot of time with. Without even realizing it, you may have picked up bad habits and a negative way of thinking, just because of who you are around. This doesn’t mean that you need to go on a witch hunt and sever all of your relationships, but instead, start to bring new, positive influences into your life. And thanks to the online world that we live in, these don’t even have to be people in real life.
If you’re like me, and you work from home, you’re not seeing a lot of people, period. In fact, I often make the joke that if Jim Rohn’s quote is true, that I am basically a cat because my kitties are the ones who I spend the most amount of time with. But in all seriousness, I make sure that the people I follow are of the highest caliber.
Whether it’s through listening to a podcast, or watching a YouTube video, or reading a book, I am constantly feeding my brain messages of positivity. I only listen to people who are forward-thinking, optimistic and who are on a mission to make our world a better place. Their voices and their messages seep into my subconscious and in turn, give me a more positive outlook.
For example, when I am getting overwhelmed, I hear the voice of author Gary Keller, who wrote “The One Thing”. And I remind myself that I don’t need to be doing a million things, I just need to choose one— the most significant. The one that’s going to make an impact. When I’m at the gym, I hear the voice of fitness guru and business coach, Chalene Johnson. I actually imagine that she’s there doing my workouts with me. I think, what she say if she saw me flaking out on those last two reps, or hopping off of the treadmill before my run was complete?
These are the voices we need in our ears, and the messages that we need to be programmed into our minds. When you are exposing yourself to positive people, those nay-sayers and negative people in your life will either fade into the background or have the tables turned on them and start to be inspired by you and your joyful outlook.
Practice self-care
There’s a stigma that taking care of ourselves is selfish, which is why most of us don’t do it. It’s much nobler to be the person who is stressed, frazzled, or burnt out. But when we are in that state of total exhaustion, we are of no use to anyone else, and plus, it just doesn’t feel good. It feels even worse when you realize that nobody is going to come to save you from this misery you’ve created. If you want the respect of others and you want to feel happy, that has to come from within. You have to care enough about yourself to make the time and space for what you need.
Just like a car can’t run without gas, and you can’t make a recipe without ingredients, we can’t operate without filling ourselves up with the things that keep us feeling whole, uplifted and motivated. This goes beyond the basic human necessities like food and sleep and love. Those are the bare minimum, and I know that some of us aren’t even getting enough of those, so start with that. But then add a few more things to your list.
Take time for yourself to exercise, meditate, read a book, watch a tv show that nobody else in your house has any interest in, to blow dry your hair, or get an extra hour of sleep. Whatever fills you up and gives you confidence: do that. Those are the things that you need to make time for.
When you look and feel your best, you show up to life at a whole new level. You begin to feel capable to take on more, and best of all, you will be kinder, you’ll have more patience, and you will have more love to share. And that is the opposite of selfish.
Do not expose yourself to negativity
This tip goes hand in hand with tip #1, which is to surround yourself with positivity. As I mentioned, the more uplifting people and experiences you add to your life, the less time you will have for negativity, and it will organically begin to disappear. But if you are serious about becoming a happier person and staying uplifted, there are some additional steps you can actively take to rid yourself of the people and things that are bringing you down.
The first and easiest thing to do is audit your social media. Look at the images in your Instagram feed and the types of comments that you’re being exposed to when you sign onto Facebook. As you scroll through, ask yourself if what you’re seeing is making you feel good or bad. I’ve gotten ruthless about what I allow myself to see, and have no qualms about unfollowing or hiding stories that don’t inspire, uplift or motivate me. If what you’re seeing doesn’t make you feel amazing, get rid of it.
Another place where negativity creeps into our lives is through the media we consume. Reading the news, listening to music with sad lyrics, and binge-watching tv shows with horrific storylines is a surefire way to make yourself feel disgusted, discouraged and depressed.
I’ve had people say to me, “you know Michelle, you can’t live in a bubble. It’s not all rainbows and unicorns.” To that, I say, I understand that life brings challenges, but exposing myself to problems that I can’t fix, or fictitious characters that I can’t save, will not make challenges in my life any easier to overcome.
I’ll deal with problems that arise when they arise. But in the meantime, I will live in my world of rainbows and unicorns because that means I get to spend the majority of my life feeling happy, thank you very much. Living in a place of positivity positions us to help more people, and to spread that feeling of joy. If we are feeling broken and sad, how is that going to empower us to help others make positive changes? Stop watching sad stuff, stop listening to depressing stories, and seek entertainment that will inspire you to create the kind of world that you want to live in.
Believe that everything is working in your favor
I saved this tip for last because it is the most powerful. It’s also the thing that the majority of people refuse to do. Most of us have been conditioned to expect the worst. We’ve let our fear of disappointment run so high, that we don’t allow ourselves to dream big or go after the things we want. And this leads to so many missed opportunities. It’s time to drop the belief that life is hard, and that nothing will work, and that everyone is out to get you. That is not the way to live. It’s not only limiting, but it’s sad. I know that this is hard for some of you to hear, but it’s also freeing.
What if you turned those thoughts around and began to believe that everything that you want or desire would work out in your favor? That it wouldn’t be that hard and that people and resources would be showing up left and right to support you and make your dreams into a reality? Crazy? You might think so, but this is how I’ve started living my life, and so far it has only caused it to improve.
I no longer look at problems the same way. They are opportunities that help me to grow and to allow me to get closer to my goals. I don’t view failures as a reflection of something I did wrong, but an indication that I’m growing. Don’t fall into the trap of thinking that one circumstance determines the outcome of what you want.
Allow yourself to believe in the big picture, even when you can’t see it yet. By reframing these negative thoughts into positives, we are able to keep going, to go after more of what we want, and to feel more confident. It’s that simple. Change your perspective, change your outcome. You can’t go south if you’re walking north.
If you’ve never tried this way of thinking, you won’t believe it until you do. So give it a shot. Try it for just one hour and see how you feel at the end of it. Set the desired outcome, and then believe that everything that happens in that hour is working towards making it a reality. Your wish may not materialize at the end of that hour (especially if you wished for something big like $1 million dollars) but if you continue this way of positive thinking, you will begin to reflect back and find indicators of good working in your life.
As a rule of thumb, the more you believe that your outcome is possible, the faster and easier it will show up in your life. Living positively is not something that happens to us. It’s a choice. And that is awesome because you have the power to make your life as good as you want it to be.
If this post has inspired you to change your life for the better, give me a big heck yes in the comments, and share this video with a family member or friend would benefit from hearing these tips. You will be giving them the gift of a mindset that can truly turn their life around.
No matter what’s going on in your life and business right now, always remember that you have everything you need to do everything that you want to do.
