Take a Break from the News.
What’s reported is mostly negative. The truth? Good exists in this world and we can forget that when steeped in daily feeds of humanity’s worst. When major events happen, you will know. Everywhere you go people will be talking about it; I can’t even pump gas anymore without being bombarded with “news” from a tiny TV screen embedded in the pump. Steeping yourself in the negativity soup that is “news” will foul your mood whether you are conscious of it or not.
Carry Positivity In Your Wallet.
I love that much of social media is loaded with positive, affirming quotes.
Collect your favorites from social media and positive books by people you admire.
Print them.
Use them as bookmarks.
Tape them to your car dashboard, around your computer screen and to your bathroom mirror.
Place them in your wallet so positive vibrations are at your fingertips all day long.
Do What Makes You Feel Good.
In your mind, body and spirit. For me, that’s wearing fun, colorful clothes, attending live comedy shows to get my laugh on, and sleeping well. Also, I enjoy walking, swimming, and dancing.
Southwest Florida, where I make my home, explodes with “Magaritaville” vibes. Every Sunday from 4 to 8 p.m. I dance at a local open deck restaurant. This is not a big night on the town. Rather, I arrive in the middle of the third set, jump on the dance floor and get my groove on. This is a dancing, not a hold-up-the-wall crowd. And that tribal energy is infectious, akin to the energy buzz shared with a concert crowd or at a stadium where your favorite sports teams play.
Make Hope-based Decisions.
Fear-based decisions constrict. Hope-based decisions expand. Our boss harasses us and we’d love to walk out and into a new life of passion where we are treated with humanity. That’s the hope. The fear: What about the bills? What will whoziwhatsit think? Were I to leave, am I disloyal to the person who gave me the break for this job?
So we stay.
Yet this so-called “safe” choice feels empty, a demagnetizing energy that thwarts advancement in the direction of our dreams.
Gravitate Toward Fun.
Decisions and life changes needn’t be excessively stressful. Turn down the drama on decision-making with this question: “Which among these choices feels most fun?” The fun one is likely the right one despite its packaging.
What do I mean by “fun?”
Does it feel uplifting? Energizing? Passionate? Do you anticipate the new circumstance even if you don’t yet know exactly what’s in store? That’s fun. It’s the opposite of dread, worry and sleepless nights.
Go On Adventures.
How do we live like we’re on an adventure all the time without boarding a plane or crossing a border?
Adventure is a mindset, not a destination. We engage it by taking each experience as it comes and remaining open to possibilities, like most of us do when we travel to the locales of our dreams.
Ever pass a road you see all the time and wonder, “where does that lead?” And so you take the road not knowing where it will go? That’s a concrete example of stepping into the adventure mindset, welcoming surprise, surrendering to now and letting go of control.
So that adventure becomes habit, cultivate it in everyday living as you would an anticipated vacation. Relate to each moment with:
Joy,
wonder,
enthusiasm,
appreciation,
experimentation,
exploration and
perpetual curiosity.
And you will magnetize positivity.
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