You may already know how to appear more confident, but what about more positive? Everyone deserves to live both a healthy and happy life, and it's actually proven that the more optimistic and productive things you can do, the better your life will be overall. Here are 5 ways to be more optimistic today!
Identify & Remove Toxicity
When you remove the negativity in your life, you're left with the positive and will feel a whole lot better instantly. It's common to have something in your life that brings down your mood. This can be a family, friend, job, class - really anything. Consider doing an evaluation of the people in your life and outside factors, and then cut out any toxic influences. Negative people and settings are contagious and can suck the life out of you, so be sure to choose your own happiness. Surround yourself with positive presences and you'll be on your way to being more optimistic yourself.
Exercise Often
Another easy way to be more optimistic is to exercise more often. This can be whatever activity you're into, whether it's walking, running, kickboxing, or yoga. Research shows that those who exercise regularly tend to be more optimistic since they are releasing stress hormones (cortisol) and increasing positive hormones (endorphins). With less tension, you'll have higher perceptions of happiness and improved mood just by adding more movement each day.
Restructure Your Thoughts
This trick is commonly used in behavioral therapy, but you can still do thought restructuring on your own without a specialist. You essentially have to recognize a negative or irrational thought (cognitive distortion) and replace it with an appropriate and optimistic thought. Therefore you're looking at things differently and in a more positive light. With time and practice, you can actually automatically do this without having to redirect the thought process and think about it.
Sleep More
Get your seven to eight hours in if you want to be more optimistic. Feeling tired, moody, and sluggish automatically leads to a bad day. This is mostly because of a lack of sleep and a process called rumination, which results when someone obsesses over issues or concerns and thinks everything in their life becomes bad. A clear mind and plenty of rest allows for less confusion, so don't magnify the negative - just get enough sleep.
Laugh A Little (Or A Lot)
Call up a funny friend or family member, watch a comedy - whatever gets you laughing - do it. Laughter actually releases hormones that decrease stress and increase the body’s ability to resist illness. Then when we feel better, we are happier and more optimistic in the end. Try starting each day with more humor to get you laughing more.
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-Gina
