Positive

I'm not naturally optimistic. I'm a worrier and I tend to plan for the worst. That's just part of who I am.
I decided to make the effort to be a more positive person after last semester. It was arguably the most difficult time I'd ever experienced and I was tired of being sad, tired of being angry and tired of thinking my future was bleak.
So I started using my tumblr as a place to encourage others and myself. I changed my view of things and started believing in myself. I stopped counting grievances and started counting blessings.
There are so many reasons to stay positive, but the best thing that has come out of it for me has been the responses from others. When I chose to wallow in my sadness, I felt guilty whenever anyone encouraged me or supported me. Now, I feel great. People like happy people, and that's just a fact. I've met more people and felt better about my friendships since starting to be more positive.
Before I go, here are a few things that I do to stay positive. Some of them are silly, but all of them work.

1. Keep a gratitude journal. This is something I've done in the past, and have decided I need to start again. Writing down things you're grateful for will help you reframe and focus on the positive.
Fly Journal from Papaya

2. Above is a video of "Positive" from Legally Blonde the musical. This song gets stuck in my head all of the time. My advice to go with this song is to be silly. Being positive is FUN. If you're having a hard time--- fake it. You'll start to feel better when you decide to be happy, trust me. "Cheer-up, chin-up, It's time to bring a happy attitude" If nothing else works, try listening to show tunes. They always cheer me up :)



3. Help someone. This is an obvious one. Helping other people makes you feel happy. Volunteer with something you're passionate about. Help a friend get through a rough day. Just be there for someone. It will make you feel incredible.

4. Treat yourself. My great aunt once took me to get a mani/pedi after a hard day. She told me that I deserved to be happy and needed something nice. Since then, I've always remembered to take care of myself and spend a little time and money on making a bad day a little brighter. It doesn't have to be a mani/pedi by any means, but go ahead and treat yourself to something. You deserve it :)

5. Change your words. I've found that when I stop cursing and saying "that sucks" or other negative things all the time, I feel better. There are so many great words out there, why use
the same tired swear words? Most of them are really negative, anyway. I'm not saying that you have to stop cursing all together, I'm just saying that when you choose to use more positive words, your actions and attitudes will follow suit.

6. Celebrate. Our society tends to think that it's narcissistic to want to celebrate our successes. I say it's necessary. Make holidays out of everything you can, and celebrate the successes of all of your friends. If you do something awesome, you should enjoy it. It doesn't have to be expensive or extravagant, it just has to be fun.  We don't celebrate enough, in my opinion.

How do you stay positive? Leave a comment with more ideas, I'd love to hear them :)