Healthy Tips: Power of Positivity

Hi, I'm Collette Carter, director of the Owensboro Health Healthpark. Did you know that seeing things in a positive way can be good for you? Positivity is defined as seeing things in a positive light instead of a negative one.

There's lots of health research out there that proves the benefits of being positive. Being positive can increase self-esteem, increase productivity, lower our stress, and also strengthen our relationships. Being positive can also lower our risk for illnesses and diseases like heart disease. 

Now, I'm not saying that negative feelings and things don't occur. We all know that life happens. What I am suggesting is that we have a choice of how to respond what happens to us. When I think of positivity, I think of lessons learned in Stephen Covey's, Seven Habits of Highly Effective People.

Habit number one is to be proactive. And in this learning is a video that really focuses on how we have the ability to "choose our own weather". We really do have the ability to choose whether to be proactive or reactive to the things that occur to us. Everyone can learn to be more positive with self-awareness and practice. 

Here are some tips you can use to increase your positivity.

1. Have positive self-talk and don't let the negative thoughts get the best of you. 
2. Express gratitude. Think daily of what you're grateful for. Maybe each morning write down one gratitude and place it in a box or jar to reference later. 
3. Smile more and share your smile with others. It's contagious. 
4. Practice mindfulness every day. Be aware of your surroundings and experiences and do something you enjoy and find your calm. 
5. Get enough sleep, eat nutritious foods, and be physically active. 
6. Recognize your triggers for negativity. Surround yourself with people and circumstances that support building relationships. Learn to have forgiveness with grace, with yourself, and others. 
7. Set goals that support your purpose, integrity, and values. Stay focused and redirect when things get you off track from achieving these goals.

If you feel like trying to do several practices at once is way too much, just choose one new practice to increase your positivity. Once you master this as a habit, then you can add to the practice with other helpful tips. You might also consider looking for resources that help you increase your positivity.

CredibleMind is a great mental health platform that's available to you by Owensboro Health and RiverValley Behavioral Health that has lots of videos, resources, articles and things that you can use to create ways to increase your positivity.

So being positive again takes practice and mindfulness. And I will leave you with this one thought and quote from Norman Vincent Peale, "When you change your thoughts, you change your world." For more information on this topic or other topics, contact the Healthpark at 270-688-5433.