DEALING WITH TOUGH NEGATIVE STUFF

Have you noticed how a flat tire, broken equipment, an interruption or two, an unfilled promise, a bad report, a broken relationship, or any number of other things can so easily throw us off in our day–or maybe for much longer than that? We go through times when it seems like the negative things just don’t stop coming at us. I am sure this is true for everyone to some degree or another. Sometimes the negatives and challenges in life come out of what seems like nowhere, and BAM, they hit and hit hard, one right after another. Sometimes a whole pile of negative things attacks us all at once. These negative situations whacking our brains and twisting our thinking are pretty maddening and often very distressing.

How we respond to the negative things and issues–what I refer to as the tough stuff–is a vital key to the happiness factor in our life. Being the open book that I am, I must confess that I do not always deal with things properly when negative things surface in my life.

At my core, I always try to take the negatives and turn them into positives. The key to turning negatives into positives is building a habit of this attitude–a consistent practice of immediately gathering the facts so I can begin to see the potential in the negative situation. I enjoy getting creative with the facts that I collect and discern. This helps me to shift my thinking. Because new information causes change, gathering more information helps me think clearly regarding the negatives, the situation, and its challenges.

Change in my mind causes changes in my heart. I have noticed that getting my head straight helps get my heart straight. When my head and heart align with my core beliefs, this makes all things well. The happiness factor increases exponentially in my life at this point. Ultimately, this builds momentum to continue tackling the tough stuff.

I develop a tougher, more confident strategy and way of living when I do this over and over in my life. Therefore, I have no fear of the negatives life throws at me. They are inevitable, and I will deal with them with the right attitude.