10 Amazing Benefits Of Being Optimistic

When it comes to the angle on how you perceive the world, studies have shown that being more optimistic can dramatically improve the quality of your life.

Optimism is simply looking at adversity in a positive light.

Taking the time to see things from a different perspective and shining a light on the positive can be extremely beneficial in all areas of your life.

Here are just a few ways on how being optimistic can help you in your daily routine:

1. Optimism promotes happiness.
2. It will help you keep your emotions in check.
3. Research into optimism shows it can actually increase your lifespan.
4. Being optimistic can reduce the level of stress you experience during unexpected events.
5. Optimism provides you with a stronger and more solid reason to live life.
6. Optimistic people are more proactive, rather than being reactive.
7. It provides you with an empowering way to handle failure in a constructive manner.
8. It is an essential trait that is common amongst successful people
9. It increases your productivity and creativity.
10. Optimism provides you with a way to deal with life in a balanced manner because it provides you the reframing tools to deal with negative thoughts that inevitably pop up during the day.

These are just ten of the amazing benefits of being more optimistic.

There are many more attributes to taking a more positive approach to the things that life throws your way. People who tend to see the good in things rather than the bad are typically healthier as it improves both your psychological and physiological well-being.

When you are faced with adversity, the way that you approach the situation is extremely important.

Those who take a negative approach tend to live in a world that is "out to get them." These people often fail to see the bigger picture, which can have a negative impact on their life.

Those who face adversity with a positive attitude tend to have a happier life simply because they choose to see the light at the end of the tunnel. When life throws something at them, they look for the positives that can come out of it and move on towards a future that looks much brighter.

You will continually be challenged by difficult life circumstances, that is just a fact of life.

However, the next time you have negative thoughts, take a moment to think about how this negative experience could actually be a good thing. What's good can you gain here? What precious lessons can you learn from it?

Ask yourself power questions so that you take action and keep moving forward. This will benefit your entire well-being and help you experience a more fulfilling life.

http://ezinearticles.com/?10-Amazing-Benefits-Of-Being-Optimistic&id=9540739

Will Being Optimistic Change Our Brains?

Despite the modern technology and massive breakthroughs in scientific research, our brain remains a secretive area of study.

For decades, we have been fascinated by this unsolved mystery and we are again and again blown away by the powers of our minds.

From positive psychology to medical surgery, from secondary school biology lessons to university neuroscience lectures, we have all wanted to figure out how our brains miraculously work.

Yes, we've gained so much more insights, knowledge and secrets about this little machine. However, such major progress is still a scratch from the surface.

Take "being optimistic" for example.

Some people seem to be naturally more optimistic than others even in the toughest period of times. Does that mean their brains are different from most?

It is like the classic "what came first, the chick or the egg?" question. Does a naturally optimistic outlook on life change our brain, OR is there some magical buttons in our brain that make us more optimistic?

Throughout history, humans have consistently demonstrated the quality of optimism even when facing adversity. (Think of Viktor Frankl, Nelson Mandela, Helen Keller, Mahatma Gandhi, Jesse Owens, Stephen Hawking, Malala Yousafzai etc.)

You will find tens of thousands of examples where people in the worst circumstances can still find something happy about or grateful for.

The question is, how does optimism affect the brain?

Recently new insights from brain imaging have shown how just thinking positively or being optimistic about a situation can affect different areas of the brain.

The images revealed that when participants in the study daydreamed about future positive events, there were two areas of the brain that were more strongly activated than when they were thinking about negative ones.

The areas of the brain that were more strongly activated were the right amygdala and the RACC (rostral anterior cingulated cortex). People who had a more strongly activated RACC also scored higher on an optimism questionnaire.

Now the question becomes, Is Optimism Truly Beneficial?

Studies have shown that the RACC actually may help us imagine events that may occur in the future by using the reactions we had in past events. This can help us make better decisions by not repeating some of the mistakes we may have made in the past.

In addition, the RACC may work with the emotional center of the brain, the amygdala, to help downplay negative emotions.

This could mean that optimism may not just make us happier in both the long and short-term, but it may also help us to achieve the goals we set for ourselves. While there could be some risks with being overly optimistic, accepting negative predictions can impair your life.

So what's the short conclusion we can draw? A healthy dose of optimism daily will make you go further.

The next time you are thinking about something, try to see it in a positive light, reframe the situation in a more empowering way, and things may as well become better in reality.

http://ezinearticles.com/?Will-Being-Optimistic-Change-Our-Brains?&id=9540724

The Importance of Leading by Example

How do you impact your followers in a positive light continuously? You allow them to view you in a constant positive light at all times. A good leader walks as he or she talks. This is leading by example. Without leading by example one can greatly diminish their leadership vision. Followers need to see you exuding what you have instilled in them. They need to see you practice what you preach. Leadership can be summed up into three categories; influence, inspiration and motivation. Below I will go into detail regarding these categories and how they help a leader to lead by example.

Leading is measured by one's influence. It's of importance to set high goals for those who you are leading. This allows them to see room for growth under your leadership. It also affords you the opportunity to model the expected qualities and behavior that will help  reach the goals that have been set forth. Here is where you influence them by your hard work and dedication. Your constant poise and respect for everyone around you. Your actions are being watched at all times-and what you allow your followers to see affects how they behave significantly.

Inspiration and motivation ignite fire within individuals like nothing else. It allows a leader to have a baton to pass from follower to follower to reach the common finish line. If your followers have no fire it can be because they see no fire in their leader. A leader has to set an example of inspiration and motivation that sparks others to want to be on board, and work at their top potential. Inspiration and motivation goes past just pep talks, it goes forth in behavior. A leader has to inspire and motivate others via their personal behavior. Their personal behavior sets the tone for the appropriate energy which all followers need to exude. Inspiration and motivation are the key elements to get others going in a positive light, and as a leader that light starts with you.

Leading by example allows you to continuously impact your followers in a positive light. How you behave can either help your vision as a leader or diminish it negatively. The example you set molds the type of followers you have behind you. Many are looking to you for inspiration and motivation to be all they can be. This helps to stress the importance of always modeling the expected qualities and behaviors.

http://ezinearticles.com/?The-Importance-of-Leading-by-Example&id=9451419

Do We Find Happiness or Does Happiness Find Us?

Plus: Research that reveals who does it best and why.

Relationship guru Maggie Scarf relates a story about a memorable party she and her husband once gave. As she tells it, a somewhat plastered guest overturned a punch bowl, which landed in the leek soup. Two couples left with the wrong spouses, several noisy quarrels broke out, and Scarf herself seriously considered leaving and staying at the neighbours’ for the night, since none of the guests would have noticed anyway.

After all the guests had finally departed, Scarf and her husband stood and looked at the river of litter and debris that remained. Their gaze met and Scarf opened her mouth to say something like, “I wish I were dead,” or “Can’t we move to Alaska?” But her husband spoke first: “Wasn’t that the best party, ever? Everyone had a wonderful time!”

Scarf recounted this story in a New Republic article about happiness and how one goes about getting it—an article prompted by a conversation with her then-teenage daughter, Susie. Like most parents who have run out of answers, Scarf quoted someone else as final authority. In this case, she took refuge in the words of psychoanalyst and philosopher Viktor Frankl, who said that happiness cannot be pursued, it must ensue.

Susie was not impressed. She said she couldn’t buy into such a point of view because it would be buying into a passive way of life. Scarf countered with another quote, this one from Nathaniel Hawthorne:

“Happiness is like a butterfly, which, if you chase after it, will elude you. If, however, you sit quietly and wait, it will come and light upon your shoulder.”

But Susie wasn't impressed by Hawthorne’s wisdom, either. She suggested that instead of waiting for the butterfly to land on her head, she would pick up a butterfly net and go after it.

While I tend to agree with Susie, Hawthorne does have a point: The root of the word happiness means “chance” or “good luck.” On these terms, the butterfly might land or it might not, and nothing you or I can do will increase the odds of either happening. Even so, I’m unwilling to sit idly by waiting for the best things in life to happen to come my way.

Maybe our fevered pursuit of happiness sometimes sets the wrong goal or employs the wrong tactics. But my own view is that butterflies are more likely to land on our shoulders if we put ourselves in the places where the butterflies happen to be. The chance of happiness favors those who make themselves available to it.

That said, we shouldn’t dismiss too quickly Maggie Scarf’s story about how her reaction to the party and the punch bowl differed from her husband’s. Research cited in the current issue of Scientific American Mind finds that two groups of people can look at the same evidence and come away with remarkably different emotional reactions. In this case, the subjects of the study—some of them young adults aged 18 to 25; the others older adults age 60 and above—were asked to watch videos about skin cancer, which contained disturbing images of scars and scenes of surgery. Special gaze-tracking instruments showed that the older adults focused significantly less on the disturbing images in the videos than younger adults did. Similar studies have corroborated the tendency of older people to focus more on the positive aspects of experiences—and to remember experiences in a more positive light—than younger people.

While this dynamic appears generally to be true when comparing older adults to younger adults, the same diversity of perspective can be found among people of similar ages. Put simply, we tend to see what we’re looking for—or what we want to see.

In terms of the butterfly analogy, we are more likely to find butterflies if we are running around with a net looking for them. (Or, as I like to say, life will always give you sufficient evidence to convict it of whatever you charge it with.)

This is not to suggest that we should try to disguise or deny bad things when they happen: When something terrible happens, it’s terrible. But even in the most difficult situations, we can inevitably find good things to acknowledge, as well. It won’t make the bad things go way, but focusing on the good that remains can give us courage and comfort. Focusing on the good things in our lives is a sure way to increase our experience of happiness.

www.psychologytoday.com/blog/the-search-meaning/201510/do-we-find-happiness-or-does-happiness-find-us

9 Toxic Behaviours That Will Kill Your Soul

Nobody is perfect, right. As much as we strive to live a pure and simple life, sometimes we slip and let toxicity into our lives. It actually just kinda sneaks in before we have a chance to check it at the door. When we do realize we are behaving poorly, it’s already too late. Not too late to change it, but too late to have prevented it in the first place.

If you are into the Law of Attraction you’ll know that these behaviours stop manifestations in their tracks and can completely block what you want to attract in life.

What is Toxic Bahaviour

What exactly is a toxic behaviour and how can it affect us? I’ve only listed 9 but I’m sure there are hundreds of things we do that suck the life out of us. When we recognize some of these behaviours, it is quite easy to change them. Simply stop doing them. Easier said than done? Not really. When you know what it’s doing to your soul, wouldn’t you want it to stop immediately anyway? I know I would.

Let’s have a quick look at what some of these toxic behaviours are and without judging anyone, I’m sure you can recognize yourself in some of these. I know I’m guilty of one or two. Listed in no particular order, here they are.

Gossiping.

We all do it. Some of us more than others. We talk about the girl next door or the new guy that just started working here. We talk about how the Brown’s just split up and “Did you hear why they separated?” Did you know that when we talk about people it shows an insecurity or jealousy in us? Boom. Where are you lacking in your life that you feel the need to cut down someone else’s life? Have a think about that for a moment.

Lying.

Ok this is just plain terrible. One thing I can honestly say I don’t do. Not even white lies. There’s no point or purpose to this. Who are you lying to and why? It doesn’t even make any sense to do this and I still don’t understand why so many people still lie. You think the truth hurts, check out a lie. Nothing hurts more than that.

Worrying about things that haven’t happened yet.

Let me repeat that if I may. Things that haven’t happened yet. Why would you waste your time and energy worrying about something that hasn’t even happened? I know a lot of us play out a situation in our head and our first instinct is to be play it out with a bad ending. Why do we do that? I’ve done this one myself once or twice. Worry is a natural emotion/feeling. It’s up to you to control it and stop it in its tracks before it spirals out of control. That’s when the stress kicks in and our blood pressure rises. No need for all this now, is there?

Holding a grudge.

There’s an old saying “holding a grudge is like drinking poison and expecting the other person to die”. Think about that for a sec. The poison you are drinking is the grudge. You are swallowing every drop and you are mad and pissed off to a point of no return. Expecting the other person to die? Honestly they could care less what you think. Hell they probably aren’t even thinking about you anyway. So why on earth are you wasting your time and energy grudging on someone? Go pick some flowers and bring them to a nursing home. Really. Spend time doing happy things. Not brewing and stewing over silly things.

Jealousy.

The girls in the magazine are beautiful. Sally has a beautiful body. Jimmy has a nice car. The Whites just bought a brand new house.  With every turn, someone somewhere has something better or nicer than we do. Our first reaction is jealousy. There is no need to be jealous really. We all have something special, unique and beautiful inside of us. We also all have something that someone else wishes they had. Just be grateful for who you are and what you have. You are perfect and blessed exactly the way you are. Embrace it.

You’ve already lived the past.

Oh how we love to hang on to what happened 5, 10 or even 25 years ago. We still go on and on about it to whoever will listen. Why shouldn’t we? Who we are today is because of what happened to us yesterday. Well, yes, you’re right. Sort of. Who we are today is the result of the way we chose to handle the past. We didn’t all have silver spoons in our mouths. Some of us were dealt really shitty hands. It is what it is. Be done with it. No one wants to hear it, really. Just tell us something happy and joyful. That’s all we want to hear now.

I love me.

Watch how you talk to yourself. You are listening. Make sure your self-talk is loving, kind, compassionate, gentle, caring and supportive. Talking bad about yourself to yourself is probably the worst thing you can do. Treat yourself in a totally loving and positive manner. When you do this, you will be able to see how awesome you are and how much more awesome you will become.

Woe is me.

Always the victim never the victor. Sad things keep happening to you and you can’t wait to tell the next person you see. The more you talk about it, the more depressed you get and the more terrible things keep happening to you. You think your life is bad? Go hang out in a city where they just had a devastating earthquake or tsunami. Stop whining. We’re getting sick of listening to it and there will come a point where no one will want to be around you. How lonely will that be?

Negative Nancy.

We are really truly sad for you and wish, just once, you could see something in a positive light. Not everything is bad. Honest. Try to find the good in things and when you do you will see that more good things will show up in your life. It’s a universal law. It has to be. You are sucking the life out of us and we don’t want to hang around you anymore.

This list covers many things that we all do almost on a daily basis. Next time you catch yourself doing any of these, stop it. Immediately. Turn it around and tell yourself that your soul is beautiful and deserves only loving, kind and caring thoughts. Once you get into this habit, in no time you will see that these behaviours will become a thing of the past and your soul will illuminate beauty.

http://www.stevenaitchison.co.uk/blog/9-toxic-behaviours-that-will-kill-your-soul