Every day thousands of thoughts go through your head. Some are negative and some are positive, depending on your personality and outlook on life. In pessimistic people, up to 80 percent of these thoughts are negative – in other words, they are associated with things like fear, anxiety, hatred, depression, and worry. And unsurprisingly, this makes them unhappy most of the time. In some people, on the other hand, these thoughts are mostly positive, and it is easy to see by the expression on their faces that they are relatively happy. That doesn’t mean they never have problems and are happy most of the time. We all have problems, but optimistic people know how to handle them and they don’t allow negativity to rule their lives. And as a result, they live much happier lives. So the key to living a longer, happier life is in controlling your thoughts.
Happy and optimistic people are not immune to negative thoughts. As with almost everyone, they continually pop up and try to work their way out and expel happy thoughts, but optimistic people make it as difficult as possible for them to get in. If you want to be happier, you have to learn to deal with negative thoughts, and as I’m sure you know, they come in many forms. Fear of losing your job, fear of getting sick or suffering from a serious illness, depression because life is so boring, anxiety because you can’t seem to do anything, anxiety because you are getting old, an old complaint against someone you once liked, they are just some examples of negative thoughts. If you take them too long, you will soon feel miserable and could end up sick. And of course, nobody really wants that.
The key to a longer, healthier and happier life is to get rid of these thoughts. You can do it for a short time by letting your mind go blank, in other words, without thinking about anything. This will help, but it won’t work for long. Soon thoughts of some sort will appear to fill the void, and if you’re not careful some, even most, will turn negative again. What you have to do as quickly as possible is to fill your mind with positive thoughts. To do this, you must have a reserve of them ready. To do this, you must start by thinking about all the good things in your life. Write them down. Some examples are:
- Your goals. Make sure you have some. They are particularly important for success in life. If you’ve never made a list, do it now.
- Your family. In particular, your spouse and children, but brothers and sister are also important.
- Your Health. This may be something that is driving your negative thoughts, but remember that it could always be worse. Think how lucky you are that it is as good as it is.
- Your friends. Think about their smiling faces and what they mean to you. This will always make you smile.
- All the things you have. Some examples are; a car, a beautiful house, a beautiful garden, pets and many other things
- Your talents and abilities. Think how lucky you are to have some of the talents and abilities that you have. Everyone has things that few people have.
- Your youth (assuming you have it). This may not sound like much to you, but ask an 80-year-old how important they are and they might listen to you.
- How lucky you are, in general.
These are your defense against negative thoughts, so think seriously about them and memorize the list you make. Deposit them in your memory “bank”. Then whenever you have a negative thought, make a withdrawal. Bring one of these positive thoughts to mind, and since it is impossible to think of two things at once, it will displace any negative thoughts that may be there. This may seem like a big problem every time you have a negative thought, but if you practice it for a while, it will soon become second nature, and you won’t have to think about it, it will be. automatic. And in the long run it will make you much happier.