How To Stay Positive In Difficult Times

With everything that is happening in the world, it can be challenging to remain positive and move forward.

It’s easy to be positive when things are going great. It’s much more difficult to manage our attitude and outlook when things are not so great; especially when we’re in today’s circumstances that are more difficult and concerning.

Regardless of who you are, what you do, or how successful you are, you will have challenges.

Our biggest challenge is to stay positive and productive regardless of the circumstances. When we're positive, we're more resourceful, more creative, more productive.  Besides, it just feels better! 

Here are 5 things we can do to stay positive in difficult times.

1. Keep The Perspective

It’s easy to feel overwhelmed when problems arise. We tend to feel crushed by them. We tend to exaggerate the problem, turning a minor issue into a huge one. When we’re in the middle of a problem, it’s important to keep it in perspective. We must remember to look at the big picture. We shouldn’t let problems take on a magnitude greater than what they are. Even in our most difficult times, there are still positive things happening in our lives. It helps to remember that we’ve gotten through issues and challenges in the past, and we will get through this one too. Difficulties are a part of life.

2. Let’s Not Beat Ourselves Up

Beat ourselves up is often what we do! What good comes from chastising ourselves or wallowing in self-pity? If we maintain a “guilt free” approach to our setbacks, it will allow us to respond with your best self. Our thinking will be clear, we will have more energy and see possible solutions that are just not visible when we are in a “blame and shame” mentality. We can’t change the past, but we can learn from it.

3. Focus On What We Can Control

We must define our ideal outcome as we work through our challenges. It’s equally important to know what we can and can’t control. We don’t control the outcomes. While knowing what ideal outcome we desire is important, we need to focus our energy on the things we can control — such as our actions. If we put too much emphasis on the outcome it can become paralyzing.

4. Start & End Each Day With Gratitude

Whatever we focus on, whatever we think about, gets magnified. Be intentional about magnifying positive thoughts. Have a daily routine activity to trigger your gratitude. Keep a gratitude journal. It’s important that you fill your mind with positive and pleasant thoughts, especially in difficult times.

5. Connection To Our Vision And Goals

When we are in the middle of problems and feeling stressed, we tend to focus on the short term. In these times, it’s not difficult to lose track of our dreams and aspirations. We need to force ourselves to think about a better future. We can’t wait until we feel like engaging with our goals and this won’t happen when we are in the middle of some serious challenge. We need to remember that the problems we are currently experiencing are temporary, and that they will not hold us back from our destiny.

While we all face challenges, learning to stay positive in the midst of problems will position us for not only a faster, more productive recovery, but also a more joy filled life.