Be grateful for what is right. Even if your day is going terrible, everything seems to be going wrong, there are things that have gone right. Write down the things you are most grateful for and feel the joy those things bring to your life. It can be something as small as having good tires on your car, but be grateful that they don't need replacing. This helps you focus on the positive.

Find the silver lining. Sometimes events that look like disaster can really turn out to be positive lessons in the end. There is always opportunity in change and looking for the silver lining in a stormy cloud can bring on some great new opportunities in your life.
Focus on the main event. Where are you headed in life? Do you have a goal to reach? By focusing your efforts on the steps to reach your goal, even if it's just tiny steps each and every day, your focus can remain on moving forward. This can help you deal with little things that arise because your attention has settled on the future and how to overcome bigger hurdles.

It's always darkest before dawn. If you can think about your challenges as being a necessary step to make a breakthrough in your life, it will make it easier for you to focus on the positives of the outcome.

Take a break. It's ok to forget about your problems and just go out and do something fun. Find some positive influence in your life with family or friends and let your mind relax from the stresses of your challenges for a while. Sometimes we get so wrapped up in what's going on at the moment that we forget how strong and talented we really are. Stepping away for a while will refresh you and you might just find that things aren't as terrible as they first seemed.

Pay attention to your body language. If you find yourself unable to concentrate because you are frustrated and can't see the positive in a situation, take a breath, a deep one. Don't respond to the situation until you are calm and you have had time to review the entire situation. If you can't calm yourself down so logical thoughts can readily come to mind, you may want to find a stress relieving activity to do for five or ten minutes to help you refocus your attention and become more proactive.

Dislike the message, not the messenger. Maintaining a positive view of the people around you can be difficult, but remember that during your darkest days, there are others who care about you and are there to help. You may not like the message you hear, but that doesn't mean you dislike the actual person. Look for the positive content in the message, don't reject it just for spite and ignore that which is negative or unhelpful.

Negativity radiates outward. Just as expecting the worst in people will most certainly come true, the same is true of yourself. If you always have negative emotions and body language, people around you will react to you even if you don't mean for them to see your negativity. Spend time focusing on accepting and loving yourself. Remind yourself of your unique talents and knowledge and let those positive vibes flow through you each day.

Realizing early that you can't please everyone and that the negative challenges in your life are just ways to let you climb higher will help you keep your glass at least half full all the time. Hang in there, challenges pass and new experiences, both positive and negative are just around the corner.