Does positive thinking really work?
Positive thinking is just that-thinking positive rather than negative thoughts and being optimistic about the situations that come up in your life.

Positive thinking can be beneficial when you adopt it as a way of life, rather than just saying a few positive things to yourself in a time where you are struggling or could use the effects of positive thinking.

Identify patterns of negative self-thinking.
The first thing you will need to do if you want positive thinking to work for you is to identify habits you currently have of negative self-thinking. Some of the most common include:

• Pessimism. Pessimism is automatically assuming the worst in a given situation. For example, let's say you have plans to go hiking with friends, but there's a slight chance it will rain. A pessimist might think, "I know it's going to rain. I don't even know why we're going." It's easy to get caught in the habit of thinking pessimistically and automatically think the worst of a situation.


• Catastrophizing. This type of negative thinking is not only assuming the worst, but also assuming a horrible outcome will come of it. For example, let's say you got a flat tire on the way to work and will be late for a meeting. Catastrophizing the event would be saying, "Oh great. I'm going to be late to the meeting and I'll probably get fired and in this economy I'll never find a job again." This type of thinking can cause you to unnecessarily worry.


• Negative self-talk. This is perhaps the most damaging. Negative self-talk includes saying things to yourself like, "I want to try running a 5K but I'm too overweight," or "I will never be as smart as my sister." This kind of negative talk keeps you from accomplishing your dreams and trying new things and also robs you of your confidence.

Change your thought process.
Once you have identified harmful patterns of negative thinking, you can begin to replace them with positive ones. This will take work, but once you do it you will start to see how positive thinking really works.

• Think realistically. Take a step back to think about a situation realistically. So what if you're late to work and miss a meeting? Chances are good you are not going to get fired over that.
• Turn negative outcomes into positives. Take the example of raining on a hike. So what if it rains? Your day won't be ruined. Instead of hiking, you can all meet up for lunch somewhere. Or, you can go play tennis or go climbing at an indoor place. Make negative situations positive by looking at alternatives.
• Replace negative thoughts with positive ones. Every time you have a negative thought, don't allow it. Instead, replace it with a positive one. If you find yourself looking in the mirror and thinking, "My hair looks horrible today," find something else to compliment yourself on, whether it's how blue your eyes look or how much you like your outfit.

Positive thinking really does work, but it takes some practice.