You'll have to admit that you've probably poked fun at that one person in your group who always tries to see the good in everything. Their optimism is alluring, but it can seem unrealistic when you're used to being practical and you're used to being a little more cynical about your life's progress. But what's the use of thinking the worst of your life and its direction? If you've already achieved your goals and your dreams, there's really no need to change the way you think. But if you're not happy and you're not where you want to be, maybe a change of mind is in order.



Always Look on the Bright Side

When you first try to look at the bright side of your days, it might seem a little silly. You may be so used to looking for flaws in things that to do otherwise seems a little insane. But there are ways to slowly ease your way into optimism. The first thing you can do is to write down every negative thought you have. When you begin, you might notice that you are doing this quite frequently, and that's okay. There's no judgment in this exercise; you just want to begin to notice what direction your thinking is heading during more times of the day.

After a few days of this, take some time to look over your notes. There will probably be some things you think that are repeated again and again. Highlight these because you will want to figure out a new way to look at this particular situation. Reverse the phrase completely to see how that sounds to you. For example, if you find that you were thinking, "My job is so boring" most of the time, try changing the thought to, "I need more challenges in my work." While this doesn't negate the fact that your job may not be as exciting as you want it to be, it also gives you a clear direction as to what you can do about it, ask your boss for more challenging work. Instead of simply complaining about what is wrong with your situation, optimism can teach you to look for solutions.

Practicing Optimism with Strangers

One of the more difficult parts for some people is bringing this new thinking out into the open. While optimism is easy to practice on your own, when you're faced with someone who isn't naturally 'half glass full,' you can have some discomfort sticking with your new though processes. To get your feet wet, try talking to complete strangers about what a lovely day it is. And if it's raining, find a way to make the rain a good thing to talk about. You might just inspire someone else to see things your way.

Compliment people who you see on the street when you see things they are wearing that are lovely. Everyone likes to hear something positive about themselves and you'll probably inspire someone to return the favor.

Optimism is easy to practice and it certainly makes life a lot less boring. When you make a game of seeing how great your life is instead of trying to find everything that's wrong, you might find out that you already have the perfect life.