Is Positive Thinking Undermining Our Health?

Michael Stanclift, N.D. 
Naturopathic Doctor
Posted: 05/07/2014 11:05 am EDT Updated: 05/07/2014 11:59 am EDT
Article from http://www.huffingtonpost.com/

When it comes to diseases and health, we're obsessed with the physical side of things. We have to admit, scapegoats are convenient. If we can blame a specific bacteria, virus, chemical, or food for causing our illness, we're happy to get on board with the treatments, even lifestyle changes.

But when it comes to dealing with "our issues" (unpleasant emotions, events, or thoughts) many of us believe we should just sweep that under the rug and remain positive. "Keep calm and carry on," right? Unfortunately, this kind of attitude can have terrible consequences on our health.

Don't get me wrong. I'm not advocating that we express every frustrating, depressing, or anxious thought the moment it passes through our minds, far from it. Situations don't allow it, and it could bite us. But we need to acknowledge those distressing feeling in our minds and make a sincere effort to explore them, for the sake of our health. So called "positive thinking" for the sake of appearing "positive" isn't helpful. All those thoughts and emotions we sweep under the rug? They're still there. And if we continue to ignore them, they will find ways to remind us.

I see the effects of emotional suppression with patients regularly (and have experienced it myself). Many times my patients have had a thorough workup. Their blood tests and medical imaging might show some abnormalities, but still nobody is quite sure why they're having symptoms. If they have a diagnosis (they often don't), little effort has been put into treating them. Or their medications "aren't working." Sometimes these patients are written off, told "it's all in their head."

When any patient comes in, I need to get the basic history of their illness, but we can't just stop there and call it a day. I want to know the situational context of their illness as well.

Most patients are comfortable sharing their physical symptomology, but when questions get too personal, answers don't come as quick and easy. A patients' subtle signals can tell me there's more than meets the eye. It's tricky territory, but the exploration of tough questions is when healing occurs.

An Example: A 50-year-old woman with digestive problems and high blood pressure.

When Suzie* came in to see me, she reminded me of a younger version of my grandmother. She was cheerful, warm, and talkative. Without too much digging, she told me she had painful digestion, bloating, and some other (not so nice) symptoms daily for over 20 years. In addition, her blood pressure was elevated, and she regularly suffered from migraines. After visiting her primary care doc, she'd been given two diagnoses: irritable bowel syndrome (IBS), and hypertension.

She came away from all this with a prescription for anti-depressants and a medication to lower her blood pressure. She had a mild decrease in her blood pressure, but reported feeling more fatigue and emotional dullness since starting her medications. She wanted to know what else could be done.

At our first visit we addressed her physical symptoms. It was clear emotions were a component, but we needed to build rapport before we went there.

At her next visit, Suzie's IBS symptoms were significantly improved. This helped build rapport and she opened up. She revealed the trauma of her past and the stressful situations she was dealing with. She had been putting up an appearance of "being okay," even agreeable, with many things she was not okay with for a long time. Over time, those buried feelings took their toll on her health.

Together, we worked using some mind-body therapies (breathing exercises, and meditations) and her healing took off! For the first time in DECADES her daily digestive symptoms were gone, once for a period of six weeks. Her migraines became much less frequent, and she found she could often stop them in their tracks with a meditation she learned. Her blood pressure normalized, too. During the nine-month course I saw her, her IBS symptoms came and went every now and again, but never with the frequency or severity of what they were like before.

Examples like these point out why "positive thinking" can undermine our health. Simply ignoring uncomfortable thoughts, events, and emotions, and replacing them with "positive" ones suppresses our actual feelings. It inhibits therapeutic moments, and actually has an opposite effect.

It takes some courage to get to the point where it's okay to feel anxious, sad, angry, and other "negative" emotions. It takes even more courage to look at emotions and understand where they came from. Feelings should be transitory, and experiencing a full range of human emotion is normal. A wise teacher once told me, "The degree to which we resist is the degree to which we suffer."

Let's not avoid one whole side of that spectrum of emotion, just to put off the appearance of being positive. Let's live as authentically as we can, for the sake of our own health, and the health of those around us.

Michael Stanclift, N.D. 
Naturopathic Doctor
Posted: 05/07/2014 11:05 am EDT Updated: 05/07/2014 11:59 am EDT
Article from http://www.huffingtonpost.com/

The Science of Positive Thinking: How Positive Thoughts Build Your Skills, Boost Your Health, and Improve Your Work

James Clear
Entrepreneur, weightlifter, and travel photographer
Article from http://www.huffingtonpost.com/james-clear/

Positive thinking sounds useful on the surface. (Most of us would prefer to be positive rather than negative.) But "positive thinking" is also a soft and fluffy term that is easy to dismiss. In the real world, it rarely carries the same weight as words like "work ethic" or "persistence."

But those views may be changing.

Research is beginning to reveal that positive thinking is about much more than just being happy or displaying an upbeat attitude. Positive thoughts can actually create real value in your life and help you build skills that last much longer than a smile.

The impact of positive thinking on your work, your health, and your life is being studied by people who are much smarter than me. One of these people is Barbara Fredrickson.

Fredrickson is a positive psychology researcher at the University of North Carolina, and she published a landmark paper that provides surprising insights about positive thinking and its impact on your skills. Her work is among the most referenced and cited in her field, and it is surprisingly useful in everyday life.

Let's talk about Fredrickson's discovery and what it means for you...

What Negative Thoughts Do to Your Brain

Play along with me for a moment.

Let's say that you're walking through the forest and suddenly a tiger steps onto the path ahead of you. When this happens, your brain registers a negative emotion -- in this case, fear.

Researchers have long known that negative emotions program your brain to do a specific action. When that tiger crosses your path, for example, you run. The rest of the world doesn't matter. You are focused entirely on the tiger, the fear it creates, and how you can get away from it.

In other words, negative emotions narrow your mind and focus your thoughts. At that same moment, you might have the option to climb a tree, pick up a leaf, or grab a stick -- but your brain ignores all of those options because they seem irrelevant when a tiger is standing in front of you.

This is a useful instinct if you're trying to save life and limb, but in our modern society we don't have to worry about stumbling across tigers in the wilderness. The problem is that your brain is still programmed to respond to negative emotions in the same way -- by shutting off the outside world and limiting the options you see around you.

For example, when you're in a fight with someone, your anger and emotion might consume you to the point where you can't think about anything else. Or, when you are stressed out about everything you have to get done today, you may find it hard to actual start anything because you're paralyzed by how long your to-do list has become. Or, if you feel bad about not exercising or not eating healthy, all you think about is how little willpower you have, how you're lazy, and how you don't have any motivation.

In each case, your brain closes off from the outside world and focuses on the negative emotions of fear, anger, and stress -- just like it did with the tiger. Negative emotions prevent your brain from seeing the other options and choices that surround you. It's your survival instinct.

Now, let's compare this to what positive emotions do to your brain. This is where Barbara Fredrickson returns to the story.

What Positive Thoughts Do to Your Brain

Fredrickson tested the impact of positive emotions on the brain by setting up a little experiment. During this experiment, she divided her research subjects into five groups and showed each group different film clips.

The first two groups were shown clips that created positive emotions. Group 1 saw images that created feelings of joy. Group 2 saw images that created feelings of contentment.

Group 3 was the control group. They saw images that were neutral and produced no significant emotion.

The last two groups were shown clips that created negative emotions. Group 4 saw images that created feelings of fear. Group 5 saw images that created feelings of anger.

Afterward, each participant was asked to imagine themselves in a situation where similar feelings would arise and to write down what they would do. Each participant was handed a piece of paper with 20 blank lines that started with the phrase, "I would like to..."

Participants who saw images of fear and anger wrote down the fewest responses. Meanwhile, the participants who saw images of joy and contentment, wrote down a significantly higher number of actions that they would take, even when compared to the neutral group.

In other words, when you are experiencing positive emotions like joy, contentment, and love, you will see more possibilities in your life. These findings were among the first that suggested positive emotions broaden your sense of possibility and open your mind up to more options.

But that was just the beginning. The really interesting impact of positive thinking happens later...

How Positive Thinking Builds Your Skill Set

The benefits of positive emotions don't stop after a few minutes of good feelings subside. In fact, the biggest benefit that positive emotions provide is an enhanced ability to build skills and develop resources for use later in life.

Let's consider a real-world example.

A child who runs around outside, swinging on branches and playing with friends, develops the ability to move athletically (physical skills), the ability to play with others and communicate with a team (social skills), and the ability to explore and examine the world around them (creative skills). In this way, the positive emotions of play and joy prompt the child to build skills that are useful and valuable in everyday life.

These skills last much longer than the emotions that initiated them. Years later, that foundation of athletic movement might develop into a scholarship as a college athlete or the communication skills may blossom into a job offer as a business manager. The happiness that promoted the exploration and creation of new skills has long since ended, but the skills themselves live on.

Fredrickson refers to this as the "broaden and build" theory because positive emotions broaden your sense of possibilities and open your mind, which in turn allows you to build new skills and resources that can provide value in other areas of your life.

As we discussed earlier, negative emotions do the opposite. Why? Because building skills for future use is irrelevant when there is immediate threat or danger (like the tiger on the path).

All of this research begs the most important question of all: If positive thinking is so useful for developing valuable skills and appreciating the big picture of life, how do you actually get yourself to be positive?

How to Increase Positive Thinking in Your Life

What you can do to increase positive emotions and take advantage of the "broaden and build" theory in your life?

Well, anything that sparks feelings of joy, contentment, and love will do the trick. You probably know what things work well for you. Maybe it's playing the guitar. Maybe it's spending time with a certain person. Maybe it's carving tiny wooden lawn gnomes.

That said, here are three ideas for you to consider...

1. Meditation -- Recent research by Fredrickson and her colleagues has revealed that people who meditate daily display more positive emotions that those who do not. As expected, people who meditated also built valuable long-term skills. For example, three months after the experiment was over, the people who meditated daily continued to display increased mindfulness, purpose in life, social support, and decreased illness symptoms.

Note: If you're looking for an easy way to start meditation, here is a 10-minute guided meditation that was recently sent to me. Just close your eyes, breathe, and follow along.

2. Writing -- This study, published in the Journal of Research in Personality, examined a group of 90 undergraduate students who were split into two groups. The first group wrote about an intensely positive experience each day for three consecutive days. The second group wrote about a control topic.

Three months later, the students who wrote about positive experiences had better mood levels, fewer visits to the health center, and experienced fewer illnesses. (This blew me away. Better health after just three days of writing about positive things!)

Note: I used to be very erratic in my writing, but now I publish a new blog every Monday and Thursday. I've written more about my writing process and how you can stick to your goals in this blog and this blog.

3. Play -- Schedule time to play into your life. We schedule meetings, conference calls, weekly events, and other responsibilities into our daily calendars... why not schedule time to play?

When was the last time you blocked out an hour on your calendar just to explore and experiment? When was the last time you intentionally carved out time to have fun? You can't tell me that being happy is less important than your Wednesday meeting, and yet, we act like it is because we never give it a time and space to live on our calendars.

Give yourself permission to smile and enjoy the benefits of positive emotion. Schedule time for play and adventure so that you can experience contentment and joy, and explore and build new skills.

Happiness vs. Success (Which Comes First?)

There's no doubt that happiness is the result of achievement. Winning a championship, landing a better job, finding someone you love -- these things will bring joy and contentment to your life. But so often, we wrongly assume that this means happiness always follows success.

How often have you thought, "If I just get ___, then I'll be set."

Or, "Once I achieve ___, I'll be satisfied."

I know I'm guilty of putting off happiness until I achieve some arbitrary goal. But as Fredrickson's "broaden and build" theory proves, happiness is essential to building the skills that allow for success.

In other words, happiness is both the precursor to success and the result of it.

In fact, researchers have often noticed a compounding effect or an "upward spiral" that occurs with happy people. They are happy, so they develop new skills, those skills lead to new success, which results in more happiness, and the process repeats itself.

Where to Go From Here

Positive thinking isn't just a soft and fluffy feel-good term. Yes, it's great to simply "be happy," but those moments of happiness are also critical for opening your mind to explore and build the skills that become so valuable in other areas of your life.

Finding ways to build happiness and positive emotions into your life -- whether it is through meditation, writing, playing a pickup basketball game, or anything else -- provides more than just a momentary decrease in stress and a few smiles.

Periods of positive emotion and unhindered exploration are when you see the possibilities for how your past experiences fit into your future life, when you begin to develop skills that blossom into useful talents later on, and when you spark the urge for further exploration and adventure.

To put it simply: Seek joy, play often, and pursue adventure. Your brain will do the rest.

James Clear
Entrepreneur, weightlifter, and travel photographer
Article from http://www.huffingtonpost.com/james-clear/

The negative power of positive thinking

By Bob Carden, Published: April 11 | Updated: Saturday, April 12, 10:15 PM
Posted in http://www.washingtonpost.com/business/

I am going to be very rich, very soon. Money is coming in from the Ivory Coast. Apparently, I’m related to a prince over there, and he needs me to help him park a boatload of cash in America. My cut is $4 million. I would have to wire him a $5,000 handling fee to get the money, but $5,000 for $4 million? Who wouldn’t take that action?

I flunked geometry in 10th grade. You’re not going to run into me at a Mensa meeting. Still, I have enough sense and skepticism never to fall for a scam like that.

Louis A. Gottschalk was someone you might have seen at a Mensa meeting. Gottschalk, who died in 2008, was a renowned neuroscientist and professor at the University of California at Irvine. Late in life, according to news reports, he lost millions in your basic Nigerian Internet scam.

Behavioral economists would surely attribute Gottschalk’s lapse to what they call the “positivity delusion.”

“We’re far more inclined to embrace positive information about our own investments than negative information. We often turn that off,” says Tali Sharot, author of “The Optimism Bias: A Tour of Our Irrationally Positive Brain.”

What if the “power of positive thinking” is simply a numbing drumbeat that reinforces the positivity delusion, leading us to make blockheaded business and investment decisions?

“You have to at least entertain the possibility that the rustling in the grass could turn out to be a lion and eat you up,” says Barbara Ehrenreich, author of “Bright-Sided: How the Relentless Promotion of Positive Thinking Is Undermining America.”

She blames much of the subprime mortgage mess and resulting financial meltdown in 2008 on this “delusionary” positive thinking. For instance, she recounts how Michael Gelband, the onetime head of the real estate division at Lehman Bros., saw a real estate bubble as early as 2006 and warned CEO Richard Fuld that the company should rethink its business model. This moment of realism and candor got Gelband fired.

“Brokers and buyers were all whipped up, any realistic thoughts were deemed negative and not worthy, so they fired people like him,” Ehrenreich says.

Lehman filed for bankruptcy protection in 2008. Its collapse helped spark a financial crisis that spread across the globe.

The positivity delusion isn’t restricted to institutional corporate types. It infects individual traders as well. I found out the hard way.

“Averaging down” on a stock can be one of the more delusional methods of investing. It means buying a stock when its price dips with the hope that it will rise back to its highest point.

During the Internet stock craze in the late ’90s, I bought about 8,000 shares of PSInet, a local Internet service provider, for about $6 a share. By March 2000, it had run up to more than $100 a share (split-adjusted). I lived high, borrowed against it, got a Mercedes. Then the share price started dropping and my positivity delusion kicked in full throttle. I averaged down when it dropped to $40, then $22, then again at $6. I stopped averaging down about the same time I dumped the Mercedes and dusted off my old Yugo. PSInet went bankrupt; I came close.

“Averaging down makes little sense,” says Dan Solin, author of the immodestly titled “The Smartest Retirement Book You’ll Ever Read.” “It’s one of these myths that investors are fed in the financial media. The market is telling you the stock is losing value.”

Also, beware of “experts” conveying their biases on an unsuspecting public. Let’s say a broker bought a large position in Company X at $20 per share. But it’s recently dropped to $15. So he goes on CNBC or some financial show and says it’s a real buy at $15. Well, a charitable reading is that he might be brimming with positivity bias and really wants to convey that to the viewer. Or maybe he’s pumping the stock, hoping enough viewers will buy to push the price back to $20 so the broker can get out without a loss. Either way, it’s probably a good idea to switch to the Weather Channel.

“We look upon too much positive exposure on CNBC or other media as a contrarian indicator,” says Nicholas Haffenreffer, a portfolio manager with Torray Investments in Bethesda. “It gets us a bit nervous if people on TV are talking a lot about one of our positions.”

A hot market and the positivity delusions it generates make his job a lot tougher.

“Clients often ignore risk in a rising market,” he says. “They forget the rules: that cycles happen. Markets do drop, so you have to hedge. People just don’t want to hear that.”

Despite the downside, isn’t the positivity bias a catalyst for our individual genius? Without that hope, that optimism, would Thomas Edison have invented the light bulb? Would Steve Jobs have built a single gadget? Would Ron Popeil have developed spray hair in a can?

“Positivity enhances our ability to create and explore,” says Sharot, who also teaches at Harvard. “It’s how things get done. We need it. It’s part of our evolution.”

Optimism is firmly rooted in American culture. The spiritual father of the positive thinking movement was a 19th-century spiritualist, teacher and healer by the name of Phineas Quimby. Quimby rebelled against old-style Calvinism, thinking its austere nature depressed people and caused “disease-inducing guilt.” He disregarded conventional medicines and instead relied on positive thought to heal the body and foster a clear mind.

A contemporary equivalent of Quimby might be the ever-cheerful pastor Joel Osteen. He preaches the power of positive thinking and the prosperity gospel — “God wants you to be rich” — from a megachurch in Houston. Osteen commutes there from a $10 million mansion. Positive thinking has served him well.

Despite that, old-style American Calvinism, while not a load of laughs, has a lot to do with American wealth and development.

So what is the remedy? Sharot says that since we are inclined to ignore negative information about our investment and embrace positive information, we have to create some distance from the investment.

“If you are going to make an investment in something, imagine that it’s your neighbor making the investment, not yourself, and then when you evaluate it you’re likely to be much more objective,” she says.

It’s generally a good idea to stay away from any situation that you know you could not sustain long-term, says Justin Sydnor, a behavior economist at the University of Wisconsin.

“You have to ask yourself, what are you going to do in the future that’s going to change what you did in the past?” he says. “Otherwise you are just falsely believing things will get better in the future.”

And get out from under the ether of a smooth sales pitch.

“When a policeman stops you and asks for your license, he checks the license and registration — he won’t take your word for it. If you are investing, you have to do the same thing,” says Lori Schock, head of investor education at the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Ehrenreich says the answers are pretty simple. “Work hard. Be realistic. Don’t fall for simple pitches that cloud your thinking — don’t let all these motivational speakers and self-help coaches block out warning signs that something bad might be on the horizon,” she says. “Things aren’t going to get better just by wishing for it.”

Carden is a documentary filmmaker based in Washington.

http://www.washingtonpost.com/business/

The miracle of positive thinking

By: Sister Shahnaaz Bemath

Source: www.eislam.co.za

May 23, 2013 | Filed under: Featured,Islam | Posted by: MV Media

Article from http://muslimvillage.com/

Thinking positive can work miracles. You may have been told to “guard your thoughts”, but felt the advice to be pointless. After all, your thoughts are private. How can they possibly affect someone else? The fact is, thoughts do seem to boomerang in some mysterious ways. Science has not found a way to measure them as they have invisible sound waves. In order to understand how positive thinking works, and how to use it efficiently, it is important to understand the power of negative thinking.

“Negative thoughts and tensions are like birds. We cannot stop them from flying near us but, we can certainly stop them from making a nest in our mind.”

The mind can be directed towards positive thinking or negative thinking. The power of thought is a neutral power. The way one thinks determines whether the results are positive and beneficial or negative and harmful. It is the same of energy acting in different ways. Persistent inner work can change habits of thoughts. You must be willing to put energy and time to avoid negative thinking and pursue positive thinking, in order to change your mental attitude. Think of those things which are true, honest, just, pure, lovely, in other words, to fill your mind with noble, good thoughts, leaving no room for negative ones to take root.

The Noble Messenger of ALLAH (peace be upon him) has reported that ALLAH, The Most Wise, said: “I treat my servant as how he thinks of Me” (Hadith- Bukhari/ Muslim). In other words, ALLAH TA’ALA treats His servant in the way how he thinks of ALLAH, what he hopes from and how he sets his hopes on ALLAH. So, those who come positive and with a great hope to the door of Mercy of the Almighty Creator will Insha Allah not return empty-handed.

The most powerful weapon you have at your disposal is Du’a (prayer). Use it and use it often. The basis of prayer is to lift us and situations to Almighty ALLAH an inner act of visualisation. A further step is to contemplate on our beautiful teachings of Islam this involves controlling and directing out thoughts. A simple way to think of this is to imagine your mind to be like a garden. That garden can be spoilt and overrun by negative, destructive thoughts (weeds), or it can become a place of peace and harmony by the cultivation of flowers (uplifting thoughts).

“Your mind is a garden. Your thoughts are the seeds. You can grow flowers. Or you can grow weeds.”

Are you prone to depression? Do you see your life as a hopeless mess… consider yourself a failure? If you do, then you will close your mind, see no opportunities, and behave and react in such ways, as to repel people and opportunities. You let the power of negative thinking rule your life. Try replacing such negative thoughts with positive ones. Talk to your beloved ALLAH, ALLAH does not create a lock without a key, and ALLAH doesn’t give you problems without its solutions. Trust HIM! While recognising these problems, picture yourself as mastering each one. Visualise yourself handling each situation creatively; being a success; gradually allowing your given potential to blossom.

The beloved Messenger of ALLAH (Sallallaahu Alaihi Wa Sallam) advised us if you look forward to good things, it will happen In’Shaa’ALLAH. Thinking positive is a very important element of Islam. Always think that ALLAH has a plan for you, if something goes wrong, it will probably lead you to something good. HE is working things out for you, even if you don’t feel it. Have faith and be thankful. Where faith and hope grows, miracles blossoms, ALLAHU AKBAR!

At first, this kind of thought control may seem like an inner game but you’ll be surprised at how, slowly but surely, your outer circumstances begin to change. For thought precedes action, and the right thoughts precede a chain of good actions. Destructive thoughts, on the other hand, act as poisoning agents. They embitter and limit the thinker, preventing him or her from developing good relationships, because others sense the wrong thoughts telepathically, and shy away instinctively.

Conversely, if you greet people with the thought that they’ll probably be nice to know, such a positive thought will affect their response. If you’re afraid of someone, replace that fear with a thought which recognises that the person’s given potential “core” is probably hidden under layers of unhappiness and wrong thinking. Silently bless that person, and ask that his or her true self be given a chance to manifest.

A friend was once terribly upset because someone was spreading false rumours about her. She could not deny the rumour publicly. All she could do was pray for the woman, try to think about her charitably and visualise her acting differently. She did this consistently for some weeks. One day, unexpectedly, the woman phoned her to apologise and say she’d been mistaken, Subhaan-ALLAH! It seemed like a miracle! But right thinking can work miracles. Life has many different chapters for us. One bad chapter doesn’t mean the end of the book. Be positive and keep your faith in ALLAH. Once we function in harmony with ALLAH’S beautiful laws of love and forgiveness and this includes spreading good, true and beautiful thoughts our lives will flower as they were meant to.

“Think positive, Think different. Don’t waste your precious energy on negative thoughts.”

Decide that from today, from this very moment, you are leaving negative thinking behind, and starting on the way towards positive thinking and behaviour. It is never too late. Soon your life will turn into a fascinating, wonderful journey. Wake up every morning with the thought that something beautiful is about to happen. Let’s welcome each day with a smile and bid farewell with a smile. We thank ALLAH for HIS blessings. Take advantage of our positive energy and employ them in doing well in this life. Let’s learn, read and after that, we will find the entire universe will extend to us it’s heart and the whole world will hug us with its beauty… Subhaan-ALLAH!

There is something beautiful in life. You just have to find it….be positive and it will find you!

Sister Shahnaaz Bemath

May 23, 2013 

Article from http://muslimvillage.com/

Positive Psychology: The Benefits of Living Positively

By JOANNA FISHMAN 
Article from http://psychcentral.com/blog/archives/

Positive psychology often is passed off as pop psychology or New Age-y by those who haven’t actually looked into it.

The actual theory behind positive psychology was defined in 1998 by Martin Seligman and Mihaly Csikszentmihalyi [1] and looks at all aspects of a person’s psychology. It does not discount traditional psychology, nor supersede it. Rather than viewing psychology purely as a treatment for the malign, however, it looks at the positive. Positive psychology is a recognized form of therapy and is offered by some counselors and psychologists.

Psychology has always been interested in where people’s lives have gone wrong, and what has resulted because of it [2]. Illnesses such as depression are well-documented and patterns of depressive behavior well-known. However, until recently, what makes people happy and how they achieve inner happiness and well-being has been a mystery.

Practitioners of positive psychology study people whose lives are positive and try to learn from them, in order to help others achieve this state of happiness [3]. It is a scientific study and not remotely hippie-ish, despite its connotations.

Positive thinking is one aspect of positive psychology. Surrounding yourself with a great lifestyle and material goods may seem to lead to happiness, but how you really feel is governed by what goes on inside your head. When you go out of your way to think positively, you actually purge yourself of negative self-talk. [1]

Negative self-talk is one of the biggest barriers to positive thinking. People become so accustomed to negative thinking that their conscious mind will pull them down, even when they have done nothing wrong. These people become insecure, overly apologetic and indecisive. Worse still, they open the door to numerous stress-related problems.

Negative thinkers have four common mindsets:

Filtering.

Many negative thinkers will pull the negatives out of a situation and focus on them. Sometimes these people will see only the negative in a situation, to the point where they deny any positive.

Personalizing.

Some people make every tragedy about themselves. They will personalize every negative thing and assume that bad things happen because they are unlucky, or as a result of something they did or didn’t do. They will often construct negative situations with perfect logic, providing plausible reasons why negative things are either their fault or set out to hurt them.

Catastrophizing.

This involves anticipating the worst. Some people even precipitate it. They can turn a slightly awkward interaction into an overreaction, making the situation worse. If something negative does happen, they will use it to validate their negative assumptions.

Polarizing.

This type of negative thinker sees things as black or white. Either a situation is perfect or it is a catastrophe. This type of negative thinking can affect every area of a person’s life. Its effects can be both psychological and physical. By practicing positive thinking, you can actually stave off medical conditions and reap the benefits of having a positive outlook on life.

Depression is complicated illness with physical and mental health elements. It would be flippant to suggest that someone with a positive outlook will not encounter depressive feelings.

However, positive psychology can be beneficial in treating depression. It can equip sufferers with the tools to stop downward spirals when they begin and help them to see the positive aspects to their lives. It can also help to stop the negative thinking habits that are common in depression. [4]

Scientific studies also show that there is a direct link between stress and the immune system. When a person is experiencing a period of stress and negativity, his or her body is less able to mount an inflammatory response to attacks from bacteria and viruses. This results in an increase in infections such as the common cold and cold sores. [5] Having a positive outlook on life also equips people better for dealing with serious illness. Tackling diseases such as cancer with optimism and self-belief has shown to have a beneficial effect on recovery and ability to tolerate treatment.

Among the other health benefits listed above, positive thinkers have a lower incidence of cardiovascular disease. They tend to have lower blood pressure than those who do not engage in positive thinking. The health benefits extend to the emotional side, too. optimists will have better physical and psychological well-being, and better skills for coping with stress and hardship.

It is important to remember that simply having a positive mindset won’t actually stop bad things from happening. But it does give you the tools to better deal with bad situations. Sometimes your coping skills come down to nothing more than refusing to give in to your negative side and your fears. For some people, positive thinking comes quite naturally. For others, seeking professional help is necessary to get them on the right track.

JOANNA FISHMAN 
Article from http://psychcentral.com/blog/archives/

Clean Up Your Thinking

Time to Take Out the Trash

From Jack Zavada

Article from http://christianity.about.com/

Are you plagued with negative thoughts about yourself and others? As Christians we may not even realize how our wrong thinking is affecting our concept of God. Don't let trashy thinking litter your mind and ruin your life. Jack Zavada shows us how to clean up our "stinking thinking" and take out the garbage.

Time to Take Out the Trash

Twenty miles from my home, near Pontiac, Illinois, is one of the largest landfills in the United States.

Every day, a steady stream of trucks drive down the interstate highway from Chicago, hauling huge trailers of trash. This landfill is four stories high and covers hundreds of acres.

Two truths about trash are obvious:

It can cause health problems.

It doesn't leave by itself. On a regular basis, you have to take it out.

The same is true of the trash that accumulates in our minds. If we don't take it out, it can ruin our lives.

Trashy Thinking About Others

Most of us have developed a bad habit of judging other people without knowing all the facts. Jesus plainly warns us: "Do not judge, or you too will be judged." (Matthew 7:1 NIV).

When we judge others, we put ourselves in God's place, taking the authority reserved only for him. We forget that other people are fighting their own inner battles and sometimes that conflict shows itself in irritating actions. But if our own behavior is imperfect, why do we expect better from others?

We can remove this kind of trashy thinking by practicing compassion and forgiveness. Only when we treat others the way Jesus treats us will we demonstrate the kind of love he wants us to have.

With his help, we can do this. We can make a little progress every day until we reach the point that we "do to others as you would have them to do to you." (Luke 6:31 NIV)

Trashy Thinking About Ourselves

Ironically, most of us are even harder on ourselves than we are on others.

Like our nonbeliever brothers and sisters, we also get caught up in our society's culture. Every day, the dominant message it sends is You don't measure up.

Whether it's a women's fashion magazine, a TV commercial about exercise equipment, or an ad for the latest automobile, this daily bombardment tells us there's something wrong with us that their product can fix. So we buy whatever they're pitching, only to find that after a few weeks (or even sooner), we feel as empty as we did before.

We need to take out this trashy appraisal of ourselves and replace it with God's view of us, expressed in his love, forgiveness, and acceptance. One glimpse of the cross is a stunning reminder of how precious we are to Jesus.

Trashy Thinking About God

Our most damaging trashy thinking is about God. Maybe we never express it openly, but our actions reveal our beliefs. We plunge ahead on our own because we think God’s not trustworthy. We stagger under the burden of guilt because we think he’s not forgiving. And worst of all, we feel alienated and alone because we think he doesn’t love us.

The best way to rid ourselves of these wrong ideas is to read God’s autobiography, the Bible. The Gospels in particular reveal what God is truly like. Jesus tells us, "Anyone who has seen me has seen the Father." (John 14:9 NIV)

By comparing our beliefs to the truths in the Bible, we can identify our misconceptions and start to remove them. Taking out these trashy thought patterns takes courage and work. Because old habits are so hard to break, we need to ask God for help.

Thankfully, the Holy Spirit is eager to collect all our trashy thinking and take it away "…as far as the east is from the west, so far has he removed our transgressions from us." (Psalm 103:12 NIV)

Our success may be spotty. We may backslide. We'll go right back to our old ways unless we consciously catch ourselves and say, "No, that’s trash. It’s bad and it has to go out."

But even if it takes constant vigilance, this is a clean-up job that’s well worth it. There’s no better time to start than today.

Jack Zavada, a career writer and contributor for About.com, is host to a Christian Web site for singles. Never married, Jack feels that the hard-won lessons he has learned may help other Christian singles make sense of their lives. His articles and ebooks offer great hope and encouragement. To contact him or for more information, visit Jack's Bio Page.

Jack Zavada

Article from http://christianity.about.com/

Dalai Lama: Cultivate Inner Peace to Save the Planet

Posted by News Editor in Air/Climate, Latest News, RSS on May 13, 2013 1:31 am
Article from http://ens-newswire.com/

PORTLAND, Oregon, May 12, 2013 (ENS) – “The main thing is the oneness of humanity,” His Holiness the 14th Dalai Lama, Tenzin Gyatso, said during an environmental summit Saturday in Portland.

“In 1959 I came from Tibet and escaped to India. Now the whole world has some problems, but there is no other place to escape,” he told an audience of 11,000 people. “Environmental protection, taking care of our world, is like taking care of our own home. This is our only home, so we have to take care, and not only for our generation.”

The Dalai Lama shared the summit stage with Oregon Governor John Kitzhaber, Executive Director of the Oregon Environmental Council Andrea Durbin, and David Suzuki, a Canadian scientist, broadcaster and environmentalist.

The Tibetan spiritual leader says the world’s environmental problems stem from greed, a lifestyle based on over-consumption and a global population of seven billion that is outstripping the Earth’s ability to sustain it.

“By the end of this century, there may be 10 billion people,” he said. “We have to think very seriously about the future of humanity. Environmental issues are a key factor.”

“Due to global warming, the south pole, north pole ice quite rapidly melting, so sea level is rising, also climate now change, also earthquakes,” said the Dalai Lama. “We are responsible for the emission of carbon dioxide, also deforestation.”

“Meantime, there is serious concern about the gap between rich and poor on a global level and also on a national level,” he said in excellent English, consulting with his translator, Dr. Thupten Jinpa, only occasionally.

“We take growth for granted. Just making money, money, money, money, money – and spend on luxurious lifestyle. I think in the long run this is not good,” he said.

He asked the audience to imagine what the world would look like if each of the two billion people in India and China had a car as do people in “so-called developed countries.”

Just to find the space for so many cars would be difficult, the Dalai Lama said. “We must think about these problems that are coming; they are inevitable, these problems,” he warned.

Governor Kitzhaber said one of the problems we face is “the assumption that consumption can go on forever and at an increasing rate.”

“Global climate change, the decimation of our rainforest, the collapse of fisheries – a whole host of things suggest that unlimited economc growth on a finite planet is beginning to bump up against the physical limits of our planet,” said the governor. “More people are impoverished, their kids are hungry, fewer and fewer people are being lifted up by that economy.”

Another problem is that “we measure the wrong things,” said Kitzhaber.

The Gross National Product measures all the economic activity of the country and anything that produces a profit counts as a plus. The Deepwater Horizon oil spill was “great for the economy,” he said, “carnage on the highways, crime, the prison system, the war in Afghanistan – all count as positive in our current way of measuring,” the governor explained.

“We need first of all a new metric that balances and counts as a deficit environmental degradation, that counts as a plus stay-at-home mothers, volunteerism in the community, and healthy kids,” he said.

“I think the fundamental challenge is to say – what does an economy look like that can operate within the environmental and physical limits of the planet and actually moves everybody up,” Kitzhaber said.

“If we’re going to have a consumption-based economy, and I can’t envision an economy that doesn’t involve consumption or a life that doesn’t involve consumption, then what we consume and the rate at which we consume it really matters,” said the governor. “If you start with the assumption that it has to be sustainable both environmentally and socially, then it opens the field to creative thinking of what that might look like.”

The summit had been planned for months, but it happened to occur just two days after scientists announced that for the first time in human history, atmospheric concentrations of the greenhouse gas carbon dioxide, CO2, have risen above 400 parts per million.

Many climate scientists have warned that 350 ppm is the safe upper limit for CO2 in the atmosphere to avert the worst consequences of climate change – droughts, floods, wildfires, sea level rise, extreme weather and extinction of species.

Dr. Suzuki responded with alarm. “A lot of people I have respect for in the world are saying we’ve passed too many tipping points to go back. The annoucement of 400 ppm is absolutely catastrophic,” he said.

“We have a very, very urgent crisis right now just in terms of the atmosphere,” Suzuki warned. “We elevate the economy above the very atmosphere that sustains us. We’ve lost the sense of what are the really important things that keep us alive.”

“His Holiness talks about how we have to act as one species, as one group. Now the only time we see that is in movies when aliens attack the planet – then you see the Russian president calling the Chinese president, calling the Americans,” said Suzuki.

David Suzuki

“Now the atmosphere is the unifying issue. It’s unAmerican to say we can’t do anything about this. It’s not the American way,” said the Canadian environmentalist and broadcaster.

Durbin, who heads the Oregon Environmental Council, said, “I think climate change is the most significant issue of my generation and my childrens’ generation,” but she is also concerned about the prevalence of toxic chemicals.

“We are exposing ourselves every day to untested, unregulated toxic chemicals in the food we eat, in the water we drink, our air, the products we use, the buildings we live, work and go to school in,” Durbin said.

“We’re all participating in a big chemistry experiment. These chemicals are being passed on from generation to generation. These chemicals can last for hundreds of years.”

“Babies are being born pre-polluted,” she exclaimed. “An American pregnant woman can be carrying, on average, 43 chemicals in her body that she would be passing on her child in her womb. We learn increasingly about their impact – cancer, autism, learning disabilities, early onset puberty, infertility, birth defects – to me that is just morally wrong.”

We have a broken system in the United States. Regulation of toxics haven’t been updated in nearly four decades. There are 80,000 chemicals that are in use today, we’ve only tested 200 of them. Clearly, we’re out of step with where our laws need to be to protect human health.

Durbin would like to see the United States adopt the European system that requires companies to prove a chemical is safe before they allow it into the market. “We need that kind of refom at a national level in Congress,” she said.

All speakers agreed that education is the key to environmental protection.

“If we use our human thinking of long-term interest, then we truly become human beings,” said the Dalai Lama. “Not through prayer, not through blessing, but through education. So education is the key factor. The existing education system is not adequate; it is very much oriented toward material values.”

In addition to education, Suzuki, Durbin and Kitzhaber all agreed that more political action is needed to turn back the environmental threats facing the planet.

Governor Kitzhaber believes we need to put a price on carbon so carbon dioxide emissions can be limited.

“Most people know in their hearts that we will sooner or later be putting a price on carbon. It’s happened in California, it’s happened in British Columbia with the carbon tax, which is a much simpler more direct way,” he said. “The point is, we’re going to get there. We need to be much more explicit about having this conversation. It’s beginning to surface in this state, I’m sure it will surface in Washington under Governor [Jay] Inslee’s jurisdiction. If the West Coast were to move in that direction together, it’s the sixth largest economy in the world.”

“Fundamentally rethinking the economy is the long-term solution,” he said.

During this summit and throughout his three days of appearances in Oregon, the Dalai Lama said time and again, “Inner wealth – human affection, human friendship, these are the most important.”

“Just to think of yourself, is foolish, selfish,” he said. “One company, one family, one individual who always consumes – more greed, more greed more greed. regardless of other consequences – this is a mistake.”

“Develop inner strength,” said the Tibetan leader. “The person who develops inner peace – that person develops a precious human life.”

Posted by News Editor in Air/Climate, Latest News, RSS on May 13, 2013 1:31 am
Article from http://ens-newswire.com/

On Criticizing China

A unified field theory on assessing goods and bads.

JAMES FALLOWSMAY 11 2013, 12:25 AM ET
Article from http://www.theatlantic.com/china/archive/2013/05/on-criticizing-china/275704/

The day just ended, Friday, May 10, was an absolutely beautiful day in Beijing. Warm, clear, sunny, fresh -- the kind of moment I celebrated when living here as representing "Paradise Beijing." What you see above is a random shot I took through a bus window this afternoon on the west side of town. 

That's probably a useful context for a long note from a reader now based in the Boston area, who is taking me to task for the tone of recent commentary about China. I disagree with a lot of his incidental points but actually agree with where he ends up. I'll explain after giving him his say -- and after adding some interior reference numbers for later discussion. This reader writes:

I've been thinking quite hard about the amount of negative China articles that have appeared on your blog, usually in the form of links to Western laments about Chinese life and culture, as well as, of course, pictures of Beijing's pollution [1]. This is part of what I view as a general media trend of China-bashing [2]. Clearly, you love China, so I'm not accusing you in any way of being anti-China or malevolent, but I think you would agree there has been a rise/change in tone in coverage of China over the last year and a half.[3]

A prime example is the piece you linked to two days ago, where the author made sweeping generalizations based on singular anecdotes that paint the entire Chinese populace as rude, shallow and sub-human (or at least sub-Western.)[4] In analyzing a country of over a billion people, how can we take seriously someone who can paints with such a biased (and shockingly untruthful, if we were going to compare anecdotal memories) brush? Wouldn't it be similarly possible to write a similar anecdotal and nonfalsifiable story about America? Or any other country? Would we assume a fair appraisal if a Chinese person did the same to us?[5] I doubt it.

So why does this piece get coverage from you and the rest of the internet? I believe it's because it fits a media narrative that has been growing in strength over the last year or year and a half. I would summarize this narrative  as: "News Stories That China is Not As Good As The West."[6] Examples of these stories include the story making the rounds the last week on the quality of lamb in restaurants,[7] ubiquitous reports on various degrees of Chinese corruption and of course, pollution pictures.[8]

Now these are big important stories (except the lamb one,) but the focus on on China as opposed to say, India seems particularly acute. I am assuming that this is due to the news media's need for a rival to the United States in the post Soviet Era.[9] As China actually has some potential to pass the US in GDP (kind of meaningless) and perhaps have a say in regional (and maybe global?) security matters, I guess this is makes for news? I am assuming it's the present version of the Cold War Era "look how long the Soviets had to wait in line for bread" stories.[10] 

But at least China is open for Westerners to visit,[11] as opposed to the USSR of the 70s, leading to a particularly annoying narrative: the disgruntled foreigner leaving China because of excess pollution/corruption/hurt feelings. What kills me about this type of article is the total lack of acknowledgement of a huge advantage any Westerner gets when living in China: a five or ten fold increase in purchasing power.[12]

Some small examples from my time there:

• You can ride the Beijing subway, whose frequency and coverage exceeds all American lines with the possible exception of New York, for 30 cents (2 yuan.)
• You can take a taxi for 2 miles (maybe 3 or 4?) for an initial fee of 10 yuan in Beijing, or $1.60.
• You can swing into a hutong restaurant and order enough (incredible) food for 4 easily for 80 yuan, or maybe 3$ a person.
• You can hire a maid for 50/100 yuan to clean your likely cheap apartment. 
• So why wouldn't someone expect a tradeoff if they moved to China between prices paid and living standards? And why isn't it explained by China watchers that while Chinese GDP per capita is 1/6th the US? That China is not a developed country, and that it's nowhere close to being one, despite it's massive growth of the last few decades? That Westerners who travel or live there that are expecting the comforts of home are fooling themselves?

Excuse the rant. I'm not sure why I'm responding to you about this. I think it's my fear that over the coming decades, the US and China will be thrown into an antagonistic relationship that will be an antagonism of choice.[13] And people who do not share the love for China and the Chinese people you and I do, will  look to this rising negative tide for rationalization of fear and hatred of the other. But in doing so, both countries will be turning their backs on incredible places and peoples that offer so much to each other. 

Thanks for listening. And here's hoping you have many future sunny Beijing days. The mountains ARE beautiful when you can seem them.

On the assorted points of disagreement:

I should probably underscore the context of the "I hate China, and that's because I hate the Chinese people" rant I provided a link for [4]. The initial surprise value is that it comes from a site whose usual tone is "We hate foreigners, and that's because they criticize China." This post, equal in fury though opposite in direction to what normally appears, was from an ethnically Chinese foreigner who was having difficulty in his several months of living here.

The central message of that post was: the Chinese people are worse than their system. As I pointed out in linking to it, my view has been the reverse: "Even though a thousand aspects of modern Chinese life drive me crazy, I still can't help liking the openness, the vim, the life of most of the people I meet here. That is, I find it easier to get along with the people than with the whole system." For instance, see a moment from one of my early visits to the Qingdao Beer Festival, at right.

What's the reason for noting harshly critical material like this at all? It is because modern China -- like America, like Israel, like Turkey, like Mexico, like any other place that matters or any topic that deeply engages people -- is the subject of ongoing, passionate debate. People have strong views pro and con; opinions interact with one another and evolve; realities are so complex that many contradictory statements can all be "true" at the same time. I didn't agree with this (pseudonymous) writer or think that he had provided a "fair" [5] overview of everything Chinese. But I thought his venting was worth noting as part of the mix.

Anyone, including me, needs to struggle against being defensive when criticized, and I realize that the reader-in-Boston is going out of his way to say that he doesn't think I agree with the ranting guy. But for record, the balance I've tried always to convey, and that I actually believe, is this: China is a society with enormous problems and probably-greater strengths and assets; life in China was, for my wife and me, usually harder than in other places, and usually more rewarding; the relationship between China and America involves very serious disagreements, but much more numerous areas of common interest; and so on. Check out here or here or here for chapter and verse.

Skipping past a bunch of other incidentals, here is the big point of agreement: Like the reader in Boston, I think it's possible (1) that the U.S. and China could end up in a snarling position of mutual suspicion and hostility, (2) that if this happened it would be self-induced, since it is not inevitable, (3) that a mainly hostile rather than mainly collaborative US-China relationship  would be bad news for people in the two countries and everywhere else, and so therefore (4) it is very important that it not occur.

Where I differ from that reader is on whether "critical" stories about China -- carefully alarming ones, about food safety or pollution, or insanely hostile ones like the "I hate China" rant -- are driving the countries apart. To me, on balance, they suggest a properly realistic portrayal: neither too rosy and credulous, nor too resentful and suspicious. This is why in everything I write and everything I say I urge Americans to "take China seriously, without being afraid of it." Americans understand the realistic mix of goods and bads in our own country. Of course it's easier to maintain that balance about your own self/family/country to apply it externally. But I think the range of good and bad coverage of China now being presented to the world -- and the mix goods and bads about America that have long been on display to everyone  -- is in the long run indispensable to, rather than destructive of, a real relationship.

Enough in that vein. The book-length version of the argument above is China Airborne. For the record, specific annotation points:

____

[1] It is worth harping on pollution, because (according to me) "sustainability" in all its aspects is the major threat to China's continued development, and the major challenge China's economic growth poses for the world as a whole.

[2] For the record, I'm against any variant of the term "bashing" to describe international discourse -- Japan-bashing, China-bashing, America-bashing, etc. It assumes, rather that argues, that any criticism reflects prejudice rather than actual grounds for complaint. Saying that America has a Guantanamo problem -- or a social-class-divide problem or a drone-warfare problem -- is not America-bashing. Saying that China has problems of its own is not China-bashing.

[3] I think there has been both "good" and "bad" coverage (ie, both positive and negative stories) about China in that time. It is inarguable that in 2010 and 2011 China's foreign policy claims (based on its increased economic confidence) provoked reactions in many other Asian countries. Similarly, the Bo Xilai case occurred in this time; pollution levels rose; etc.

[4] Yes, this was a rant, revealing as much about the author as about the subject.

[5] Yes, but people make extreme complaints about America all the time -- I do it myself. For a subject as vast as America, or China, no single assessment can be perfectly "fair." If it tried to be, it would be really boring. You hope that the  flow of info and argument in its entirety will be enlightening and thus "fair" over time.

[6] Speaking personally, I have zero interest in whether China is "better" than America, or vice versa. It's like asking whether a car is better than a baseball game. These are societies with some points of similarity and a lot of points of difference. Even the Cold War-era arguments of whether the "American model" or the "Soviet model" offered a better path to development doesn't apply here. For reasons of scale, history, geography, and other factors, China and America are each a case-of-one internationally. Neither offers a realistic model for others to apply.

[7] The lamb-meat-or-is-it-rat? stories are important rather than trivial, because they're connected to larger concerns about food-safety that matter to much of the Chinese public.

[8] Again: pollution and the environment constitute Issue Number One.

[9] As I argued in a long story here, during America's era as a world power, it has often projected fears about its own economy or society onto foreign rivals. I think it's a big mistake to do so with China. Whatever is wrong with America now would be just as wrong if China didn't exist. The converse is mainly true for China. The right way to use the Chinese "challenge," in my view, is the way Obama has in some of his big speeches. That is, as a positive challenge: If China can develop wind energy, so can we, etc.

[10] I agree on this. Whether from Americans or Chinese or anyone else, the "well, what about your problems" reflex gets you nowhere. China has pollution problems; to say, "Well, America has too many schoolyard shootings" doesn't get you anywhere. America has violence problems; to say "Well, China is polluted" also does no good.

[11] China is more open than the Soviet Union generally was, and more than it used to be. It is not as fully "open" as it should be. Ask the Western journalists and scholars whose visas are denied or yanked on purely political grounds. (Yes, I know, the US also has a visa problem, but one of different nature and scale.)

[12] For what it's worth, the China-as-bargain-basement angle is, for me, not a significant part of its appeal. Some things are very cheap; others are expensive. Mainly, as noted, it is the life and vividness of the typical day in China that attracts me.

[13] Back to our agreement. From Richard Nixon's through Barack Obama's, an otherwise completely different sequence of American administrations has adopted policies based on the premise that the United States and China need to find ways to work together rather than become enemies. That the relationship between China and America has been as constructive as it has been reflects credit on people on both sides. It's worth working to continue it.

Now preparing for the trek back to the U.S. -- and in the knowledge that the airport from which I begin the trip, Beijing Capital, will be far more convenient, modern, and pleasant than the one where I'll arrive, Washington Dulles. I suppose you could fairly call me a Dulles-basher.

JAMES FALLOWSMAY 11 2013, 12:25 AM ET

Article from http://www.theatlantic.com/china/archive/2013/05/on-criticizing-china/275704/

Want to be a strong leader? Be hopeful

LEADERSHIP

BARBARA MORRISSpecial to The Globe and MailPublished Wednesday, May. 08 2013, 7:00 PM EDTLast updated Wednesday, May. 08 2013, 4:37 PM EDTFrom http://www.theglobeandmail.com/report-on-business/careers/careers-leadership/want-to-be-a-strong-leader-be-hopeful/article11790784/

Do you want to know how to improve your leadership potential one skill at a time? The first tip is to exemplify hopefulness.

Are you surprised to see “hopefulness” described as a leadership skill? Think about it for a minute. It’s hope that enables us to cope with life’s obstacles and problems. It’s hope that encourages contestants to audition for Canadian Idol, propels sports phenoms to new records, drives workers to achieve goals.

Team and organizational leaders who are hopeful tend to visualize positive future outcomes and are able to resolve problems and achieve goals with less effort than their gloomier counterparts. Leaders who exemplify hopefulness for their teams can instill positive thinking about the future and motivate team members to pursue ideas and solutions. Personifying hopefulness to others also helps them recognize they are adaptable and offers reassurance that they can overcome difficulties.

In fact, leaders who don’t have this skill often waste valuable reserves of energy getting employees back on track. One manager, for example, was awarded a team of four people and six months to complete a key company project. One individual on the team was a “complainer.” His thinking soon affected the others. Within a few weeks, all of them were expressing negative comments about the work. Progress inched ahead slower and slower. It was only when the manager started guiding the group firmly toward a clear and hopeful vision of the future that she was able to arrest the negativity. Keeping her team focused on a positive outcome enabled her to push them to be better.

The hopeful team is a powerful team. And this is why exemplifying hopefulness is an essential skill for effective leaders. It’s also a skill that can be learned. Start by personally practising hopeful thinking and practices. Here is a list of them.

• Remember that risk-taking is a critical part of learning and developing leadership capabilities. Therefore when you experience losses or failures, think of them not as setbacks, but as learning opportunities by reflecting on what you would do differently next time.
• Be aware of your own negative thinking and make a conscious effort to visualize positive outcomes. When handling a task for example, create a mental image of what the end result looks like. Then visualize yourself succeeding.
• Pursue daily opportunities for laughter (people, activities, books, movies) – especially when times are difficult. Inject humour into conversations.
• Care for yourself; fatigue plays strong role in negative thinking. Get enough sleep and exercise for at least 30 minutes every day; your body’s endorphins will support a hopeful outlook.

When working with employees, project teams and customers the following strategies can help you project hopeful thinking.

• Make an effort to develop a reputation for positivity.
• Hire positive people who are supportive.
• On your way to work every morning, spend 10 minutes deciding how you’re going to convey hopefulness during the day. For example, be proactive and enthusiastic about your responsibilities, accept challenging goals with the anticipation of success; and communicate your expectations of others with optimism and confidence.
• Appreciate the power of the messages you communicate – focus on being the leader who believes 100 per cent that the future will be better and communicate this with confidence to your employees and team members.
• Set clear, achievable organizational and team goals that are meaningful to those who must accomplish them. This means defining goals in a way that enables others to feel they are making a valued contribution, rather than simply working. You can do this by ensuring that goals contribute to the vision and mission – and are challenging but also realistic. Energize group members by engaging them to develop creative strategies for achieving targets.
• Accept bad news with equanimity. Don’t point fingers; instead, encourage your teams to learn from the experience and to identify specific ways to prevent the situation from reccurring or learning how to do better next time.

Whether you’re leading a large organization, a small company or a small team, by exemplifying hope you can engage, motivate and succeed. And remember, it can feel lonely to be the one who bears the burden of reality while helping others stay positive. So check in regularly with someone you like and trust to celebrate your progress developing this important leadership skill.

One final suggestion: keep in mind Superman’s (Christopher Reeve) words, “Once you choose hope, anything’s possible.”

Barbara Morris, president of Elevate Organizations,is a leadership development specialist and coach who helps individuals and organizational teams optimize potential and achieve goals.

BARBARA MORRIS
Special to The Globe and Mail
Published Wednesday, May. 08 2013, 7:00 PM EDT
Last updated Wednesday, May. 08 2013, 4:37 PM EDT
From http://www.theglobeandmail.com/report-on-business/careers/careers-leadership/want-to-be-a-strong-leader-be-hopeful/article11790784/

The Power of Negative Thinking

By OLIVER BURKEMAN
Published: August 4, 2012
From  http://www.nytimes.com/2012/08/05/opinion/sunday/

LAST month, in San Jose, Calif., 21 people were treated for burns after walking barefoot over hot coals as part of an event called Unleash the Power Within, starring the motivational speaker Tony Robbins. If you’re anything like me, a cynical retort might suggest itself: What, exactly, did they expect would happen? In fact, there’s a simple secret to “firewalking”: coal is a poor conductor of heat to surrounding surfaces, including human flesh, so with quick, light steps, you’ll usually be fine.

But Mr. Robbins and his acolytes have little time for physics. To them, it’s all a matter of mind-set: cultivate the belief that success is guaranteed, and anything is possible. One singed but undeterred participant told The San Jose Mercury News: “I wasn’t at my peak state.” What if all this positivity is part of the problem? What if we’re trying too hard to think positive and might do better to reconsider our relationship to “negative” emotions and situations?

Consider the technique of positive visualization, a staple not only of Robbins-style seminars but also of corporate team-building retreats and business best sellers. According to research by the psychologist Gabriele Oettingen and her colleagues, visualizing a successful outcome, under certain conditions, can make people less likely to achieve it. She rendered her experimental participants dehydrated, then asked some of them to picture a refreshing glass of water. The water-visualizers experienced a marked decline in energy levels, compared with those participants who engaged in negative or neutral fantasies. Imagining their goal seemed to deprive the water-visualizers of their get-up-and-go, as if they’d already achieved their objective.

Or take affirmations, those cheery slogans intended to lift the user’s mood by repeating them: “I am a lovable person!” “My life is filled with joy!” Psychologists at the University of Waterloo concluded that such statements make people with low self-esteem feel worse — not least because telling yourself you’re lovable is liable to provoke the grouchy internal counterargument that, really, you’re not.

Even goal setting, the ubiquitous motivational technique of managers everywhere, isn’t an undisputed boon. Fixating too vigorously on goals can distort an organization’s overall mission in a desperate effort to meet some overly narrow target, and research by several business-school professors suggests that employees consumed with goals are likelier to cut ethical corners.

Though much of this research is new, the essential insight isn’t. Ancient philosophers and spiritual teachers understood the need to balance the positive with the negative, optimism with pessimism, a striving for success and security with an openness to failure and uncertainty. The Stoics recommended “the premeditation of evils,” or deliberately visualizing the worst-case scenario. This tends to reduce anxiety about the future: when you soberly picture how badly things could go in reality, you usually conclude that you could cope. Besides, they noted, imagining that you might lose the relationships and possessions you currently enjoy increases your gratitude for having them now. Positive thinking, by contrast, always leans into the future, ignoring present pleasures.

Buddhist meditation, too, is arguably all about learning to resist the urge to think positively — to let emotions and sensations arise and pass, regardless of their content. It might even have helped those agonized firewalkers. Very brief training in meditation, according to a 2009 article in The Journal of Pain, brought significant reductions in pain — not by ignoring unpleasant sensations, or refusing to feel them, but by turning nonjudgmentally toward them.

From this perspective, the relentless cheer of positive thinking begins to seem less like an expression of joy and more like a stressful effort to stamp out any trace of negativity. Mr. Robbins’s trademark smile starts to resemble a rictus. A positive thinker can never relax, lest an awareness of sadness or failure creep in. And telling yourself that everything must work out is poor preparation for those times when they don’t. You can try, if you insist, to follow the famous self-help advice to eliminate the word “failure” from your vocabulary — but then you’ll just have an inadequate vocabulary when failure strikes.

The social critic Barbara Ehrenreich has persuasively argued that the all-positive approach, with its rejection of the possibility of failure, helped bring on our present financial crises. The psychological evidence, backed by ancient wisdom, certainly suggests that it is not the recipe for success that it purports to be.

Mr. Robbins reportedly encourages firewalkers to think of the hot coals as “cool moss.” Here’s a better idea: think of them as hot coals. And as a San Jose fire captain, himself a wise philosopher, told The Mercury News: “We discourage people from walking over hot coals.”

Oliver Burkeman is the author of the forthcoming book “The Antidote: Happiness for People Who Can’t Stand Positive Thinking.”

By OLIVER BURKEMAN

Published: August 4, 2012

From  http://www.nytimes.com/2012/08/05/opinion/sunday/