How To Become A Positive Person – 5 Daily Habits
Who Is A Positive Person?
A positive person is a person who focuses on what’s good in their life, finds joy in the simple things, and takes the general attitude that while there are lots of things they can’t directly control, they can control what they choose to focus on
Sometimes your current situation can foster a lot of negativity in the present. But despite whatever you’re going through, you have to be positive.
Are you wondering how to become a positive person? Here are five habits that positive people have:
1. Fall asleep in the “vortex.”
One idea I came across in my research on being more positive came from Abraham Hicks:
“If you sleep in the vortex, you wake up in the vortex. If you go to sleep, not in the vortex, you wake up not in the vortex.”
Being in the “vortex” refers to a state of pure positive energy. The idea in that quote is pretty straightforward: go to bed thinking positive thoughts and feeling happy, and you’re more likely to wake up thinking and feeling positive in the morning.
I knew this had to be true. I knew it because when I went to bed thinking angry thoughts, I usually dreamed that I was unhappy and then woke up grumpy (and exhausted) in the morning.
So, I decided to try something. As I closed my eyes to sleep at night, I scanned the day from the moment I woke up until the present moment when I was lying in bed, and I tried to recall all the positive things (even tiny things) that had happened that day.
I could have thought about the delicious mocha latte that I drank that morning, the fact there wasn’t snow on the ground and that I was able to run outside in the afternoon, or a nice comment someone left on one of my videos.
I spent a few seconds remembering a happy moment before moving on to the next one. After scanning the entire day, I would do it again, trying to find even more subtle positive things, and I did this until I fell asleep.
This exercise is probably the number one thing that helped me (and still continues to help me) wake up happier in the morning.
2. Have something to look forward to on the following day.
Something else that has helped me wake up happier is having something to look forward to every day, even if I have a busy day ahead and have minimal free time available.
Still to this day, every evening, I schedule at least one activity that brings me joy for the following day. It can be going for a walk with a friend, baking cookies, or watching the sunset. It can also be as simple as wearing my favorite outfit.
Scheduling one activity that brings me joy for the following day gives my mind something fun to anticipate and puts me in a good mood in the evening.
And again, how the day ends is a good indicator of how the following day begins.
3. Absorb uplifting ideas in the evening.
We all know that what we feed our minds affects our mood. I don’t have a TV and don’t follow the news, but my Facebook feed is often enough to get me irritated. So, I decided to stop scrolling mindlessly on Facebook (or at least do so less often) and consume positive-only content instead.
For the past few months, first thing in the morning and before going to bed, I’ve been reading a few pages of an inspiring book—usually something spiritual. I just finished reading the entire Earth Life book series by Sanaya Roman, and right now, I’m reading Wishes Fulfilled by Wayne Dyer.
Reading those kinds of books brings me peace. I can notice a significant difference in my mood and stress level if I just take fifteen minutes to consume uplifting content in the morning and evening.
(If you have book recommendations, you can share them in the comments.)
4. Make a gratitude list—with a twist.
After reading in the morning, I write down three to five things I’m grateful for—and why I appreciate each item.
I used to write gratitude lists of fifteen-plus items and do it very quickly—almost mindlessly—just to “get it done.” It made the practice sort of mechanical and not very effective.
I’ve found that writing fewer items on my list and taking the time to dive into the reasons each thing makes me happy intensifies the feelings of gratitude and makes the exercise more profound. I try to do this daily, although I do forget sometimes. When I forget several days in a row, I can feel the difference in my general mood.
Gratitude is perhaps the lowest-hanging fruit for cultivating a more positive attitude.
5. Choose your state of being as you open your eyes.
The last thing that has helped me is a piece of advice from brain scientist Daniel Amen. In an interview on The School of Greatness Podcast, he talked about the importance of setting a positive intention from the start of the day to cultivate what he calls “a positivity bias.”
An affirmation he uses himself and recommends using is: “Today is going to be a great day.”
When we tell ourselves this in the morning, our unconscious mind then looks for things that are going right to prove this is true. This isn’t toxic positivity—ignoring or denying the negative. It’s training our brains to see what’s positive instead of focusing on the negative by default.
I’ve made a habit of saying this affirmation (or a similar one) just after waking up and opening my eyes in the morning. It’s like choosing and declaring from the very start of the day what attitude you’ll adopt that day. It’s easy to do and sets the day’s tone.
In the beginning, I didn’t always remember to declare my intention until later in the morning, but it didn’t take long before it became automatic. Now, just remembering to think about my purpose (and then mentally saying it) makes me smile as I wake up.
. . .
Our lives don’t need to be perfect to wake up smiling in the morning; they just require a conscious effort to develop a positive attitude, which is what the five habits in this article have helped me accomplish.
I hope they serve you well, too, if you choose to implement them.
