I’d have to say I’m a glass-half-full kind of person. I’ve always disliked being this way (obviously). While many of my friends would seemingly not have a care in the world, there I was generally fed up with something or thinking the worst. It just came naturally to me. Maybe you are the same – you get wrapped up in negative thoughts and before you know it, you are fixated on those thoughts before you realize an hour has passed…
Having a negative mindset puts a gray filter on everything. Nothing looks exciting and everything is potentially annoying. A negative mindset drains your energy, drains your time, and robs you of the potential happiness you could be experiencing.
It sucks.
It wasn’t until I started taking better care of myself that I was able to deal with the negative mindset I experience so often. Changing a negative mindset is difficult. It took me years to learn how to get myself out of a bad space.
But I know it’s possible.
If you feel tired, have nothing to look forward to and just feel like everything is bad, this post might be for you.
These are the habits I use to shift a negative mindset when I feel that emotion coming up.
1. Stop yourself from complaining
Complaining is addictive. How often do you find yourself complaining about things? I used to be a big complainer. Worse, I did it more often when I was around other complainers. Sometimes it’s good to get things off your chest, but you have to be careful that you don’t end up complaining all the time.
When you find yourself in a negative mindset, complaining comes naturally.
However, does it help you?
Whenever I feel this negative mindset coming up, I ask myself. Will complaining help?
The answer is always a big fat one no.
Complaining makes things worse. It never solves or helps anything. When you complain, you only reinforce this negative mindset, creating a habit and routine in the process.
When I feel frustrated, I catch myself before I start complaining. Instead, I try to stop myself and think about how helpful it will be or if it will just make me feel worse.
Is it always easy? Not at all. That’s why it takes practice.
2. Are you focused on the right things?
One of the most important habits I use to change a negative mindset is to pause and ask myself if I’m focusing on the right things. For example, are there things happening in the world that affect me? Chances are, there’s probably something.
If it’s something I can control, I’ll try to think of a way to solve it.
If it’s something I can’t control, I’ll remind myself that there’s nothing I can do about it.
There is so much chaos in the world, so much to think about, so much to worry about. Disasters and wars are happening and the news is constantly shouting at you. No wonder we experience a negative mindset.
we are overstimulation. Everything is starting to feel a little… heavy.
Sometimes you have to take a careful pause and ask yourself if you are focusing on the things that are really important you.
One of the most useful habits I’ve ever had is focusing on what I’m doing can check in mine mine ZOE. It cuts through all the noise and helps me remember what’s really important.
For example;
- My family
- My health
- My hobbies
- My friends
Everything else is just noise. It doesn’t need to have space in my head. Plus I don’t have room for much.
With too much input, you start to feel overwhelmed, even if you don’t realize that all the noise in the world is affecting you on some level.
3. Change your routine
When you do the same things over and over, life can sometimes start to seem mundane, especially if you work a 9-5 job and don’t enjoy your work. While I like my routines, sometimes it helps to mix things up.
Breaking a routine takes you out of your mind.
While you can’t just quit your job (unless you change it), you can break the mold one night or weekend to expose yourself to something completely new to you.
- Go and see a show
- Take part in an exercise class
- Visit a place of natural beauty for the day
- Learn and organize
Whatever it is, the point is to do something you thought you’d never do. Get out of your comfort zone. When you’re a kid, the world seems like a huge place with endless possibilities. As you get older, your vision of this may shrink.
Get some of that wonder back by learning or doing something new.
Changing a negative mindset is hard when you do the same routines over and over again.
Heck, you could even paint your room a different color. Just do something.
One thing that helps me get out of a negative mindset is writing. Once upon a time, writing was brand new to me. I never thought I would see myself as a writer. However, it soon turned into my passion.
Get out of your familiar routine and notice how different you feel.
If you want to create a new routine, you can download our free daily routine planner here.
4. Go from victim to control
Sometimes you feel like you are a victim of the world like everything is happening to you. You feel as if nothing good is happening to you and you are simply at the will of everything around you.
I have felt this way many times.
But having that perspective only keeps you in a negative mindset. In fact, you have more control over how you feel than you think.
The world happens to everyone. We all have our own things happening, even when others seem happier than us.
One habit that helps me change a negative mindset is to decide how I they want to feel something.
Instead of pulling my emotional strings from the world, I can choose whether I want to judge something good or bad. This sounds very simple, but I find it true.
If it’s raining outside, I can choose whether I want to believe it’s a bad day. Or, I can decide that it doesn’t matter that it’s raining because the sun will come back eventually.
By doing this, you are reminding yourself that it is good to be seen in everything. You take control before you start feeling negative.
This helps me regulate my emotions, rather than having them dictated by something outside of me at will.
Conclusion: breaking the cycle
Changing a negative mindset meant changing my habits. One step at a time. It’s a journey, not something you’ll be able to do overnight, but hopefully these tips will help you along the way.
