Southbourne Positive Living Group: 29 Positive-Thinking Tips from My 29 Years

It’s my birthday week. Yay!

I’m turning 29 on Friday, and man, am I gearing up for a stellar year! I can’t wait to tell you more about my plans as they’re coming to fruition quite quickly here.

Last year, I posted 28 Trainer-y Tips from My 28 Years, but this year I wanted to go in a different direction. Since Strong Inside Out is no longer strictly a fitness site, I want to incorporate more of what the last year has involved.

Today, I’m going to give you the best of the best positive-thinking tips from 29 years of implementing them all myself. I hope they help you as much as they’ve helped me in my life!

1. Breathe. No matter how tough the situation, breathing is the best way I’ve found to ground myself back in the present, and calm even the harshest emotions.

2. Take time for yourself. If I don’t get at least one day a week in silence, just to sit and recharge, I get super stressed out. I get anxious and even a little panicky. Even if you don’t feel this way when you spend time alone, it’s important not to spread yourself too thin. Choose the things that are most important to you and concentrate on those; give those things your all. It’s better to be fully committed to a few things, than half-assing your way through a lot.

3. Comparing yourself to others is wasted energy. You are unique. Comparing your being to others’ in beauty, brains, fitness, or anything else is a losing battle. You will never be like everyone else because you are not meant to be. Trying to be “normal” is a waste of the awesomeness that you are. Embrace those quirks that make you different and stop should-ing your life away!

4. Don’t be afraid to be excited!!! I’m an enthusiastic person. I get excited, I strike random poses, and I laugh loudly. When you enjoy life and allow yourself to show the happiness you feel when you’re feeling it, it becomes contagious. Your enthusiasm could brighten someone else’s day.

5. Reach out. Feeling down? Talk to someone. It helps so much. I don’t know what I’d do without my support system. If you feel guilty for reaching out for help, please know that your cheerleaders want you to feel better. They’re here for you because how you feel and who you are is important to them. If you don’t feel comfortable reaching out to them, talk to a professional who is qualified to help.

6. Keep your eyes on the prize. If you’re having a hard time achieving your goals, take a step back and remind yourself why you’re working so hard. It’s easy to lose sight of the big picture if our present is a struggle. Remembering that there is a light at the end of the tunnel–that this struggle is for a reason–can help get us through even the darkest times.

7. Don’t be afraid to give up a dream. Giving up my “dream” of acting was one of the best things I did on my journey to finding happiness. Sometimes, old dreams become nightmares, causing much negativity that can tear your life apart. Let go of your stubbornness and have the courage to look at the endless mud you’re trudging through from the outside. Is what you’re fighting for worth it?

8. Give yourself a break. You are not perfect. No one is. But that’s ok because perfect is quite boring if you ask me. :) Don’t be so hard on yourself for failures; realize that they help you grow stronger and move on.

9. Be ok with not being ok. Everyone has times of weakness. If you resist them, pretending like it’s not happening; it’s bound to get worse, festering away inside of you. Feel the pain and know that you’ll come out of it stronger.

10. Prove it to yourself. Nothing solidifies the belief that you can overcome anything like going through it. Those tough times are a chance to prove to yourself that you’re a fighter. Make each time after this easier to get through by showing yourself that you can now.

11. Get creative. I write. Others draw, play music, assemble collages, act, paint, knit, etc. Having a creative outlet is a great way to get all those pent-up emotions out of your system so that you have the space to become more positive.

12. Make a mantra. Mantras help me through so much of my day. I use them in workouts, in trying situations, and even in the ones where I just really want to do well. Mantras serve as highly personal reaffirmations to get you back on track when you start to veer off. My favorite? “I am strong enough.”

13. Keep score of your wins. When I have my clients keep food journals, I ask them to write down all the exercise they get in as well as their “opportunity meals,” because I want them to be able to look back and see how they’ve progressed. Keep a record of all your accomplishments so that, in those times you’re feeling stalled or like you’re back-tracking, you can look back and see your achievements on paper.

14. Be grateful. For what you have. For the potential to have what you don’t have. For the lessons you’ve learned. For the strength you’ve earned. For the life you have.

15. Eat clean, think clean. Whenever I eat like crap, I feel like crap. My head gets all muddy and I have trouble redirecting my thoughts in a positive direction. I’ll spare you all the chemical and hormonal details of why eating is directly linked to cognitive function, and I’ll just tell you that, well, it is. If you ingest over-sugared, processed, chemically crap, you’re going to have trouble focusing on the positive (or focusing altogether). Instead, aim for a diet of foods that are as close to the source (ground, tree, sky, ocean, etc) as possible.

16. Surround yourself with people you want to be like. You are the sum of the 5 people you spend the most time with. Make yourself awesome by hanging out amidst awesomeness! Supportive, encouraging, and loving friends and family will help you be a more positive person. With their help, you’ll surely become the person you want to be.

17. Cut the cads. If you’re hanging out with people who drain you, tear you down, or just don’t value your friendship, you’re being influenced by their behavior whether you like it or not. These people can drag you down and try their hardest to keep you from living the positive life you deserve… if you let them. Don’t let them. Fire them before you get dragged too far down the wrong hole.

18. Tell yourself you’re worth it… and believe it! Now, I’m not talking mirror work here. I’m talking just straight believing that you deserve happiness and positivity in your life. You are worthy of the life you want simply because you are here fighting for it. Never forget it.

19. Make a vision board (aka join Pinterest). I have been making vision boards for years! Not only are they fun to make, but looking at them is a surefire way to bring me up if I’m feeling down. Gather together a bunch of magazine pictures, words that inspire you, or even little souveniers (such as key chains, coins, or toys) and post them all together to illustrate how you want to live your life. Want an easier, more portable version? Join Pinterest! It’s an awesome resource for us and you can bring it with you everywhere! If you need some ideas, check out my boards by clicking here.

20. Commit to change. Change is hard. It gets uncomfortable at times because we are only comfortable with what we know. In order to achieve change, we must push ourselves outside our comfort zone. Know this going into it, and you’ll save yourself a lot of anguish.

Southbourne Positive Living Group (SPLG) meets on the last Wednesday of the month (excluding holidays).

Join a group of like- minded people and rediscover the purpose and meaning of your life.