The Power of Positive Pondering

By Dhwani Desai

There are two types of people in the world- pessimists and optimists. Pessimists think negatively, always anticipating the bad, while optimists think positively, of the good to come. I, myself, am a pessimist, but often, optimistic thinking overtakes the gloominess, and it honestly makes my existence in this world a little more tolerable. Of course, no scientific theory states that being positive is beneficial, but I like to think that you often manifest what you believe.

Science Fair Plant Experiment

I’m sure you’ve heard of the experiment where two plants are in the same environment and given the same amount of water, but one is praised while the other is scolded and reprimanded. Upon doing some research, it’s actually the vibrations of negative words that affect the plants badly. To sum it up, bad words have bad vibrations that cause the plant to wilt, whereas good words have good vibrations that cause the plant to prosper. I think positivity is a lot like this in humans as well. If we’re surrounded by it, we grow and - excuse my slang - slay, but if we’re deprived of it and introduced to negativity instead, it causes us to wilt, or get upset.

If we think about it, what problems are caused by positivity? Nobody has ever been upset or unwelcoming towards positivity. Negativity, though, has caused so many problems. “You’re dress makes you look fat,” or “You’re worth nothing.” These are things we hear and see daily in the real world or on social media. These are the things that make people insecure, depressed, make people want to hurt themselves, and so on. This could all be prevented if you just say something nice about someone. If you have something rude to say, don’t say it at all.

Being negative also causes a lot of stress which can be detrimental to many people's health, especially pregnant, cancerous, or heart patients. A positive attitude and outlook towards a particular situation help reduce the risk of any further complications that can be easily prevented.

"Positive anything is better than negative nothing."- Elbert Hubbard

Hubbard was an American author in the early 1900s. This quote of his shapes my mindset about positive thinking and life in general. Always hope. If you want something, believe that you will get it. A positive thought, scenario, or situation is way better to think about compared to something that is going to discourage you.

Imagine going into an interview and being absolutely certain that you wont get the job. You're training your brain to give up something automatically. To not try your absolute best. You think "What's the point of this interview if I'm not going to get the job anyways?" On the other hand, when you go in thinking that you will get the job, you will make your best efforts to get the job.

Ways to be positive throughout the day

A University of Kansas study found that smiling, even fake smiling- reduces heart rate and blood pressure during stressful situations. Laughter therapy, also known as humor therapy, is also used by many people when in stressful situations. Some people implement this in their morning workouts- laughing while warming up or cooling down. Others do it throughout the day by either reading books, watching a comedy show, talking to friends, or playing games.

Instead of thinking about what you don't have, think about things you do have. An example could be when you're stuck in traffic. Don't stress about getting late, instead, be thankful that you could afford a car. Or maybe be thankful for the extra seconds to listen to a song or the news. Accept that you can't do anything about the traffic jam, but you can determine how you set your mood for the rest of the day. Whether you want to be cranky, or fresh and happy.

As I mentioned before, many people face negativity on a daily basis. The response to this negativity increases as more negative people and thoughts surround you. Thats why you should surround yourself with people you know you will have a good time around. What is better? Hundreds of friends, but half of them are judgmental, or a few friends who always keep you happy around them?

Online, its anonymous. You can't decide who comments on your videos or posts and who doesn't. What's important is that you're confident and ignore those comments. Better yet, delete or report the comment if the comment is really that bothersome. Don't let anyone bring you down.

Conclusion

Positivity is a force to be reckoned with. It has many benefits, whether its healing people physically or mentally. There are many scientific studies and phenomena to support my argument, like the plant experiment i mentioned above. Negative energy only brings people down, causing many insecurities to develop. Remember to be positive and spread positivity too, because you never know the lasting impact it will happen on the people around you!

Sources

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