Over the past week or so I caught my first flu in about ten years or so, but I did not mind, because, if nothing else, it provided me with the splendid opportunity to write this article on optimism and the power of positive thinking. Now, many people I know who get ill agonize over their symptoms, go to the doctor, take several medications, and spend much of their time complaining about how horrible they feel or how much they are not getting done or missing out on. However, what I tend to do is to look forward to the end result: I look at illness as the way the body sheds itself of its weakest cells, cleanses itself, and revitalizes itself with new, fresh cells. I look at illness as a short term pain for a long term gain in terms of greater health. The only medications I took over this past week was some aspirin for the occasional headache and some Flonase for my cold like symptoms. I then proceeded to appreciate how wonderful it was that I had a nice, cozy, comfortable bed to crawl into, fresh filtered water available at my fingertips, and pampered myself by making a variety of Amy’s vegan soups and making toast covered in olive oil which I used to dip into these soups (my favorite food when I am ill – so wonderful!). I didn’t worry about chores or timelines or schedules or anything else. If I felt like sleeping or just lying around in bed I did just that. If I felt like watching a show or a movie I did that. And it I felt like listening to music I did that. And every time that I did something I smiled and reminded myself of how fortunate I was to have all of this available to me while patiently waiting for my body to recover. Because so many others do not have these things so readily available to them. And each and every day I started feeling a little better.

Now, I’m not suggesting that people should not see doctors or take medications. In fact, I might have done both if things continued progressing in a negative direction by the end of the week. I just like to give the body ample time to cleanse itself naturally before resorting to such measures, and if, after that period of time passes, things do not improve then I consider these other options. But, this is all beside the point. Through optimism and positive thinking not only did I suffer less throughout my period of illness, but it is likely that I recovered more quickly than someone who might have been less positive and optimistic. This particular example is about illness, however, this is also true for other aspects of life as well. People that tend to be optimistic and positive minded in nature perform better and make greater progress in life even when faced with significant challenges.

Most people who know me know that I tend to be very positive minded and optimistic in nature and perhaps even a bit overly optimistic at times. I embrace these aspects, because positive thinking can have a profound effect on your life. Every year for new years I generally tell people that we are going to have the “best year ever!”. Now, why do I do that? Because it really doesn’t matter. Things will usually play out the way that they do in life no matter how we feel so why not choose to feel good? Not only will you feel happier, but you will suffer less from stress and anxiety, you will create warmer surroundings for both you and others to enjoy, others will enjoy being in your presence and feel more at ease, and life will continue to be a wonderful, beautiful adventure. In addition,the more positive and optimistic you are, and the better you feel, the more resilient you become in dealing with life’s difficulties. Things just do not seem to be so bad and you have a greater confidence and belief in your abilities to overcome these challenges. Furthermore, you will view these difficulties as being more temporary in nature. So always try to think positive, and to be optimistic, for the benefit of yourself and for the benefit of those who surround you. Because it truly doesn’t matter… Or perhaps, more importantly, it does!

I hope this article helps some of you out there who struggle with similar challenges and I wish you all a wonderful holiday season filled with all of the love, joy, and warmth you can possibly imagine!

This and other happiness and self-improvement related tips are provided throughout my self-help oriented books: https://brighterdayslifecoaching.com/published-books-and-life-coaching-services/ 

#selfimprovement #selfhelp #selfdevelopment #intention #fulfillment #success #inspiration #happiness

This article describes one way in which to become more optimistic and positive minded in nature such that you can experience greater peace and happiness. I encourage you to make it your goal to become more optimistic and positive minded in your own life; not only for the benefit of yourself, but for the benefit of others who surround you. It truly works wonders for me. To date I’ve written several articles related to creating and living a happier life. Click on “Personal Improvement, Development, and Growth Related Posts” on the sidebar to the right or below (depending upon which device you are using) if you would like to read some of these other articles for helpful tips on how to create greater peace, happiness, and progress in life if you think they might be helpful to you or to others in your life.

For those that do not know, I perform life coaching and training services in two primary areas: 1) Personal and Professional Improvement, Development, and Growth, and 2) Financial Planning, Management, and Investing. As such, I generally alternate the articles that I write via my blogs between these two topic areas. This particular article is associated with the first area that I life coach in. So if you don’t have much interest in personal and professional improvement, development, and growth, rest assured that soon I will write an article which will be in the area that you might have greater interest in; the financial planning, management, and investing area. You can also follow me on Twitter if you like at: Joseph M Brennan Jr @ BrighterDaysLC

Please contact me if you, or someone else in your life, could use some assistance with either of the two primary areas that I actively perform life coaching in. You can learn more about each of these areas by clicking on the menu, footer, and sidebar items.

Joseph M. Brennan Jr.
CEO/Life Coach – Brighter Days Life Coaching
“Your Brighter Days Life Coach for Life”

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