Life Hacks: 3 Easy Steps to Becoming More Positive
Those slightly annoying, kind of cliche optimists are onto something. Positivity can have drastic effects on your overall health and your emotional wellness.
Meet Faisal Abdalla, a professional Nike and Barry's Bootcamp Personal Trainer. Faisal is an advocate for #PMA (positive mental attitude). This fitness guru breaks down for us the three steps he believes creates inner PMA.
Step 1) Open your mind
"Straight away, if you're naturally a more negative person, you're going to have a wall up. So you need to do your best to try to be open minded. Not totally strip down that wall straight away because that would be impossible, but just try to step out of the boundaries of your normal way of thinking," says Faisal.
Step 2) Look for the positives in life
"Adopting a more positive mental attitude is about letting go of the negativity and trying to focus on the positive, especially when your first instinct is to assume there are no positives. I don't care what anyone says, there's always a positive in every situation."
Start counting your blessings instead of counting your faults. It might seem hard when you are in a dire situation, but it's essential to remember things could be more dire. This is a difficult lesson for many of us to learn, but it is truly the key to positivity.
Step 3) Remember some (often times corny) mantras
"During my Barry's classes I take a very energetic approach, rather than a mean, drill sergeant style because it's much more positive and motivating. And I always pull out the mantras and sayings. Out of class they might sound cheesy, but when you're on the treadmill and you're sprinting at 10mph and I shout on the microphone, 'Look in the mirror! That is your only competition! Don't let that competition win – YOU win!' it really helps people push themselves." says Faisal.
You know those inspirational mantras you've admittedly pinned on your Pinterest board? Start embracing them. They can definitely push you forward in a time of need.
What are tricks you use to stay positive and push yourself? Got a favourite mantra? Share it with us!