Life on the Sunny Side

Have you ever thought what would happen if you started thinking things will turn out better than you imagine? You can’t always think of worst-case scenarios. Start thinking of best-case scenarios. What’s the worst that can happen? They will start coming true? What’s the best that can happen? They will start coming true!

Beautiful lives don’t just happen. They are planned. They are sown. They are nurtured. That doesn’t happen if you spend your days planning for things to go wrong. It’s perfectly acceptable to consider that things might not go as they were planned to be. We actually encourage that. That is how we learn to adapt, to learn, and to grow.

However, you also can allow yourself to plan that your journey will end as you hoped, your goal will be met, or your life will be good. To always consider the worst-case scenario is to live a life so when something positive happens you say to yourself, “I can’t believe this could ever happen to me.” But when you live a positive life, when something good happens you can say, “I’ve been planning all my life for this!”

Mahatma Gandhi said, “Happiness is when what you think, what you say, and what you do are in harmony.” Positive thought and seeking best case results increase happiness. They affect how you think, what you say, and what you do, building harmony in your life.

In Positively Powerful, we wrote how American ethicist and author Diana Rangaves described how positive thinking changes how the brain adapts to incoming information:

In “The Relationship Between Neuroplasticity and Positive Thinking,” Dr. Diana Rangaves discusses how the human brain is constantly reorganizing its connections to adapt to new incoming information. Anticipating a negative event will result in a negative response. Likewise, anticipating a positive event results in a positive or pleasant response. She describes how you can see this working when you anticipate eating something you know you are going to enjoy. You begin salivating before you even start eating.

She concluded with, “Thinking positively is a choice that you can make each day that has lasting, positive results on your life.”

How you think has the power to make you and others happy.

Positive words spoken aloud can profoundly affect others’ well being and in turn, that of the you, the speaker. Positive words encourage, motivate, and inspire. They build healthy relationships and an uplifting environment. Positive words spoken internally do likewise. Life coach and author Jeanne Nangle writes that positive self-talk can transform your thinking and build a lasting sense of self-worth. She notes that positive talk is “an effective tool for improving resilience, reducing stress, and creating a more positive outlook on life” creating healthy relationships with yourself and others.

The simple act of talking can be a positive experience. In Tell Me a Story we wrote, “We learn from stories. Much of what we know, many would argue most of the important stuff we know, did not come from formal education and research. It came from stories told by our personal storytellers.”

American author Emily Dickinson said, “I know nothing in the world that has as much power as a word.” A positive attitude in communication is a ray of sunshine. a way of looking at the world with hope. How you speak has the power to make you and others happy. Saying nice things to others not only makes them feel good, it gives you a warm rush of good feelings, and spreads positive energy to whomever hear them. Mother Theresa understood this saying, “Kind words can be short and easy to speak, but their echoes are truly endless.”

How you speak has the power to make you and others happy.

In Fight the Fear we asked, “How do you make your days happy?” We then offered 15 suggestions to having more happy days. Many involved mental or emotional adjustments but nine were action based, including these two:

• Get up and move.! If you work outside the home, visit other departments, see how others use your products or services, find out what others are working on and what their priorities are. If you work at home, leave your designated workspace and walk through your home, taking in what the time at your workplace has allowed you to accomplish.

• Go exploring. Go outside, breathe in fresh air, and visit with nature.

Engaging in positive behavior can alleviate stress and anxiety, promote a more relaxed state of mind, and increase happiness. Yes, acts of kindness and positivity can boost overall happiness. In an article in Psychology Today, psychologist and author Barton Goldsmith wrote, “Having a positive influence on those around you will change the way you feel inside. Just doing this can make you a happier person, even if you are dealing with very difficult issues.”

How you act has the power to make you and others happy.

Distilled to its essence, Norman Vincent Peale addresses how to find that best case scenario. “Talk health, happiness, and prosperity to every person you meet. Make all your friends feel there is something special in them. Look at the sunny side of everything. Think only the best.”  It is true, “Happiness is when what you think, what you say, and what you do are in harmony.”

That is a best case we all can strive for.