What you cater to, you create and bring to yourself. So why not cater to optimism? Why not cater to a world you wish to live in? Why not have hope? Why not continue to believe in the goodness and possibility of the world (all the while keeping your common sense, mind you)?

During the past two parts of this series(part one, part two), I have shared with you ten benefits of choosing to be optimistic.  Today, I’d like to share with you five strategies for combating situations that try or test your ability to maintain this attitude of seeing the best in any situation because as you know, when things are going well, it’s much easier to keep hope in your heart, but the real test comes when it seems you just can’t get a leg up. Let’s take a look.

One of the simplest things each of us can do to change the tone of our days is to change the words that we use in conversations, comments, descriptions, etc. When we force ourselves to eliminate the “can’t”s and replace them with “can”s or point out what is working instead of what isn’t, it is amazing how quickly the tone shifts to a positive more hopeful outlook simply by the words we use when conversing with others, talking to ourselves or writing down in our journals.

During those instances when we do tend to unconsciously gravitate toward a negative thought about our abilities, the world, our relationships and so on, we need to stop and ask ourselves why we immediately jump to the negative conclusions.  More often than not it is because of fears we have or a lack of belief in ourselves that we can’t do it.  Once we confront the problem, we can then move past it and refuse to allow it to affect our attitude to how we go about our days.

Everything in our lives is not going to run smoothly. Nothing is entirely perfect and flawless, however, no matter what occurs, why not focus on what went well and allow ourselves to celebrate the successes and use them as fuel to continue to have hope.  The small hurdles we jump make a difference, and we must not mindlessly take them for granted.

When life seems too overwhelming and fraught with questions that seem t have no answers, having the foundation of something greater than ourselves is a reason to live better, give more and to continue to grow and be our best selves.  While hopefully we can find the inspiration within us, when we can’t and we need something more, look for the meaning of life and do your best to leave this world better than when you found it. The peace of mind in knowing that you are doing your best and contributing in a productive way, will help you have sleep-filled nights and calm your mind.

Being optimistic is like a muscle, it must be exercised on a regular/daily basis in order to create effective results in our lives.  The beauty of all of this effort to remain hopeful is that with time it becomes ingrained in our nature, and we begin to see things right side up without having to try, and that . . . that is the gift of being an optimist.