Why Be Positive

The title to this post is both a statement and a question, hence no question mark. When your best buddies are mostly experts in English grammar, you become acutely aware of certain details like that. If being positive is so important and helpful in this life, why isn't everyone bubbling over and being positive all the time? Being negative, which is what non-positive people are, is a nasty habit that's easy to fall into.

News stories encourage the habit of negative thinking. Having taught newswriting, I know that one function of news programs is to make the audience consider new negative possibilities. Maybe there is too much of oxynitsuldiobiocide in the water, and it's going to make my teeth fall out. Maybe there's a killer waiting for me at Wal-Mart. Maybe my cat really is psychic. And then again, maybe not.

Advertising is another downer. Fear sells, especially to women. Consider how many products for women are sold on the basis of fear: if you don't buy our product, you may end up old, ugly, out of fashion, uncool, and of course, unloved. Ridiculous!

News programming and advertising are all about making money. Making money is a wonderful thing, but you don't need to contribute to other people's profits by by getting caught up in their fear mongering. Use positive energy to raise your own revenues.

You will handle any thing that happens to you. You always have; you always will. And nothing happens that some good doesn't come out of it. Probably the thing I most feared in this life was being divorced. And getting a divorce is not a pleasant experience. But throughout it I enjoyed the support of so many wonderful friends. And now that it's over, I'm having a great time doing what I want.

We all have limited time together in life on this planet. Being negative, focusing on the bad things that could happen, is simply a drain of time and energy. Like Cynthia said on her radio blog, "Even if the glass is only one-fourth full, maybe someone will come and fill it." A positive outlook clears your vision so you see possibilities that are invisible to other people.