Thinking Positively

We have all had “those” days. You know the kind where you study as hard as you possibly can for a test that worries you, only to find out that you nearly failed the test or perhaps you did fail. These days are the hardest days to get through. The days that you give your all only to be let down in the end. Those days that after countless hours practicing on the football field during the week only to lose Saturday’s game by a few points. It’s during these days that many of us forget what is truly important. It’s not the grades, your GPA, or your win/loss record. What is truly important on these days, is the fact that you tried your best. I’m certain most of us have had this talk already, but on occasion, it’s important to hear it again. It’s important to look ahead and see what you are accomplishing, instead of what you are not.

You see, thinking positively has a vital aspect of our lives. When you think positively, you act positively. When you act positively, you complete positive tasks. However, the opposite side of the coin is also true. If you degrade yourself for the things you didn’t accomplish, you will think negatively. If you think negatively, you will act negatively. When you act negatively, you will make bad decisions and do things that are negative. It’s important to note that this behavior is like a mile-long freight train. Once something like that gains momentum and is speeding down the tracks at 60mph, it takes nearly a mile and a half for it to come to a complete stop. If you allow yourself to think like this, it will force you to make difficult changes in order to fix the damage that you have already done. This is the slowing down part of the analogy. It will take time for you to make the positive changes you need in order to rectify what’s happening.

This is why thinking positively is so crucial, especially for someone in college. We have all these tasks on our plates that we are trying to deal with all at the same time, when we need to slow down and allow ourselves to come to a neutral state. Athletics, what coach is yelling at you for, our professors, our advisors, our various student organizations, our families, our friends. These are all things that we need to take little by little and digest before we move on. If we allow our plates to become overfilled, that annoying ankle biting dog at your aunt’s Thanksgiving dinner last year is going to eat it all. This dog is that negativity. No matter what you do, it will ALWAYS be there waiting for you to drop something. That is why it is important to allow yourself to portion everything going on in your life. This is why people say that “everything is good in moderation.” This includes the negativity; it’s meant to be a motivator. But, when we allow it to take too much from us, it actually does the opposite; it becomes hopelessness, pessimism, discomfort, and eventually depression.

Kenny Rogers, a well-respected country music singer, wrote a song called “The Greatest.” It tells the story of a little boy standing on home plate pitching the ball to himself. He imagines the cheers and screams of the crowd behind him when “the ball goes up, like the moon so bright. He swings his bat with all his might. And the world’s as still, as still can be. The baseball falls, and that’s strike three.” The boy hears his mom call for him, and he leaves the baseball field telling himself one last thing. “He says, I am the greatest, that is a fact. But, even I didn’t know I could pitch like that.”

In every situation, it is important to allow yourself the proper time for constructive criticism, but also to cut it off and move on at the proper moment. Too much constructive criticism is a bad thing, but in small amounts, it motivates you to do better the next time. While I can’t promise anything, I can say that the chances are likely that this game, that test, or your next upcoming event that you are planning will not make a shred of difference five years from now. It may not even make a difference one year from now, and that is up to you to decide.

Out of personal experience, I want to give you some advice. Never allow someone to belittle you for something that you have done right, even if you fail at the task presented to you. Never beat yourself up about the past or about something that you had no control over. And finally, never dwell on any one thing more than a day or two. I mean, in the end, it doesn’t even matter. (Did you get the Linkin Park joke? LOL) Until the day comes that Brian and Stewie Griffin show up out of a flash of light, you cannot change the past, so you shouldn’t try. All that you can do, if it is applicable, is apologize and move on. Do your best, to the best of your ability. Nobody can ask you for any more than that, and if they do, it probably isn’t the best relationship to maintain.

Best Wishes to you. I hope this article finds you at the right time. Please watch the Kenny Rogers music video below!