GLASS HALF FULL

I have been on a negative trajectory recently. I wrote about the lie, hypocrisy, and other negative happenings.  When my sister said she found my writing a bit sad, I started to think about that as it pertained to the world around me.  Why is the negative so easy to hold on to. Of course, there is plenty of negativity to grab and embrace.  Climate change, Covid, irresponsible leadership, and our disassociation from the truth.    The longer we focus on the negative the longer it will persist.    The negative side of the argument is always the easiest side to be on.  You don’t really need to offer any proof and you can just say no and the argument cascades into a never-ending chasm of inaction and hopelessness. The more we focus on the negative the more the negative controls the narrative and thus the outcome.  Our fascination with the negative is amazing, perhaps because it is so understandable.  Winning the lottery is just a fantasy (positive) but not winning (negative) is expected and easier to achieve.  Not doing anything in the face of massive problems is far easier than finding a solution.   Covid keeps you inside; you cannot work; you cannot go to the restaurant you cannot!!….is the operable phrase.  What if you changed that narrative and looked for the things you can do?  I was listening to a Podcast presented by Billy Shore of Share Our Strength.  For those who read this blog and do not know; Share Our Strength is responsible for the “No Kid Hungry” project which is in the process of eliminating childhood hunger in the United States.  Billy is the positive voice of a solution to this problem. When you listen to him speak you hear possible rather than impossible.  This goal is achievable.  When he restates the issue, it is the shortest sentence in his talk.  The longer sentences are always about the progress they have made and what they are about to achieve.  What if we were to do that with our lives?  Can you achieve a more positive outlook by thinking about what you can accomplish rather than what you have not?  The division in this country is a real opportunity to accomplish.  Think of it this way, if all the problems were solved what would be left for us to do.  Now that the problems have been defined and we have been driven to our respective corners what have we accomplished other than to define the argument.  Now that we know the negative, the opportunity is available to speak to the positive, possible compromise, and solutions.  I found this true with my clients. Problems were opportunities to reach out, discuss, and to solve. The horrific things that unfolded in recent weeks and the last year have created a void that could be filled.  Other than the fringe dissidents, who would not agree that we should not be ransacking the Capital?  If your neighbors can agree on that maybe they could agree to help people in your community who need the help.  Maybe you could write a story about an act of kindness that you witnessed.  Maybe you could write your senator.  Maybe you could clean out your closet of old clothing and give them to someone in need.  There are innumerable positive things you can do in order to move the needle away from the negative.  We are in such a negative place the only place to go is up.  So, if up is the trajectory that is easiest, why not find a way to get on board.  If it is only about me that is a very small audience.  What about broadening your audience?  Find a positive that could contribute to the betterment of your life or the life of someone else.  We can all hold on to the disappointments in politics, the world, and our lives which will be familiar and comfortable. On the contrary, we could seek a new path and find that generosity that might direct us to a more positive outcome. The positive outcome will have to come from within us.

Take a tip from advertisers -- they never sell you on a negative outcome.  Find a way in your life to advertise a positive outcome and see where that takes you.  It might just take you out of that tailspin of negativity.