The Power of Positivity
A common misconception, if you’re downtrodden about your body, is that once you lose the weight, you’ll become happy.
Where this is wrong, is that you don’t have to lose the weight to feel better, rather, you’ve got to shift your mindset and allow your optimism to encourage you along the Fast Track. It might sound like a bit of a chicken and an egg scenario, but think about how much easier it is to succeed in something when your heart and mind are 100% on board… and how difficult it is to motivate yourself when you’re mentally checked out.
As you’ll discover in more detail during Week 11 of the SuperLife program, Dr Tim Sharp aka Dr Happy, explains this common procrastination as The Tyranny of When; “I’ll be happy when I lose the weight, when I have a better job, when my boyfriend stops dilly dallying and puts a ring on it…” You get the gist. But, what we should be focusing on is the Primacy of Positivity – “Rather than waiting until we’ve achieved something to allow ourselves to be happy,” Dr Sharp explains, “we can make ourselves happy first, and then use this as motivation to inspire us to achieve!”
Sounds perfect right? Now all you need is a little inspo to get your mind on the right track!
See it, Believe it!
Visualising goals is a method used by some of the world’s most successful athletes, leaders and entrepreneurs. Start by working towards little achievements and then building up to your ideal position. Keep your goals at the forefront but try to balance them out with what’s in the present. While it will take some effort (you’re not just along for the ride; you’re flying this plane!), enjoying the journey will make it much easier to reach your destination. After all, happy people are more likely to succeed, so turn your trip into a joyride!
Creating a vision board, journaling and verbalising your goals will make them tangible and hold you more accountable as well as providing uplifting inspiration. Documenting your starting point and journey will also give you incredible satisfaction when you make it to the top and look back on how far you’ve come!
Be your own Best Friend
In order to shift into motivation mode, you have to become your biggest cheerleader! Decide that the little voice inside your head is going to quit the disappointed lectures, and instead be your friend. Speak to yourself as if you’re talking to a person for whom you care deeply; if your bestie had a Fast Fail, you wouldn’t ridicule or scold her, you’d cheer her up and remind her that mistakes happen and not to be discouraged. This is the tone that you need to start using with yourself; be kind!
LOL: 101
Laughter and positivity have such incredible powers that you can even trick yourself into a better mood just by thinking about it! Don’t believe us? Try it; the muscles you activate when smiling trigger your brain to release endorphins, making you feel more relaxed and happy. This even works with a forced smile or fake laugh; your brain can’t tell the difference and just unloads those warm fuzzy feels anyway, meaning you can wiggle your way out of frown town and into smile city!
If you need some external encouragement, do something that you know will put you in a better mood; watch your fave comedy program, call up that friend that always has you in a fit of giggles or take your pup for a stroll. Practice gratitude and positive thinking and whenever that griping little voice tries to get you down, use your super powers of positivity to come out on top!
If you have any questions or need more support, make sure you jump on the SuperSquad Facebook group which is abuzz with stories and advice.