The new year shininess is beginning to fade and the winter blahs are threatening. But there is hope and we can beat those winter blahs with just two steps. It all begins with how we think.
Are you feeling icy winter winds and longing for a warm ocean breeze like me? Are your new year goals and resolutions less interesting or more difficult to maintain? We’re trying to settle into a new routine, yet everything seems a bit different. As we wrap up one month and head to another cold one, the winter blahs can feel even more overwhelming. Yet how we feel does not need to dictate how we think and act.
Step One: Shift your Mindset
Recently I’ve been sharing on my Instagram, Facebook, and Twitter about how being positive and paying attention to our thoughts matters. When we consciously shift our focus away from the negative (like icy winds) to the positive (like a warm blanket by the fire) we change more than a momentary thought. We change our attitude.
Studies have shown those with positive attitudes and mindsets have better memory and cognitive function in their later years. That alone should be enough motivation to see that glass as half full! It’s a simple shift, yet so often we get stuck on one negative and let it swirl into an entire mindset. Let’s stop that little negative thought in its tracks. Instead, purposely choose positive.
Step Two: Make it a Habit
One choice leads to another. The more we shift our focus and choose a positive thought, the more it 1. becomes a habit and 2. influences our actions. Instead of only feeling that icy wind, we shift to feel the comfort of a warm blanket and fire. Instead of frustration from being cooped up inside, we switch to a strategy to use our inside time well. It’s not always easy, but each time we sense the negatives, blahs, or complaints, we need to shift as soon as possible. When we keep doing this, little by little those silver linings become easier to see.
Choosing positive means even while we see or feel the negative, we choose not to succumb to it. This subtle choice doesn’t change the weather, situation, or feeling. But it does change our thoughts, attitude, and actions moving forward. It is literally a choice we always have, yet don’t always choose.
The more we purposely choose this positive shift, the more we make it a habit to repeat. And if you recall anything about habits, the more we repeat them, the more they become automatic.
So it’s up to us, which habit will we choose: repeating the negative blahs that pull us lower or the positive actions that lift us and others?
Let’s choose positive, make it a habit, and beat those winter blahs. We need every tool available to not only beat the blahs but create a positive mindset moving forward. Not only will it help us this winter with our attitude, but also in the future with our memories. So, let’s make all our moments memorable, choose positive, and beat those winter blahs.
For additional details on creating habits that stick sign up for my online course here!