Positivitea Cup Eleven: Little Steps Towards Positivity

I don't get frequently asked a lot of things, besides whether my eyelashes are real (they are), but one of the recurring questions I get often enough generally revolves around how I maintain a good, optimistic attitude. I can hear my mom laughing at me all the way from New York, the same way she did when I won best personality for a senior superlative. I digress, I pride myself on the shift in personality I managed to make throughout college. For me, I think I just spent far too long (also known as my entire adolescent and then some) being miserable and it turns out...I'm not naturally miserable? It's much, much easier for me to see the bright side of things now and I just prefer living life that way. Call it rose-tinted glasses, call it naivety, whatever you want to. It's just how I like to live my life! I don't think it was one huge change that happened over night. Like anything, it took little steps. Even now, I still have to remind myself of these little things, but it's always worth it!

1. Compliments on compliments on compliments

I make it my mission to compliment someone daily. That's my bare minimum for the day, compliment one person on something, whether it's something physical, something they've written, part of their personality, whatever it may be. Think of how wonderful compliments (legitimate ones, not disgusting men beeping at you on the street...but that's a whole other story for another time) from other feel. It's never going to hurt anyone to compliment them on something. It's just a simple way of spreading joy like Christmas cheer.

2. Smile more

This one is super cheesy, but whatever, it's true. I hated smiling until I got my braces off and even after that, there were 1,001 different things that embarrassed me about my smile. The way my eyes squinted, worrying if there was lipstick on my teeth, what my smile looked like because of the shape of my nose, whatever it was. I made excuse after excuse why I shouldn't show my teeth and finally I just stopped worrying about it. Smiling is infectious. I mean, think of adorable babies. Everyone is going to smile at an adorable baby. Well, mostly everyone. Walk around like like you're smiling at an adorable baby. And thus concludes my weirdest explanation in any blog post ever. Thank you and goodnight. 

3. Try to see the bright side

I'm a glass half-full kind of gal. I try to see the bright side. I, personally, don't find the need to think of every worst case-scenario (I slip up sometimes though, I'm not perfect) or think the world is ending every other day. My dramatic side gets the best of me sometimes, but I usually knock myself back to reality after a few minutes of thinking that everything has gone to crap. I don't want to say it's simple because for some it might not be, but there's no harm in trying to put a positive spin on situations. Everything is contextual, obviously, but when it comes to the small hardships, just try to find the good in it. Not everything The Worst Thing To Ever Happen™. 

4. Surround yourself with positive people

Ain't nobody got time for negative people in their life. I'm not saying to drop everyone in your life who falters and has a negative moment. I'm not saying to strip your friend group down to nothing because they've said one negative thing. But if there's a constant source of negativity in your life that drains you of your positivity or good energy, sometimes you have to do what's best for yourself. Surround yourself with people who will support you and share the same ideals as you. You don't have to feel forced to be friends with someone if they're truly "bringing you down." If being around somebody feels draining or toxic, trust your gut. It's hard to let yourself bloom if you're surrounded by people who just want to stomp out your progress.