Two Strategies for Acquiring Positive Thinking - C & R

1) Countering:

This strategy challenges negative thinking using logic and facts to assist you in believing that the opposite of the initial negative thought(s) is true. What is key, here, is determining whether a specified thought helps you reach your goal(s).

Ask yourself the following 4 questions…

1. "Are my beliefs grounded in objective reality?"

2. "Would the vast majority of a diverse group of people agree that the situation occurred the way I perceived it?"

3. "Do my thoughts decrease emotional conflict and assist me in feeling the way I want to feel?"

4. "Do my thoughts assist me in reaching my short- and long-term goals, or do they inhibit my success?"

2) Reframing:

Reframing occurs when we make the conscious effort to look at a situation from a different point of view, because as we know, there is always a different perspective when it comes to evaluating situations or events.

It is the process of creating different ways of looking at the world; because the world is literally what we make it, reframing permits you to transform what appears at first to be a weakness or difficulty into a strength or a real possibility, simply by looking at it from a different perspective. Almost any negative thought can be reframed, or understood from a different point of view, so that it helps you rather than hindering your progress and enjoyment of life.

A significant element of reframing is that it does not deny or downplay what you are experiencing or encourage you to ignore something troublesome. Instead, by reframing, you acknowledge what is occurring and decide to utilize it to your best advantage. For example: if a high school basketball player states, "I'm feeling anxious and tense about playing today," he or she can reframe the statement to "I'm feeling excited and ready!" Similarly, a basketball player dwelling on such problems as improving skills or the struggle of a performance slump can turn these challenges to his or her advantage and maintain a positive attitude by directing focus to the possibility of achieving a new level of skill and the opportunity to learn something from each and every performance.