WHAT IS POSITIVITY BIAS TRAINING?

We all have bad moments and bad memories. But we also know that being negative won’t help. Wallowing in negativity can fuel a victim mentality and, over time, lead to anxiety, depression, and suicidal thoughts.

However, thanks to the brain’s powers of neuroplasticity, you can train your brain to be positive by using positive psychology techniques. Keep in mind that positivity bias training is not the same as “toxic positivity”–persistently ignoring anything negative.

According to a history of the subject in The Journal of Positive Psychology, positive psychology was pioneered by Martin E. P. Seligman. He introduced the concept at his 1998 Presidential Address to the American Psychological Association.

The history points to an early definition from a report by Seligman and fellow positive psychology pioneer Mihaly Csikszentmihalyi: “The aim of positive psychology is to begin to catalyze a change in the focus of psychology from preoccupation only with repairing the worst things in life to also building positive qualities.”

Ultimately, mental health and positivity bias work hand in hand. If you want to know how to overcome negativity bias and retrain your thoughts in a more positive direction, try the following nine strategies.

Related: Why Are We So Negative?

POSITIVE THINKING BRAIN TRAINING IN 9 STEPS

Where you place your attention determines how you feel. Use these nine tips to start thinking more positively:

1. Start each morning by saying, “Today is going to be a great day.”

Start the day by directing your attention to what you are excited about, what you like, what you want, what you hope for, and what makes you happy.

Families can do this together at the breakfast table in the morning. By saying, “Today is going to be a great day,” you will focus your mind on what is going right, not just what is wrong. It plants seeds of optimism into the soil of everyday life. 

Optimists know that things don’t always go their way, so when life knocks them down, they get back up and try again. A sense of optimism lifts the immune system, helps prevent chronic disease, and helps you cope with bad news.

2. Record your micro-moments of happiness.

Happiness doesn’t have to come from something “big” or “off the charts.” Small moments can actually be more valuable than significant milestones.

By getting into the habit of looking for and finding the micro-moments of happiness throughout your day, you train your brain to have a positivity bias.

Keep a written journal or use the notes section of your phone to record these moments as they happen. Then refer to them at the end of your day to make sure you don’t miss out on the little things that help you feel happy. 

Paying attention to these micro-moments can have a big impact on your chemicals of happiness and overall positivity. 

3. Express gratitude and appreciation as often as possible.

When you express gratitude, you’ll feel more positive, as will anyone you’re recognizing. Focusing on gratitude boosts your happiness, health, appearance, and relationships.

Appreciation also builds bridges between people. Write down three things you’re grateful for each day and try to find one person to appreciate. This simple exercise can make a significant difference in your level of happiness in just a few short weeks.

Gratitude can make your life more satisfying by solidifying a pleasant memory of a positive event. Also, when we express our gratitude to others, we strengthen our relationships.

4. Show empathy and kindness to others.

When we seek to understand another person’s perspective, we better understand their feelings.

Self-love meditations and mindfulness practices are two exercises that promote empathy and positive feelings toward ourselves and others. Effective communication and more informed perceptions help us create meaningful connections.

Research shows that kindness leads to happiness. Research shows that gestures of altruism have been shown to increase both the giver’s and receiver’s well-being.

There are dozens of ways to show kindness, but here are a few ideas:

• Smile when you see someone walking toward you.
• Hold the door open for someone.
• Be a good listener.
• Ask the person who is serving you how his or her day is going and listen.
• Send flowers or a funny cartoon to a friend.
• Spend time playing with your pet.

5. Focus on your strengths and accomplishments.

An essential virtue of positive psychology techniques is focusing on what’s right rather than what is wrong. Therefore, focusing on your strengths rather than your weaknesses is essential. And studies show that putting those strengths to use on a regular basis reinforces the positive effects.

Ask yourself: What are five things you’re good at? If you aren’t sure, what are five things your friends say you do well? Write them down. Then think of ways to use those attributes in your everyday life. 

Another key is having the right expectations and aspirations. Set expectations that make sense for your current situation. Take into consideration what you’ve learned about yourself through your strengths-based assessment.

Likewise, focus on your accomplishments. Write them down and review them. Keep a file on your phone of positive events you’ve participated in and look at it whenever you feel down.

6. Train yourself to live in the present moment.

Happy people who focus on the present are not preoccupied with past hurts, stressed by regret, or wrapped up in what might happen in the future.

Instead, their attention is focused on the present moment, meaning they are aware and mindful of what is happening right now. Being present-minded is critical to health and happiness. It will ground you and ensure you remain connected to the world around you.

This doesn’t mean you empty your mind of all thoughts. Instead, your attention is focused on savoring what you’re doing, who you’re with, and what you’re experiencing.

7. Be positive by eliminating the negative.

As much as we want to think positively, our brains love to camp out in negative territories. So many people complain about negative thoughts that seem to arrive on autopilot.

These automatic negative thoughts, or ANTs, can infest the mind, just like those miniscule critters that can invade your home. And negative thoughts erode mental health over time. 

Positive and negative thoughts release different chemicals in the brain. Whenever you have a happy thought, a bright idea, or a loving feeling, your brain releases the chemicals of happiness, such as dopamine, serotonin, and endorphins, which calm the body. 

Related: 9 Natural Ways to Boost Dopamine in the Brain

Whenever you have a negative thought, the brain releases or decreases chemicals, leaving you angry, sad, or stressed out. The release of stress hormones, including cortisol and adrenaline, combines with the depletion of feel-good neurotransmitters, like dopamine and serotonin, to change your body’s chemistry and brain’s focus. This leads to feelings of unhappiness.

Challenge your ANTs to achieve a more positive outlook. Remember that you don’t have to believe every thought you have, especially the negative ones.

8. Find fun and laughter in your life.

Want to inject a little positivity into your life? Laugh more.

Every time you chuckle, your brain releases the chemicals of happiness—dopamine, oxytocin, and endorphins—while lowering the stress hormone cortisol. A hearty laugh is like a drug, changing your brain chemistry to make you feel happier almost instantly.

Laughter starts in the brain. We know that the left side of the brain is responsible for interpreting words, including jokes. The brain’s right side is responsible for identifying what makes the joke, observation, or situation funny.

The brain’s PFC is responsible for emotional responses, while the basal ganglia—the area of the brain that integrates movement and emotion—becomes active when we’re watching a funny movie or sitcom on TV. These areas produce the physical actions of laughing.

Find ways to laugh more. Laughter is contagious, so go with friends to a comedy movie, a local comedy club, or a funny play. Laughing together will even strengthen your friendships.

9. End your day by asking yourself, “What went well today?”

Any family can do this exercise around the dinner table. Consider it the end-of-day counterpart to #1.

Looking for the good things that happened during your waking hours will train your brain to search for highlights in the day. It doesn’t matter if those highlights are spectacular, good, average, or routine—they are yours. 

Thinking about the good things that happened to you sets up your dreams to be more positive. You’ll sleep better, enhance your mood, boost your energy levels, and put a smile on your face. When you fall asleep happier, you wake up happier, ready to embrace the day with a positive bias.