Super Bowl Celebration Parade
My podcast co-host Rachel Leigh recently asked me a question that I’d like to ask you, “Do you consider yourself to be a positive person?”
It’s a simple question, but if you’re like me, it wasn’t easy to answer. I THINK I am generally positive or at least I try to be. But if I am honest with myself, being positive is hard.
I often find myself thinking back to the day that the doctor told us our son had leukemia rather than the day he told us he was in remission. I recite and replay the one negative comment a student in my barre class made five years ago and yet can’t remember the compliment that another student gave me yesterday. I worry about what might go wrong rather than envisioning what could go right.
If this is resonating with you, don’t despair. I have good news! It turns out that psychologists would say we aren’t negative - we are absolutely normal. It turns out that we all struggle with this phenomena called the negativity bias.
This week on The Problem With Perfect Podcast we tackle this issue and offer four simple strategies for overcoming it. One of those strategies (spoiler alert) is habitually recalling a positive memory. Instead of thinking back to something negative that happened yesterday, train your mind to recall something that made you happy and brought you joy.
For any Chiefs fans out there, the Super Bowl celebration parade could offer the perfect example. Whether you experienced it in-person with your family and friends, or you watched it at work with your co-workers, or if you’ve seen clips on social media - what an amazing sight to see over a million people brave frigid conditions to honor and celebrate our football team’s accomplishment. It is a shining moment to remember.
Ready to learn more about the negativity bias, how it impacts your life and how to overcome it? Please give the podcast a listen and share it with a friend. You can find a link in the comments or search for it wherever you listen to podcasts.
Photo courtesy of The Kansas City Star