Staying positive in a negative world.

Have you ever been in a great mood, called a friend to share, and got off the phone feeling like you wanted to kill yourself??

You know.... that friend who's cat is always sick. The same one who gets to the front of the bank line just as the teller goes for lunch, her satellite dish loses the signal seconds before her daughter's televised choir concert. The same one who complains that she can never get a good meal, never has enough money, never has anything good to say about anyone.

If you have, then you know how someone else can affect your own frame of mind if you let them
Here is a sobering fact for you....You become like the 10 people you spend the most time with

In our daily lives we are constantly bombarded with negativity. The war in Iraq, the murder (s!) in New York, the child abduction in Toronto, not to mention all of the daily "you shouldn't...., you couldn't..., and you won't s" that people throw at us all day long.

It is important to realize that you have a choice in all things.

You choose your friends, you choose to watch the news, you even choose how you react to certain things.

It is a proven fact that people who are happy live longer, and stay healthier than their negative counterparts.
What you think about, you bring about

Here are some things you can do that will keep you smiling in the face of such overwhelming odds.

read a motivational story every morning, sing out loud (and off key), smile when you answer the phone, act silly, go for a walk, hang out with happy people, turn OFF the news (someone will let you know what you need to know), help a customer find the right product for them, pick someone who is happy and "act" like them for an hour every day, call someone who makes you smile, go to the park and watch children play, say goodmorning to a stranger, pay for the order behind you in the Tim Horton's drive through, listen to a motivational speaker on CD, attend your company's training calls or meetings, enjoy the smell of food cooking, read a child a story...make your voice change with the different characters, wave at a trucker on the highway,

It is amazing to me how your life can change by just changing your attitude a little. Joyfullness is contagious, and you will find that the effort becomes habit after a while. Pretty soon, you are feeling better, the sun is shining more, you are making more money, you are enjoying life.

Looking for the good means that you are sure to find it.

Some people might tell me that I am not being realistic... after all NOTHING is great all the time. But I just smile. I would rather be in cheerful oblivion than stark reality anyday!

You can start purposefully CHOOSING your life today. I am positive that nothing but good will come from it!

Shelley Penney is a network marketing and internet marketing specialist with 7 years in the field. She is currently mentoring a small group of people to achieve financial freedom from home.