It is obvious that positive thinking contributes to a happy and fulfilling life. However, how can we think positively when negative thoughts stick in our minds? Can we get rid of negative thoughts naturally without using alcohol or medications?

This is the topic of conversation in the TEDx talk.

Alison Ledgerwood, a social psychologist, and people observer stated that she has always asked why the mind is stuck on negative thinking. She added that even when she published her papers and they were rejected, her mind was occupied with negative thoughts even though some of the papers were accepted.

She asked herself what was going on? Why did failure remain in our minds longer than success?

People are thinking differently about things. As the saying goes:’ Different people can see the glass as either half empty or half full’.

Research has found that we have different feelings about it, depending on the way we describe the glass.

However, have you ever wondered what happens if you try to change your thinking about the glass another way? Can we move back and forth?

Alison Ledgerwood carried out several experiments in order to find the answer to this question. In the first experiment, a group of participants explained a surgical procedure, with a 70 % of success rate, whereas the second group explained the same surgical procedure with a 30 % of failure rate.

Interestingly, the first group was more interested in the procedure. Nevertheless, when the first group was told about the 30 % of failure rate, they stopped liking the procedure. Moreover, when the second group was told about the 70 % success rate, they did not like the procedure. They were still thinking about the loss rate.

Alison Ledgerwood thinks that these experiments indicate that people’s views of the world tend to move towards negativity. It is really hard to change from good to bad, but it can be harder to go from bad to good. We have to put a lot of effort in order to be able to see the upside of things. Even though we have to work harder, we can train the mind to do it in a better way.

U. Davis carried out research, which showed that writing about the things we are grateful for can increase our happiness and improve our well-being.

Moreover, we can listen to good news and share it with other people. We complain a lot, and when we complain about something to others, we forget about sharing the good news. The human mind should practice sharing the good news. It means making more positive stories in our minds. Therefore, you can start writing a journal.

We also need to be aware of the negative thoughts. A negative thought can stick in our minds for one day or one week. Someone snaps at us and we snap at him, too. However, what would happen if someone snapped at us and we forgave him?

We can let go of negative feelings and keep our minds positive, forgiving, and grateful for the wonderful opportunity that life represents.