The Power of Practice – Improving Our Positivity Is Like Biking Up Hills

I really enjoy living in the Baraboo bluffs – except when it comes to biking.  Either direction I turn out of my driveway, I have major hills to tackle.  I love bicycling, but these hills kick my butt!  I know they would get easier if I would bike them more often, but they are just plain hard and not fun, so I don’t practice as much as I’d like.  I sometimes wish I had a route with smaller hills that could help me build up my endurance and strength for these bigger challenges.

These were the thoughts running through my head today during my bike ride, and it hit me how the same approach holds true for increasing our positivity.  If it’s something we want to get better at, we need to practice. The power of practice makes a difference.

But trying to practice staying positive during the big challenges in our life can be hard.  Instead, we can practice being grateful and seeing the good stuff when it’s easier to build up our positivity “muscle.” 

I remember hearing the analogy that learning to be more positive is like going to the gym.  You start with the lighter weights and build up to the harder exercises over time.  As you workout, it gets easier to lift the heavier weights, but it takes time. The key is to keep practicing and noticing the improvements along the way.  

I’ve definitely seen improvements in my life.  I have a long way to go, but the great thing is that practicing gratitude, pausing to savor, trying to learn from challenges, and noticing the good in the world is actually enjoyable, at least when life is not kicking me in the butt.  How are you going to practice increasing your positivity this week? Here are some ideas to get you started.

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Tina Hallis, Ph.D. is Chief Positivity Officer of The Positive Edge, a company dedicated to helping people and organizations increase their positivity to improve the quality of people’s work lives and the quality of company cultures. She is certified in Positive Psychology, an authorized partner for Everything DiSC®, and a Professional Member of the National Speaker’s Association