The World Needs Positive Ripples
Now more than ever, people are struggling with an overwhelming influx of negativity. With all that’s happening in our world today, no wonder people are experiencing unprecedented levels of anger, stress, frustration, and discouragement. For some, these feelings are being channeled into action. It may include letting our voices be heard, while for others it’s reflecting on our own beliefs and biases. I believe our world is going through a huge change on several fronts. It’s not surprising such transformation is accompanied by upheaval, strong emotions, and confusion. But as an optimist, I believe we will come out of this stronger, wiser, and with greater understanding for each other.
Yet, while we are in the midst of this chaos, we need to take care of ourselves and set boundaries so these feelings don’t drag us into a downward spiral. We need to build our positivity so we can be more patient, more resilient, and calmer, especially when faced with other people’s stress. We can be the positive ripple that spreads empathy, peace, and acceptance.
These efforts don’t just increase our own happiness and wellbeing; they have a strong effect on those around us because of things like social and emotional contagion. In a nutshell, human beings tend to influence and copy one another. In fact, studies have revealed that this contagion can impact people’s weight, smoking, alcohol consumption, loneliness, divorce, and tastes in music, books, and movies. The great news is we can take advantage of this effect to be a positive influence.
As you go through this week, I wanted to share the three self-care questions I found from one of my favorite Positive Psychology teachers, Dr. Maria Sirois.
- What is one thing you can do that calms you?
- What is one thing you can do that strengthens you?
- What is one thing you can do that inspires and energizes you?
Charge your positivity battery so you have enough energy to be a positive ripple.
