Hey You!

One of the most thrilling ways to Become the Front Row Editor of Your Life is to understand your level of energy.

And then learn how to change it, for the better. 

If you’ve ever wondered:

How can I feel more positive? 

This is for you.

The enoughness of: positivity

We all have bad days, weeks, even years. 

When you’re stuck in all the lows - mood, esteem, self-worth.

And end up thinking: this is me. 

But it doesn’t have to be this way.

There’s a tried and true method to achieve more positivity, and we can all do it.

The podcast guest who showed me this in action is fashion turned interiors designer Henry Holland.

When his fashion business failed in 2020 he called on the lessons his mother taught him as a child. 

“She taught me the power of positive thinking. The power of the mind. Affirmations. Putting your wishes out there, and taking the actions to make them reality.”

So, instead of wallowing, Henry bought some coloured clay, enrolled in a ceramics course, and started to play.

Within months he had an order for 600 pieces, and his successful new career was born.

“I think it’s because I don’t have an inner saboteur,” says Henry.

“I don’t have a voice in my head being like: ‘you can’t do that.’”

“Mine says ‘why couldn’t you?’”

(You’ll love his latest work.)

(Listen here)

How to be more positive right now

One day, bored to tears with my low level meh, I bought a book called “Ask & It Is Given” by Abraham Hicks. 

Soon to become the most dog-eared and underlined book I own.

This book revealed the gamechanger of all gamechangers: 

The emotional guidance scale.

Mindset shift

The scale itself is a simple list showing 22 levels of energy.

Despair is at 22.

Joy sits at number one.

It’s main lesson, and you might not want to hear this, (I didn’t), is that you can’t go from feeling, say, discouraged - number 16 on the scale -  to being a beacon of positivity - number 4 on the scale -  in one go. 

You have to learn how to climb up the scale one rung at a time, and you must start where you are.

That means admitting to yourself where you are on the list (be honest!) and rolling up your sleeves to do the thing to climb it.

That thing is this: consciously choose a better feeling thought than the one you are having now.

For example, if you’re feeling overwhelmed, choose to feel irritated thoughts instead.

If you’re feeling pessimistic, choose to feel hopeful thoughts.             

Make yourself do this for five minutes.

Fake it, even. But do it.

After five minutes, if you feel relief from those overwhelmed or pessimistic thoughts, congratulations - you’ve gone up the scale!

Using the scale over time, you learn to notice what you’re actually feeling.

The win? When negative thoughts swirl in, you know you have tools to kick them to the curb.

After a while, you find yourself feeling good more, if not all, of the time.

Takeaway

Staying positive is an actual job, and it’s one we can all do.

Yes, even if it doesn’t come naturally!

Knowing how is the key to it all.

A Harvard study proves true optimists live 11-15% longer.

To start, try this now: spend five minutes appreciating everything around you.

Even if it’s boring, make yourself find something to love about it.

It works.

Read the science here

Get High On These

Positivity gold:

• Ask & It Is Given by Abraham Hicks. Learn how to be more positive using the emotional guidance scale.

• Levels of Energy by Frederick Dodson. This book takes the Hicks scale and expands it to a system that places our energy into levels between 1-1000, and shares further tools to help you understand where you are, and where you could be. I’m obsessed.

• Positive Words, Powerful Results, when my mum passed away last year I found this book on her bedside. Did you know only 5% of the words in the dictionary are considered positive? Neither did I. I love knowing more of them.

The Enoughness of everything, shared every Tuesday.

Melanie x

The Lighthouse

Scroll down to find this months’s screensaver

How does it get better?

Every time you unlock your phone, ask yourself:

What better thought can i think right now?

Tap on the image to save it to your phone.