Optimism comes around naturally when you know how to avoid pessimism.
Think of optimism and pessimism as two horns on the same goat.
In between optimism and pessimism is center of contentment. The center is balanced and not really actively optimisitc as much as blithe.
A happy puppy running around in the yard isn't really feeling "optimistic" - its just in the moment and not upset with anything.
When you get upset, angry, peeved, annoyed etc it allows a negative energy to take hold. That draws a lot of negative thoughts up, that then become circular and self sustaining.
As an example, if your hand was slapped it would sting and then stop. If you also got upset and angry, you would still feel be fixated to what happened even after the slap pain went away. Negative reactions open the door to the psyche where negative feelings continue to drive thoughts and feelings.
An upset will make you think too much and thinking too much will make you upset. You can bounce back and forth between these. The answer isn't to eradicate the thinking as much as the bad feelings driving them. That comes from recognizing the undue influence emotions have and watching them subside like the pain of the slapped hand. Notice every time you know your falling into your thoughts and dont resent them. They will soon die down even if it takes a day or two.
If you saw a spider in your mind, and struggled with it, the image would stay. If you watched the image calmly without struggle or reacting you would see the image breaks down on its own. Don't be for or against images, thoughts, feelings etc. Just watch and be aware and these things resolve themselves.
Being upset is what makes the mind and then the world seem dark. Trying to "think positive" wont work because "trying" to think positive reinforces the negative as you fight it. Fighting things keeps you connected to them. Watching them makes them fade.
As you get more patient and learn the skills of observation, the toxic stuff will get less and less and normal contentment and optimism will return on their own from the balanced center. Done TRY to be positive, and dont TRY to not be negative. Observation ends the need to TRY
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