The Truth About "Positive Thinking" ...

by Jonathan 2.0 Banned
35 replies
"Positive Thinking" can
radically transform your Life.


(I'm living proof of that ...)

One of the most influential components is realizing
that you can learn something (positive) from
everything that happens to you. (In Business and in
Life.)

For instance several years ago I stumbled upon the
following quotation from Napoleon Hill ("Think And
Grow Rich") ...

"Every adversity, every failure, and
every heartache carries with it the seed
of an equal or greater benefit."


It made me realize how much I have learned and
progressed from dealing with Social Anxiety,
Depression, And Schizophrenia.

Including:

1. Improving my character
2. Rejuvenating my relationship with God
3. Deepening my compassion and empathy
4. Being more caring and charitable
5. And being more appreciate and grateful

(I couldn't have done all that without adopting a
positive mindset and being open to learning ...) As
I once said:

"The more you suffer, the deeper
grows your character, and the
more loving and compassionate you
become."


When you adopt a positive mindset, you will realize
and understand that every "setback" and "failure"
(etc.) that you experience in being a successful
Entrepreneur/Marketer ... Is just something you can
learn from that will (ultimately) make you more
successful.

The fact is that positive People are simply more
likely to succeed. And when you begin to realize
you can learn something from everything that
happens to you and that you experience -- you
will significantly accelerate your success.

When you encounter of "problem" (etc.) simply ask
yourself: "What can I learn from this that will make
me more successful?"
Then apply that to everything
that happens to you.

Many people don't like the concept of "Positive
Thinking" ... However as you can see -- it has
completely changed my Life. (And I'm a much
happier and content Person because of it.)

Jonathan
: )
#positive thinking #truth
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  • Profile picture of the author Ronkar
    I just recently picked up a copy of Think And Grow Rich from a used book store. This post is motivating me to pick that one up next.

    Thanks,

    John
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  • Profile picture of the author Jack Slayton
    Love these threads, keep them coming. Pumped to watch more of this.
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  • Profile picture of the author heavysm
    More for Jonathan and anyone else who's seriously into self improvement...

    Pick up the book "So Good They Can't Ignore You" by Cal Newport then embody the idea that you become so good in whatever your industry is that others can't help but want to be your customer/ your partner/ or whatever else makes sense for your success.

    Positive thinking in this sense goes hand in hand with enriching your skillset to the point that you are invaluable to everyone you come across who's relevant to you.

    Even stronger than positive thinking is to have infallible reasoning to having a positive personality; if you have the skills that makes you a master in your trade you will always have the tools to sustain your own happiness.

    For me anyway, this is the truth of positive thinking.

    No forcing yourself to be positive even when you don't have anything to back it up.

    You create your own happiness / positive thinking through your own hard work and grit, which is FAR more powerful.
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    • Profile picture of the author Jonathan 2.0
      Banned
      Hey thanks heavysn: Great addition to the thread. For me gratitude is a really important component to Happiness.

      : )
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      "Each problem has hidden in it an opportunity so powerful that it literally dwarfs the problem. The greatest success stories were created by people who recognized a problem and turned it into an opportunity."―Joseph Sugarman
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  • Profile picture of the author Odahh
    Hah ..my head must finally be clearing from the illnesses i have had for almost three weeks .. as i read this post and realized ..you are not talking about traditional positive thinking ....that is in way a sort of nievie way to approach things ..

    this is more positive reframing .. or the if everything happens for a reason. I am going to make sure there was a damn good fu$%#^ reason that nasty crap that happened happened ..

    There is a concept beyond what you are talking about and it get into not judging things as they happen ..in a way that is meant to be permanent and you start looking for what you are meant to learn as you are in the storm and not wait for sometime after while you are picking the pieces up .

    Then before you do new thing you learn about what can go wrong and how others handled it..then you set out on your adventure with you emergency preparations .
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  • Profile picture of the author Odahh
    "The more you suffer, the deeper
    grows your character, and the
    more loving and compassionate you
    become."

    this quote is not accurate i have met many people who have been broken or permanently damaged by the suffering in their lives ..sexual abused as children or beaten regularly by their parents or who have watched one parent kill the other parent.. and i have met others messed up on drugs content with have conversations and arguments with people not there ..

    to make the quote accurate through your own suffering you gain compassion for others who you see suffering and gratitude that the suffering you went through did not break you (permanently) or taught you positive ways to get out from under the suffering ..or that you had a right to not suffer and it was not just a selfish quest .

    We have the tech and the advancement to remove most of the suffering humanity has gone through for recorded history.. yet we are addicted to suffering so we seek out new ways to suffer ..or make new kinds of suffering up ..

    you want positive thinking in the true sense here is an affirmation for you

    "i am perfectly able and willing to grow and learn new things without needing great suffering to push me to learn and grow "

    "I am able to remove most or all of the suffering from my life "

    Instead of excusing the suffering or adversity in your life away ..with the idea that it is all there to make you grow ..get some real positive thinking and start telling yourself it is there to teach you how not to suffer if you are willing to not suffer any more .
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    • Profile picture of the author Jonathan 2.0
      Banned
      Good point Odahh. You're right -- the quotation doesn't apply to everyone. (However it has certainly been true in my experience ...) And I'm 100% certain that other People can learning something from their "suffering"/Life challenges as well.
      Signature
      "Each problem has hidden in it an opportunity so powerful that it literally dwarfs the problem. The greatest success stories were created by people who recognized a problem and turned it into an opportunity."―Joseph Sugarman
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      • Profile picture of the author Odahh
        Originally Posted by Jonathan 2.0 View Post

        Good point Odahh. You're right -- the quotation doesn't apply to everyone. (However it has certainly been true in my experience ...) And I'm 100% certain that other People can learning something from their "suffering"/Life challenges as well.
        the learning directly come from how you learn to eliminate or drastically reduce..or turn the suffering into a positive force for growth ..

        we do not have to suffer the same things over and over ..by looking for the power from what the world negativly calls mental illness ..which i call mental conditions as 70 percent of people can be classified as mentally ill ..

        by looking for the ideal way to function optimally in the world ..instead of completly out of whack ..that is how one turns a negative onto a strength
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  • Profile picture of the author Master Blake
    There is just ONE SWITCH that can be flipped to get into BLUE MODE.

    BM means transforming into an ultra galactic being governed by rules that defy gravity.
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    • Profile picture of the author Jonathan 2.0
      Banned
      P.S.

      Just thought I would add one of my favourite "Positive
      Thinking Affirmations" ... Something I learned from the
      late great Susan Jeffers. (Author of "Feel The Fear And
      Do It Anyway.")

      "Whatever happens ...
      I'll handle it!
      "

      Why is this an empowering Affirmation? Because a great
      percentage of our fears stem from the fact that we don't
      think we would be able to cope if they happened ...

      However if you think about it ― you have pretty much
      handled everything (or almost everything) that has
      happened to you up until now.

      (And you can continue to well into the future ...)

      : )
      Thoughts?
      Signature
      "Each problem has hidden in it an opportunity so powerful that it literally dwarfs the problem. The greatest success stories were created by people who recognized a problem and turned it into an opportunity."―Joseph Sugarman
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      • Profile picture of the author Odahh
        Originally Posted by Jonathan 2.0 View Post

        P.S.

        Just thought I would add one of my favourite "Positive
        Thinking Affirmations" ... Something I learned from the
        late great Susan Jeffers. (Author of "Feel The Fear And
        Do It Anyway.")

        "Whatever happens ...
        I'll handle it!
        "

        Why is this an empowering Affirmation? Because a great
        percentage of our fears stem from the fact that we don't
        think we would be able to cope if they happened ...

        However if you think about it ― you have pretty much
        handled everything (or almost everything) that has
        happened to you up until now.

        (And you can continue to well into the future ...)

        : )
        Thoughts?
        i will disagree with the affirmation ..in order to really handle what ever happens you have to have a real good idea why what is happening is happening . whatever thing that is happening is a result of some problem you may need to address immediately . if what is happening is bad enough .


        "this is happening now because now is the time i can solve the problem and end up with a much better live "

        The affirmation a you stated it ..can easily be handled by a new medication ..a new coping strategy multiple way that never mean you have to fix the problem .

        "THis is happening to fuel my growth and path to a much better life however bad it feels now i will turn it into one of the best things that could have happened now "

        you never fear what is going to happen you fear the stories you make up about the chain of events after the first thing you fear happening . so for the affirmation of I'll handle what ever happens .. look at the stories and ask yourself "really " because your subconscious is already disagreeing with you .. .. so focus on the worst few thing that can happen after ..meaning the real stuff that happens to people .. and then see what you need to do if that happens ..

        also preparing for the worst in ways that can make thing work out better in the likl event nothing goes wrong to begin with ..
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        • Profile picture of the author Jonathan 2.0
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          Originally Posted by Odahh View Post

          "This is happening now because now is the time I can solve the problem and end up with a much better live " .
          Precisely. That's exactly what I mean with my OP.I honestly believe that no matter what a Person is going through ― they can learn something that will make them more successful.
          Signature
          "Each problem has hidden in it an opportunity so powerful that it literally dwarfs the problem. The greatest success stories were created by people who recognized a problem and turned it into an opportunity."―Joseph Sugarman
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          • Profile picture of the author Odahh
            Originally Posted by Jonathan 2.0 View Post

            Precisely. That's exactly what I mean with my OP.I honestly believe that no matter what a Person is going through ― they can learn something that will make them more successful.
            I have learned a lot the last 2 years .. and it has been rough ..but i am a much better.. calmer and laid back person.. but i have ran into a lot of people who have been broken by repeated traumas in life ..horrible stuff .. so there are a lot of people who probably can't or don't have the will left to turn around . for themselve..if they have someone to hold out for they hold out but ..then

            I have a voracious appetite for learning even if i manage to learn best doing things the hard way the first few times through ..

            The lesson i have learned ..is that i need to learn how to really take care of myself .. i am 40 my parents really didn't take care of themselve ..but their tough irish genetic got my dad to 80 and my mom to 75 ..the where married 40 plus years and appart 4 months ..

            It is really hard to learn the lessons of life..if the people around you are failing to learn them and are going through the same problems as you..over and over.. so you learn to cope and not that they can be solved ..

            then when you start solving them .. you really have to get used to there being a bigger problem on the other side of the one your solving now .. so real success .. is not getting to a point where you have no problems just getting to the point where you get use to tackling bigger and bigger problems
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            • Profile picture of the author Jonathan 2.0
              Banned
              Thanks Odahh: You seem like a really cool Guy.

              Cheers.
              Signature
              "Each problem has hidden in it an opportunity so powerful that it literally dwarfs the problem. The greatest success stories were created by people who recognized a problem and turned it into an opportunity."―Joseph Sugarman
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      • Profile picture of the author Claude Whitacre
        Originally Posted by Jonathan 2.0 View Post

        "Whatever happens ...
        I'll handle it!
        "

        The statement is true, but not as a positive affirmation. We handle anything that comes out way because we have no choice. The prisoners in the death camps in Germany, parents losing their children.....survive and "handle it". But not because of any internal strength. They handle it because they have no choice.

        Originally Posted by Jonathan 2.0 View Post


        "Every adversity, every failure, and
        every heartache carries with it the seed
        of an equal or greater benefit."
        I understand why it was in the book But strictly speaking, every situation, positive or negative, carries the possibility of a benefit. If your wife dies of cancer, you save money on food, right? A church full of people get gunned down, it advertises the church involved. So....it isn't always a great saying. It's pretty selective.


        Originally Posted by Jonathan 2.0 View Post

        "The more you suffer, the deeper
        grows your character, and the
        more loving and compassionate you
        become."
        No. The more you suffer, the more you see yourself as a sufferer. The more you get used to suffering. And the more you think about yourself suffering, the less you think of others.

        We all know people (in the minority) that are constantly suffering some calamity. They let us know about every death, every toothache, every fear. They are psychic vampires that suck the life out of others. They never learn from their mistakes.

        If you are suffering, fix the problem if you can, and move on. If the problem isn't fixable, accept it, and move on.


        Someone once asked me why I seemed so unmoved when my dad died. I loved my father...but this is what I said...

        "Everyone's dad dies. My life is going to have the following...my mom will die, several people I love will die, I'll have a few major medical crises, I'll have several great days with my wife, and eventually either I'll die first or she will. I know all these things are coming..just like they come in every life. When I got the call that dad died, I thought "so, this is the day that happens". "

        Of course, my thought process isn't normal, but it's the way I think.
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        One Call Closing book https://www.amazon.com/One-Call-Clos...=1527788418&sr

        What if they're not stars? What if they are holes poked in the top of a container so we can breath?
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        • Profile picture of the author Odahh
          Originally Posted by Claude Whitacre View Post


          Of course, my thought process isn't normal, but it's the way I think.
          there is no normal thought process.. people have different bodies shape,height, weight ,muscle tone ,color and on and on ..yet for some reason the assumption is everyone has about the same stuff or thought processes going on in their head..or should .. when people mental state thought processes ..very more than body type and difference..

          My shrink told me ten years ago.. that i wasn't paranoid i just tend to catastrophize or think the worst thing is happening ..or expect the worst outcome.well and the last thing he said to me on the last visit ..was there wasn't anything more a shrink could do for me ..
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        • Profile picture of the author Jonathan 2.0
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          Interesting perspective: Thanks Claude.

          What I shared/posted is just what has been working for me over all the years. (Especially the "Think And Grow Rich" quotation) However everyone is different. And, everyone finds different approaches (etc.) empowering.

          Hopefully my advice has been helpful to at least one person.

          Jonathan
          Signature
          "Each problem has hidden in it an opportunity so powerful that it literally dwarfs the problem. The greatest success stories were created by people who recognized a problem and turned it into an opportunity."―Joseph Sugarman
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        • Profile picture of the author Jonathan 2.0
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          Originally Posted by Claude Whitacre View Post

          The statement is true, but not as a positive affirmation. We handle anything that comes our way because we have no choice. .
          Agreed. : ) The point is to remind People that they can handle anything ... (No matter what comes their way.) For me it's a good (Re)Affirmation.
          Signature
          "Each problem has hidden in it an opportunity so powerful that it literally dwarfs the problem. The greatest success stories were created by people who recognized a problem and turned it into an opportunity."―Joseph Sugarman
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          • Profile picture of the author Odahh
            Originally Posted by Jonathan 2.0 View Post

            Agreed. : ) The point is to remind People that they can handle anything ... (No matter what comes their way.) For me it's a good (Re)Affirmation.
            there is a lot of stuff that can happen and does that most people can't handle .If you are one who can recover and thrive after stuff happens that destroys the lives of others consider yourself blessed ..

            Most people who are born poor stay for some climb to the middle class ..a small percent become rich and wealthy through nurturing their blessings ..the fact there is nearly always a power law distribution..and it is talked about in the bible"to he who hath more shall be given "

            much of the culture we live in is set up to trap people in or make them into victims .. so they don't handle what happens to them .. so unless a person is exposed to information .. or people or something that points them in another direction and recover .. there is little hope they will recover and just surround them selves with people stuck with the same recurring problems and staying in non optimal situations
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            • Profile picture of the author Jonathan 2.0
              Banned
              P.S.
              This thread reminds me of something I heard/learned from Viktor Frankl (Author of "Man's Search For Meaning") which is essentially ...

              "Everything can be taken from a man but one thing: the last of the human freedoms--to choose one's attitude in any given set of circumstances, to choose one's own way."

              HTH
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  • Profile picture of the author IGotMine
    survive and "handle it". But not because of any internal strength. They handle it because they have no choice.
    There's a great scene in "The Grapes Of Wrath" where the Joad family is about to head across the desert in their jalopy, piled high with belongings and family members.

    They are at a service station. The attendant says, "You've got more guts than me heading across the desert in that."

    Tom replies, "It don't take guts to do a thing when you've got no choice."
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  • Profile picture of the author Master Blake
    Positive thinking is just what the doctor ordered, if you strive to manifest.

    What happens if you inherently don't have a positive outlook for life?

    You cultivate it, preferably with the method of hypnosis.
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  • Profile picture of the author mjb13815
    [DELETED]
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    • Profile picture of the author Jonathan 2.0
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      Originally Posted by Odahh View Post

      There is a lot of stuff that can happen and does that most people can't handle. If you are one who can recover and thrive after stuff happens that destroys the lives of others consider yourself blessed.
      Fair enough point.

      However I think that most People (most of the time) can handle a lot more than they (at the time) realize. Sometimes it's not about "overcoming" a problem (etc.) it's the Mindset and how a Person is thinking about their situation.

      (That is one of the reasons why I posted the OP -- with the right Mindset almost anything is possible.)

      2C

      Originally Posted by mjb13815 View Post

      I've been watching Earl Nightingale's "The Strangest Secret In The World"
      Hey thanks for the video MJB: Some really great advice there.
      : )
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  • Profile picture of the author Time Transporter
    I'm in the mental warriors section. Concepts and meanings have collapsed. Simpletons soar and I became a devout receiver of the Awakening.
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    • Profile picture of the author OptedIn
      Originally Posted by Time Transporter View Post

      I'm in the mental warriors section. Concepts and meanings have collapsed. Simpletons soar and I became a devout receiver of the Awakening.
      Welcome to Nirvana.
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      "He not busy being born, is busy dying." - Bob Dylan • "I vibe with the light-dark point. Heavy." - Words that Bob Dylan wishes he had written.

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  • Profile picture of the author Gas Dumfarht
    Let's come together. Spill the beans and what not.
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    • Profile picture of the author Jonathan 2.0
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      Originally Posted by Gas Dumfarht View Post

      Let's come together. Spill the beans and what not.
      Feel free to PM me. (Questions etc.)
      : )
      Signature
      "Each problem has hidden in it an opportunity so powerful that it literally dwarfs the problem. The greatest success stories were created by people who recognized a problem and turned it into an opportunity."―Joseph Sugarman
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  • Profile picture of the author affmarketer101
    Very interesting point of view. Thanks for sharing.
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    • Profile picture of the author Jonathan 2.0
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      Originally Posted by affmarketer101 View Post

      Very interesting point of view. Thanks for sharing.
      Welcome: Happy you found it interesting/helpful.
      : )
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      "Each problem has hidden in it an opportunity so powerful that it literally dwarfs the problem. The greatest success stories were created by people who recognized a problem and turned it into an opportunity."―Joseph Sugarman
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  • Profile picture of the author Net 700
    If you seek for harmony then you'll start getting answers.Harmony is all we seek.

    Then the bogey little creatures will be well gone. Your inner voice will guide you with clarity.

    There will be a noiseless diatribe that stems from within to conceive the much desired effect.

    Finally - you'll stumble on the answers you need to proceed to the next level.
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  • Profile picture of the author George Flm
    I've noticed a rise in profits by 20%-25% this semester at least, just by nurturing the consensus that anything is possible if there's an unwavering belief system. That translated into exploiting more of the inner potential. You can thrive if you put out anything, out of what you *already* got.

    So positive thinking is part of the strategy. It has a merit, most definitely.

    You can't just go out and wage a war with a squirrel-mentality.

    Last but not least, it took some serious mind programming to witness progress. There's a lot of potential in the mind and the highly overlooked, psyche.
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    George Troy Marketing on Youtube

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    • Profile picture of the author Jonathan 2.0
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      Thanks George. : )

      Originally Posted by George Flm View Post

      There's a lot of potential in the mind and the highly overlooked, psyche.
      Exactly. And the problem with many People is that they A) Don't realize how much potential etc. there is or B) They're just ignorant thinking self-help/personal development books and Teachers are just useless. (When, in fact, they can be life-changing.)
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      "Each problem has hidden in it an opportunity so powerful that it literally dwarfs the problem. The greatest success stories were created by people who recognized a problem and turned it into an opportunity."―Joseph Sugarman
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  • Profile picture of the author Just Jess
    I am not the man I used to be.

    I became the flame that the Master ignited.
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  • Profile picture of the author SamJo
    I completely agree Jonathan. And just because you think positive does not mean you can't/won't have bad days. The difference is how you choose to respond when something does not go the way you thought it would.
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