The human mind performs a never-ending process of generating thoughts, whether it is conscious or unconscious. Just like a heavy traffic of cars on the highway, the human mind is capable of producing hundreds of thoughts even in a short span of time. It has been proven that the pattern of thinking affects emotions. Anything that occupies the mind also dictates the current state of emotion of an individual. Happy thoughts generate a blissful feeling; bad thoughts cause a negative feeling. Yet, it seems that for most individuals, a negative manner of thinking is an effortless thing.
It is said that a person’s habit of thinking is closely associated with the individual’s formation stage wherein the family and society have a direct effect upon. If a person grows up in an environment wherein much of the exposure is positive and pleasurable, then it follows that the mind is conditioned to predominantly think of happy thoughts.
On the other hand, if the individual is being brought up in an environment that shows more of the negative events and situations, there is a tendency for the person’s mindset to be conditioned in a negative way.
Both positive and negative thinking have obvious differences even if psychologists do not attempt to share the results of their research and studies on these two thinking processes. Yet, many people still fail to concretely understand the effects of these two different manners of thinking in their lives.
Positive Thinking Defines an Optimist
Positive thinking makes the mind entertain happy and good thoughts, pleasant images, and welcoming ideas. It is these thoughts that cause a person to feel good, blissful, and positive. Positive thoughts also contribute to favorable outcomes of whatever a person does or whatever the situation there is.
A positive mental attitude also produces a positive perception. So, a positive thinker is expected to have good and affirmative viewpoints in life. This attitude is called optimism, which means seeing the lighter side of an event, situation, or circumstance more than the negative aspect of it.
Optimists understand that not everything stays positive in what they do and what they think of. They acknowledge these negativities but decide not to be overpowered by such thoughts. Instead, they take each negative thought affirmatively and choose to find a positive answer to every negative situation. They choose to alter the bad situation into a good one because they believe that there is always a bright side to every dark circumstance.
Negative Thinking Defines a Pessimist
Negative thinking, on the contrary, is a mental attitude that is depicted by unpleasant ideas, disturbing mental images, and unfavorable words in the mind. The irony of negative thinking is that is seems to be manifested effortlessly by a lot of people. Negative thinkers are constantly filled with intrusive thoughts in most events and situations in their lives.
In effect, these individuals generally view life negatively and this is what makes them pessimists. With a pessimist attitude, the person is always bothered or worried about something and nothing always seems to go right. Events are perceived to always have unwanted twists or outcomes and positive thoughts are barely entertained.
Thinking is Contagious
An affirmative thought is a hundred times more powerful than a negative thought. But in essence, both types of mental attitude are contagious. The way you deal with your thinking patterns and habits also impacts other people around you. This is being manifested on a subconscious level and usually impulsively through demonstration of feelings and actions. In one way or another, the people that you deal with are affected by your thoughts. Reciprocally, the thoughts of those you encounter also create an impact on you instinctively.
It is for this reason that people tend to avoid negative thinkers and do not acknowledge their presence because of the way their negative manner of thinking is affecting them. In the same way, people love to be around positive thinkers as they exude blissfulness and they create a happy atmosphere. People react to negative thinkers and despise them. But positive thinkers easily get good attention and due recognition from those they have caused an impact on.
