If there’s one thing that I’ve learned in my time in college is that being negative is not going to get you anywhere. Sure, you are more than allowed to have off days and when the going gets tough and it’s understandable to be in a bad head space. At times I have even found myself having these pessimistic thoughts, but I have learned that my life is of greater quality when I’m not.
I am a firm believer in “what you put out into the world is what you get out of it”. Putting it more simply, if you don’t study enough for a test the week before, you will get a bad grade. If you don’t treat others the way you expect to be treated, you will have a very hard time maintaining friendships. Starting something with the expectation of when it will end will make the journey a lot less enjoyable than it’s meant to be.
Life happens, and that’s a stone-cold fact. When life happens sometimes it is a swift kick in the butt. But it is the way that you choose to handle what is happening to you and how you change and adapt to it that makes you unique. It’s easy for people to say that they’re positive and that they overcome these obstacles, but it is a whole other story to mold your words into actions and help that shape your experiences.
When I was younger, I was unexplainably optimistic to the point where it was almost scary. Once I reached middle and high school, I did learn the hard way that my happy, easy-going positive mentality was not always something that I was able to maintain.
Coming to college and being around a variety of people you really do realize that the mentality of those who you surround yourself with affects you greater than you may think. Reminding yourself of who you are and what your values are is a great way to remember why you see the world in a positive light.
Although having a “glass half full mentality” can be hard to maintain, it is an easy thing to lose if you are swayed enough. Every time I want to complain about something such as school, boys, friends, or just life, I like to remind myself that it is a privilege for me to be able to complain and that usually the things I want to complain about are things that can be easily fixed.
Surrounding myself with people are loving is one way that reminds me why my life is good and why the glass truly is always half full. It is truly all about perspective.
“If you won’t be thinking about it in 5 months, then why worry about it now?” is also a good way to look at it. I like to allow myself 5-10 minutes to worry and complain about things and then let it go shortly thereafter. In the grand scheme of things, what we put out into the world, is what we will get back and it doesn’t ever hurt to be too kind!