Former Atomic Kitten band member Kerry Katona’s journey back from bankruptcy and drug abuse is well documented in popular media. The mother of five was on the sets of E4 dating show talking about her troubled past. She shared how finally realising that she did not need the approval of others helped her overcome her issues. “…Love yourself”  she added on Instagram later.

Most people following her rise and fall over the years know the lady does speak from the heart.  After her meteoric rise and fall with the famous band, Kerry Katona had to climb out of her negative self-evaluation and adopt a positive thinking approach to successfully turn her life around. What worked for her must certainly work for you. So what is positive thinking?

Positive thinking is used often as a handy term for attitudinal changes that can turn your life around. But do we really understand what positive thinking implies? Well, to really understand the power of positive thinking on your success, it’s important to first examine how the opposite– negative thinking– can adversely affect our life choices and outcomes.

To a certain extent, negative thinking is helpful in that it helps us to weigh the cons of a certain situation where we may have a certain number of choices to make that would determine the outcomes for us. However, constantly thinking of negative outcomes may cloud the judgement leading us to factor in greater risk ratio than there actually is. It may also lead to longer sustained levels of stress, anxiety and even depression when we end up evaluating more than a fair level of situations as being high-risk situations.

Positive psychology researcher at the University of North Carolina,  Barbara Fredrickson’s proposes the “broaden and build” theory. Her findings suggest that when we experience positive emotions in our lives, our brain’s ability to evaluate is “broadened“, i.e. it is more likely to see positive possibilities and outcomes to succeed. In addition, positive thinking also provides an enhanced ability to “build” – to develop new skills and to retain them for use later in life.

So if this is such a powerful tool, how can you transform your life by using positive thinking to succeed: Here are 4 simple steps –

1. Record a daily positive experience: You might be familiar with the idea of writing a gratitude list, such as 3 things you are grateful for in a day, or 3 goals you were able to accomplish that day, however small. And although it might sound silly, it actually works! While gratitude lists won’t change your circumstances, they definitely can change your attitude, and sometimes that’s even better! And because positive thinking is the first step to turning your life around, taking steps to cultivate a positive outlook is always a success.
2. It’s also helpful because positivity exercises can help you reprogram your brain in another way. When you set a positive tone for the day, it encourages you to look for the good in everything that happens. And when you’re programmed to try and stay positive, it makes it harder to be dragged down by the negative events of each day!

Plus, keeping some form of positivity journal means you have a written record of the good things in your life that you can come back to again and again. Reviewing this list can, in turn, help you to be realistic about the balance of favourable and unfavourable events and conditions actually in place in your life. And that list of achieved goals will be a positive trigger to help you renew efforts in moments of despair.

2. Identify negative thinking: And know when to shut it down. When those negative thoughts are not based on reasoning but come from a familiar place of fear and insecurity, you should just ignore that ‘little voice in the head’.
3. Make Decisions: Even if you are not fully satisfied, come to a contingency decision. Some plan of action is better than NO plan of action. This will take away a lot of negative emotions off your chest.
4. Reach out: When you feel yourself slipping back, discuss your anxieties with someone reliable. Enlist their support to help you stay realistically rather than spiraling down into a place of fear and anxiety.

It took years for Kerry Katona to get to this point with trial and error. You don’t have to do the same. Just follow these 4 simple steps and see the power of positive thinking unfolding to help you succeed. Now, these tricks should absolutely work for you, but if what you’re really looking for is a way to boost your success and confidence, you can head over to my site, www.instantkharismaseminar.com for life coaching and confidence training! I’ve helped thousands of people just like you to unlock their full potential and I can do it for you too! Wondering how? For the full story, you’ll have to check out my site, but basically… I teach you how to use your body language to sell more products and services- no matter what line of work you’re in! I’ll show you how to make a greater impact and skyrocket your influence even if you hate public speaking or feel awkward in front of a camera! If that sounds like what you need, then what are you waiting for?? Let me help you yourself today!