Go on a Negativity Diet: How to Unleash the Power of Positive Thinking

It's no wonder that bad things happen in threes (or fours or fives). It's no wonder that certain slumps go on and on.

It's easy to allow negativity to swallow us up. When we focus on bad things, that's what we see. But it goes beyond that: When we focus on bad things, we get more of them. We stop being on the top of our game. We stop looking for the good, positive aspects of our lives and we stop trying our best to find new, innovative solutions to our problems. We feel downhearted and defeated before we even get started.

If you feel a bad day coming on, you can help yourself by going on a negativity diet. Restrict from your day everything that's going to make you feel bad.

Here's how:

1. Avoid your negative friends. You know the ones: The complainers, the critics, the skeptics, even those who boss you around. Politely turn away from them today. You don't need their negativity. Don't rail against them or argue with them, just don't acknowledge their negativity today – and seek to get in the company of more positive friends just as quickly as possible.

2. Watch what you read and listen to. Some people take a media-free day at times like this, but if you don't want to do this, try reading the news rather than watching the graphic images of television news, which can seep into your psyche.

3. Don't read the rants. Today, try to stay away from negative blogs. Too many of the personal – and even business - blogs out there have become unmitigated sources of rants and snarky confessions, without humor or other redeeming qualities. Sometimes we can read these tirades and we feel justified in our own anger, frustration, and irritation. But this just keeps us in that negative spot. It justifies our own ruminating – and that's not good for anyone. Spend that web time chatting with your most positive and upbeat Facebook friend instead.

4. Instead of trying to control all of your negative thoughts, flood your mind with positives. Do something – right now – that makes you feel good and happy. Think positive thoughts. Make a list of positive facets of your life. Make a list of things you are grateful for. Don't think too hard about it; just let your mind go and challenge your pen to keep up with your thoughts.

Now that you're warmed up, write down a list of all the things that you love to do. Write for 10 minutes. Now go and do one of those things.

Turning a foul mood around takes some gentle distraction and a diet from negativity. Try it today and unleash the power of your own positive thoughts.