Positive Thinking

Feb

2020

Why Optimism Matters

Optimism can seem like such a cliche. It seems like something that the self-help guru tells you to do and you just know it isn’t going to work.

He asks you to close your eyes, imagine your goal, visualize it, and believe you WILL accomplish it. But you don’t do any of that because it seems all cheesy and weird. So instead, you just go about your life as usual, being ‘realistic’ and ‘practical’ about goals and dreams i.e. never chasing them or even thinking you can accomplish them.

But what if there is something to optimism after all. At the very least, something psychological.

The power of optimism

Sure, optimism may not shape the world, bend destiny in your favor, or attract money into your life. Sure, all that may seem like cheesy self-help nonsense, but optimism can do one important thing; inspire massive action.

You see, to accomplish any major goal you need to take massive action and push through all kinds of obstacles and barriers. But if you are not even the least bit optimistic about your goals, you will not be able to muster the enthusiasm to push through and get things done. The more optimistic you are, the more likely you are to actually get things done.

Perhaps that is the purpose of optimism. Not to attract ‘the universe’ into your life. Not to bend destiny in your favor. But simply to give you the inner strength and excitement to take the action you need to get what you want.

So go ahead, give those cheesy optimism activities a chance. You never know, it might just give you the energy boost you need to do what needs to be done to finally to achieve your goals!

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Jul

2016

The Power of Thoughts – Why You Are What You Think!

Guest Post by Ayesha Shoukat

The Power of Thoughts

The power of thoughts cannot be understated. In fact, they are so powerful that they shape the world around us. What we focus on and think about most is attracted towards us i.e. the law of attraction holds true universally.

Like attracts like and we are all akin to transmission towers that transmit different frequencies that reach beyond cities, countries into the universe. The pictures we receive from the transmission are not shown over the television screen – they are the pictures of our life.

If you want to change anything in your life, change the frequency and change your thoughts. If you see yourself living in abundance, you will attract abundance soon. And if you perceive yourself as being boring and stupid, you will soon become someone like that. The power of thoughts!!

Whatever we think is returned back to us as our experience and a picture of our life. Then do we really need to think about all the negative thoughts that come to our minds? After all we’re always thinking about something whether we are driving or talking to someone.

As such negative thought can flip our world upside-down. The answer is no, not really. Because affirming thoughts are much more powerful than negative ones. Constant negative thoughts over a long period of time can however, make things go wrong us.

The Secret

Rhonda Byrne in her book ‘The Secret’ explains how thoughts can create a new world around us. But at the same time the question that springs to one’s mind is ‘Why are so many people not living a life of their dreams?’ The answer is as simple as that too many people think about what they don’t want to happen instead of focusing on what they want. The law of attraction does not take into account any words of negation; that is how it is interpreted:

“I don’t want to spill anything on this outfit.”

It means:

“I want to spill something on this outfit and I want to spill more things.”

A lot of our time and energy is focused in thinking about what we don’t want and that same thing keeps coming up over and over again. Why does it happen with so many people and all the time? Because we have shifted our focus to what we don’t want instead of focusing on what we really want.

Whereas positive thoughts have the power to change lives: ourselves and of others. Every teacher and every revolutionary in the past was aware of the law of attraction and used it to get what they wanted. Facebook was just a thought in the mind of Mark Zuckerberg and he wanted to be able to share pictures with his friends. Today, it is this thought that has revolutionized the world of social networking.

Thoughts of Gratitude

Think and think again about what you want and be grateful for what you already have. Without being thankful for your present you cannot explore what is hidden in the future.

Gratitude opens the door to more opportunities. Not only does saying, “thank you” constitutes good manners, but showing appreciation can help you get new prospects. Acknowledging the life and the contribution of other people’s in your life can lead to a better future.

Article originally posted here. Republished with permission from the author.

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Jan

2016

5 Hadith on Positive Thinking

The Islamic Hadith narrations emphasize positive thinking. Even though many Muslims today choose to think negatively about the world and its inhabitants, Islam actually encourages the opposite. Reflect on these five Hadiths and begin your journey of positive change now:

Hadith #1: Think Win/Win

Amazing is the affair of the believer. Definitely, all of his life is good and this is not for anybody except the believer. If something of good happens to him, he is grateful and that is good for him. If something harmful befalls him, he is patient and that is good for him. (Saheeh Muslim #2999)

This Hadith teaches us to approach all of life positively. The good times are opportunities for gratitude, and the difficult times are tests of patience. Both situations are good for us, so no matter what happens in our lives, there is always a way to benefit from it.

Hadith #2: Think Positive About Allah

I am as My servant thinks of Me. I am with him when he remembers Me. If he mentions Me within himself, I mention him within Myself. If he mentions Me in an assembly, I mention him in a better assembly. If he comes near to Me a handspan, I come near to him the distance of a cubit. If he comes near to Me the distance of a cubit, I come near to him the distance of two outspread arms. If he comes to Me walking, I come to him running. (Sahih Al-Bukhari #6856 and Sahih Muslim #4832)

In this important Hadith Al-Qudsi, Allah Himself informs us of the importance of positive thinking about Him. We must maintain good thoughts about our Creator and not allow the devil to place evil thoughts in our minds. The more positively we think about Allah, the more benefits we will gain from this in this world and the next.

Hadith #3: Avoid negative thoughts

Beware of suspicion, as suspicion is the falsest talk, and do not spy upon each other, and do not listen to the evil talk of the people about others’ affairs, and do not have enmity with one another, but be brothers. And none should ask for the hand of a girl who is already engaged to his (Muslim) brother, but one should wait till the first suitor marries her or leaves her. (Saheeh Bukhari #5970)

Negative thinking about our fellow Muslims is a root cause of enmity, jealousy, and disunity. This Hadith prohibits all causes of negative thinking, whether it be unfounded suspicion, backbiting, or spying. All these sins must be avoided.

Hadith #4: Make things easy

“Make things easy for the people and do not make things difficult for them.” (Saheeh Bukhari #6125)

This simple short advice was aimed primarily at those doing Dawah and teaching Islam. The principle forms one of the primary foundations of Shariah Law i.e. the principle of ease. There are multiple narrations that emphasize this same point. Islam was meant to make life easier for people. Make sure the way you call and guide people to Islam emphasizes the positives and attracts people towards the beauty of Islam.

Hadith #5: Positive Thinking at time of death

Whoever loves the meeting with Allah, Allah too, loves the meeting with him; and whoever hates the meeting with Allah, Allah too, hates the meeting with him. (Saheeh Bukhari #6508)

Positive thinking is so important in Islam, that it is emphasized at the time of death. Muslims should not only think good about their Creator, they should think best of Him. This is especially important at the time of death, that believers be encouraged to focus on Allah’s Mercy and Forgiveness. In doing so, they leave this world in a positive state of mind. Not only should we live positive lives, but we should die in a positive state of mind too.

May Allah protect us all from negative thoughts.

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