You’ll see lots of articles emphasising positive thinking almost as if it’s a panacea. There is almost a cult of optimism and the recently cited ‘boosterism’. Dream it and you can do it. Except the very task of dreaming and picturing yourself doing that may leave a greater feeling of contentment and lessen your will to actually make it happen.That positive dreaming may actually hold you back!
We agree that it’s important to take a positive perspective and not be overly harsh on ourselves at times. We believe knowing and using your strengths to a degree brings success and it’s important to recognise what works well. However, overdo our strengths and they turn ugly. Fail to address to some extent elements which hold us back, and we restrict ourselves and block our growth. Overdo the optimism and daydreams and leave undone the actions required to get the results you need, allied with lacking the urgency to bring this about – and you may well get stuck.
Gabriele Oettingen’s book ‘Rethinking Positive Thinking’ based on years of research, and her allied technique WOOP contain no magic – but may offer you a way to think differently about developing new habits and helping those around you to do the same.