Who Can Be Happy in a Bad Economy? By Rik Isensee At Isnare.com Ezine Articles

If there’s anything to be learned from the current economic mess, it may very well be that as human beings our happiness is really in our own hands. As the economy has taken a tumble, fortunes have been lost, jobs have disappeared, and things we once took for granted now don’t seem so secure. A booming economy can bring us feelings of optimism and hopefulness, but a bad economy seems to bring out worry, stress, and fear. In times of uncertainty, negative thinking abounds. But it doesn’t have to.

Negative Thinking is a Habit

Now, I’m not suggesting that things aren’t genuinely tough right now for many people or that much of what’s going on around us really is out of our control. What I am proposing is that all of us, no matter what is going on in our lives, have the ability to deal with what life throws at us in more productive ways.

I can’t think of anyone who would actually choose fear and negativity to rule their lives, yet many people live each day as if they had no choice. They may have lost a job, their retirement savings, or even their home, and they look as though they’re carrying the weight of the world on their shoulders. Physically, the despair they feel is reflected throughout their bodies. Sometimes they turn to alcohol or drugs to help them cope by escaping.

Yet we’ve all probably met people who don’t seem to be bothered by much. When bad things come their way, it rolls over them. Instead of wallowing in negativity, they don’t get stressed out and they seem happier than most people. Physically, they even seem to stand taller and there’s a spring in their step. Being around them makes us feel good. These people don’t live charmed lives, they suffer disappointments, crises, and upheaval just like the rest of us. They too have lost money and opportunities in this economic mess, but somehow they haven’t lost their optimism and sense of hope.

Shift Your Mood

Whenever something distressing happens, our minds tend to follow the groove of our habitual mental pathways, which often include pessimistic thoughts and negative beliefs. But in a process I’ve developed called “shift your mood,” you can actually create new mental pathways. It involves combining mindfulness and body awareness with insights from positive psychology’s “neuroscience of happiness.”

While we’ve all heard a lot about the benefits of positive thinking, countering limiting beliefs, and being in the present moment, these suggestions usually do little to help people deal with hard times and difficult situations. Instead, I propose a practical, concrete way to release the emotional tension that plagues so many people these days.

By keying into your body’s physical reactions to stress you can change the way you feel. Instead of being unconsciously drawn into negativity, you consciously choose happiness. The emphasis here is on YOU. You decide how you want to feel, react, and ultimately, how you want to live your life.

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