By Patrick W. Dunne | Posted: April 20, 2020

Positive thinking has become somewhat of a buzzword. It’s easy to dismiss such a practice as some New Age nonsense out of The Secret. Yet, plenty of research concludes that positive thinking is great for your well-being. You don’t need to read motivational quotes or inspirational posters. Changing your mindset can result in significant benefits.

Your thoughts and beliefs shape many aspects of your life. Your mindset plays a role in your health, relationships, education, and even income. While it might seem a bit cheesy at first, embracing positive thinking can change your life. Here’s what science says about it:

Longer lifespan

Happy people live longer. One study found that hospital patients with positive attitudes were 58% likely to live at least five more years. Those subjects also exercised more. Scientists aren’t sure if optimism led to fitness or the other way around. Studies which examined HIV, breast cancer and diabetes patients have found similar results.

Productivity

What do successful people have in common? They believed in themselves before they accomplished anything. You need the right mindset to achieve something noteworthy. A positive attitude will help you accomplish great things in school and work. In fact, happy employees are 12% more productive when compared to unhappy workers. They have an easier time focusing on the task at hand. They won’t be bogged down with doubts and worries. 

Decision-Making

Psychologist Barbara Fredrickson tested how positive thinking impacts behavior. She showed five groups videos to evoke different emotions – joy, contentment, fear, anger, or nothing. Then, each participant was asked how they would react in certain emotional situations. Subjects primed to feel positive feelings had the most responses. Those primed to feel angry or scared had the fewest responses.  

Health

Positivity helps both your mental and physical health. Your outlook on life influences your body and mind. It shouldn't be a surprise to know that your thoughts impact your health. The Mayo Clinic found that optimism improves heart health, immunity, and lifespan. Similarly, stress causes bad physical and mental effects. Positive thinking is the natural remedy to stress, so keep on the sunny side.

Success in school

Research from Harvard found that attitude is just as important as IQ for a child’s success. Unsurprisingly, scientists found that those who enjoyed math were better at it. However, researchers did find something surprising. Children who liked math had a more active hippocampus – the part of the brain associated with learning and memory. In other words, enjoying a topic improves the brain’s performance. This knowledge is important, especially considering that behavior in school can affect success 50 years later.

Stress management

Often, life gets the best of us. It’s easy to get overwhelmed with a deluge of pessimistic thoughts. Negative self-talk brings down our mood and willpower. Positive people know how to combat this by understanding how to focus their thoughts. Instead of worrying about what went wrong, they think about ways to improve. They take every failure as a learning opportunity.

Heart health

Harvard researchers examined 200 studies and found a link between optimism and low risks of heart disease and stroke. Subjects with a positive outlook had lower blood pressure and cholesterol. Plus, they lived healthier lifestyles. They ate well, slept more, and exercised often. Once again, researchers didn't reach a solid conclusion between happiness and lifestyle choices. It’s a chicken and egg situation; nobody is sure which was first.  

Pain reduction

Optimism helps protect your body against pain and other unpleasant sensations. One study found that patients who didn’t have optimistic attitudes had a much lower pain threshold. Positive emotions help shield your body from pain and other things that cause stress. Similarly, your body releases "feel-good hormones" like endorphins when you exercise. These chemicals help protect you against the stress of working out. They also boost your mood, hence the term "runner's high." 

Relationships

Seeing the best in others and concentrating on their merits helps you develop a healthier image of them. Noticing someone’s strengths makes it easier to appreciate them and everything they do. If you have hopes about your relationship’s future, you will work harder to achieve those goals. Happiness will benefit all areas of your life, including the areas you share with others.

Immunity

Sure, there may be no cure for the common cold, but a dose of optimism may help increase your immunity. A study tracked first-year law students and found a correlation between happiness and healthy immune cells. In other words, the cells that fight bacteria grew stronger when subjects had more positive thoughts. Of course, that's not to say that you should entirely forgo medicine in favor of positive thinking. But keeping your chin up certainly can't hurt.

How To Stay Positive Always? | Watching this 60 Second Wisdom Video By Sri Sri Ravi Shankar, Founder-Art of Living Foundation, will help you immensely to have a balanced perspective about your thoughts.

Conclusion

Positive thinking benefits your life in numerous ways. You can train your brain to think positively through simple exercises. Smile, meditate, and practice gratitude each day. The effects might not be immediate, but they will improve your life over time. 

Additionally, you should learn to reframe your thoughts about any situation. Think about the bright side of things, even when it seems tough. Altering your mindset in small and modest ways will lead to noteworthy payoffs.     

Patrick W. Dunne is a freelance writer who has bylines in Listverse and Psych Central and has ghostwritten for Inc., Forbes, and other sites. He covers a wide variety of topics including health, wellness, productivity, and business. You can follow him on LinkedIn.