Mastering the Art of Positive Thinking

If there is anything I have learnt about positive thinking, it is that it is a skill. And like any other skill such as playing the piano, it takes a great deal of practice to be a positive thinker. If we don't practise, we lose the skill of thinking positively. It is that simple.

Personally, I struggle with negative thoughts every now and then, even with all the motivational quotes, stories and videos I post on this lovely blog of mine. There are times I catch myself remembering past hurts and mistakes, sweating the small stuff or worrying about what could go wrong in the future.

At noon when I habitually shower and do some general cleaning, I have noted that I have a tendency to feel resentful at those who have wronged me in the past. Then in the evening when I habitually go for my daily walks to my hometown of Kiserian, I have noted that I have a tendency to feel guilty and insecure while heading back home from Kiserian.

Such negative thinking keeps me from enjoying life. And that's not good for my health because, as I recently narrated in a story on this blog, our thoughts have a tremendous effect on our physical health. Thoughts of hate, guilt, worry and insecurity - the kind that I struggle with - rob the body of its beauty and youthfulness.

Granted, I'd love to be thinking positively at all times. By that, I mean to be thinking well of myself, to be focussing on my blessings, to be dwelling on what could go right in the future, to be wishing others well, and to be rejoicing at the success of others, even of my enemies.

It is that desire to be thinking positively at all times that compelled me to purchase Norman Vincent Peale's The Power of Positive Thinking for Young People when I found it on sale at a certain bookstall in downtown Nairobi. I began reading the book about two weeks ago. And wow! What an inspiring and enlightening read it was! Okay, let me tell you a little more about the book and what I gleaned from it.

In The Power of Positive Thinking for Young People, the late Norman Vincent Peale dished out some advice in layman terms on how to think positively - advice he drew from his illustrious career as a church minister. He began the book by exhorting us to trust and believe in ourselves, for we cannot be happy and successful without confidence in our own abilities.

Norman Vincent Peale pointed out in the book that an effective method of building self-confidence is to develop a tremendous faith in God. Having a deep faith in God will give us a humble yet soundly realistic faith in ourselves. And the acquiring of dynamic faith in God is accomplished by prayers - lots of prayers - and by reading and mentally absorbing the Bible.

According to Norman Vincent Peale, one of the most effective ways of deepening our faith in God is to imagine Him actually being with us, helping us and guiding us. Such kind of imaginings will go a long way in aiding us to develop the self-confidence we need to lead happy and successful lives.

When it comes to praying, Norman Vincent Peale encouraged us in the book to pray deep prayers. He opined that deep prayers have the power to drive out the doubts and fears that keep us from enjoying life. So we ought to pray without ceasing as St. Paul advised us in one of his immortal epistles.

Norman Vincent Peale went ahead to implore us to refrain from fuming, fretting and worrying. Instead of worrying, we should fill our minds with thoughts of faith, hope, courage and expectancy. We should practise faith until we become experts of faith, so quipped Norman Vincent Peale.

As part of perfecting the art of positive thinking, Norman Vincent Peale suggested in the book that we associate with optimistic and positive people and limit our interaction with those who are pessimistic and negative. I couldn't agree with him more on that.

All told, The Power of Positive Thinking for Young People was truly an inspiring and enlightening read. Whichever trees were felled for the publication of the book were put to good use because after reading it, I have been inspired to master the art of positive thinking and to believe more in the Bible as the most up-to-date book on personal well-being. That's all I am saying.

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RECOMMENDATION: If you've enjoyed this story on mastering the art of positive thinking, you might also enjoy another one I wrote about three years ago on "Keeping Hope Alive". Just click on that link in blue to dive straight into the story.