A negative mentality is profoundly harmful to the the circuitry of the brain.
But no need to respond negatively to that fact. The problem is addressable.
A person who is always sad is like a sad robot. 🤖. They are programmed to be sad all the time. When someone gets used to being negative, the brain normalizes negativity. The conscious brain doesn’t even notice it.
When someone forms a habit, it moves from the part of their brain that is self-aware (the frontal lobes) to deeper parts of their brain that are unconscious and automatic. The more anyone does anything, the less aware they are of it. Thus, negative people are usually not aware of how negative they are.
We have to be very deliberate to become aware of our own negativity.
The good news is that as we become aware of it, our brains become less negative.
Neuro-exercise:
Can you can go an hour without a negative thought or feeling?
Give it a shot
.
This includes worries, doubts, fears, disappointments. When you have a negative thought, write it down. It will help you become more aware.
Don’t be surprised if you have as many as 25 negative thoughts or feelings an hour.
The more you do this exercise, the more you’ll see your negativity drop.
For even faster progress, enlist your brain’s reward circuitry by promising yourself an indulgence if your negativity substantially drops. This exercise will significantly improve your brain’s performance and enrich your experience of life.
Dive Deeper
Lo, C.S.L., Ho, S.M.Y., Yu, N.K.K. et al. Cogn Ther Res (2014) 38: 389. doi:10.1007/s10608-014-9603-2
2-3X Your
Learning Speed
The Alchemy of Mixing Senses for a Better Life
“When I arrived at Oxford University back in 1988, psychologists were studying sight in one lab and hearing in another;
Alan Watts on the Art of Meditation
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gd2Ot6hLCtM Alan Watts on the art of meditation and why it is important to practice it: “A person who thinks
18 Science-backed Ways to Hack Jealous Communication
Thanks to evolution, mammalian brains are jealous af. Anytime anyone infringes on our “territory” (land, family, lover, money, etc.), human
NeuroTip: Creative Writing Improves the Health of Your Mind
“Life is sometimes hard. Things go wrong, in life and in love, and in business, and in friendship, and in
