How to Get Ahead in The New Year, Try These 7 Positive Tactics

It’s simple, albeit not easy, to get ahead in the new year by practicing an attitude of gratitude

It’s barely past 2 am and you’re staring into the darkness that is your restless bedtime state. Instead of sleep you’re drowning in a sea of anxiety, bouncing around the all-consuming waves that are your anxious ruminations. So, how do you effectively navigate through the sweat-inducing darkness?

Simply read on and learn how to get ahead in the new year by implementing these seven positive tactics, which will help you to go from surviving to thriving.

Start with an attitude of gratitude

I know, your skepticism pops up, like an abandoned dinghy lost at sea, and though the phrase ‘practice an attitude of gratitude’ may sound so 2018 it’s paramount that you do so right now. Start by being grateful.

Upon awakening try gratitude for two things. If you’re a writer tasked with creating content for the next two quarters for your marketing firm, and you’ve completed this significant task, be grateful. Why? Because you accomplished something relevant. You are now able to proceed with the next phase, which is usually writing those numerous posts.

Another often overlooked thing that requires gratitude is being alive. Simplistic? Not at all. There are many people who did not survive the new year. There are many people who are barely alive, struggling with debilitating illnesses. If you’re not one of those unfortunate souls scraping by on borrowed time then you need to be grateful. More importantly, by practicing an attitude of gratitude you’re already moving on in a positive manner. You’re much more likely to bolster your mindset just by doing this.

Meditate

No, seriously. You need to meditate every single day, just after you verbalize two things for which you are grateful. The mind, heart and body can improve with daily meditation. Most Americans aren’t raised to sit, immobilized, and meditate. It’s generally an Eastern practice. But meditation has gained millions of converts, helping them to ease anxiety, chronic pain, stress, improve heart health while boosting mood and immunity. Meditation is also a great way to improve self-awareness. Learn more about the many benefits of meditation right here.

image compliments of Unsplash.com

Determine who you will give your time and how to spend it

Emotions are contagious. While most of us know that outwardly far fewer actually keep that in mind through wasted energy. We morph into zombies by performing self-hypnosis on our digital devices: smartphones make us dumb, social media drains us of our very best and there seems to be no end in sight-until now. Just say NO! The internet is saturated with myriad videos of people driving while texting-and crashing, people walking while glued to their smartphones-and stumbling. There are families seated at the dinner table while enduring self-isolation via their smartphones. Here’s a startling video of a man oblivious to a meandering bear while walking and texting in his neighborhood.

How you spend your time is a reflection of your priorities. If you want to work on improving your mindset start by taking stock on how and where you spend your time. Then honestly reflect on whether your life is either improved or lessened by how you spend your time and with whom you share it.

Kindness matters more than you realize

Shifting your mindset begins with acknowledging where you are right now. Are you feeling blue? Are you angry? Might a brisk walk around your neighborhood or a brief 20-minute elliptical machine workout do the trick? Maybe it might. What can you do to improve your feelings? Perhaps a phone call to a friend, if you cannot meet up in person would help. Maybe phone an estranged family member and make peace.

Or perhaps you need more space and that may include creating some needed distance with a family member. Whatever is needed, you must act on it. Shifting your mindset begins with being kinder to yourself, accepting your limitations-and those of others-and by doing this you will take proactive steps towards bringing more peace and happiness into your life.

Prioritize positive thinking through action

So how do you go about creating a more positive mindset? Make positive thinking a priority. Your health depends upon it. When you reframe how you view the world around you and how you are the one who makes your world your own you will then experience acceptance, peace and overall happiness. You’ll also steer the ship safely through the waves of the night so that sleep comes more easily.

Again, you survived the new year while many others did not. Sometimes life may not always feel like a gift. But it is. It’s not always easy to remember this, especially when stress rears its ugly head. But by prioritizing a positive mindset, by taking helpful actions, you’ll feel more energized and powerful.

Say it aloud

Write down your favorite quote or phrase and apply it to how you’d like the new year to go. You can even say it silently right after you voice the two things for which you are thankful for upon awakening. Then say it agin, and again and again.

Try the old trick of standing in front of the bathroom mirror and telling yourself just how successful you will be in the new year. Start out with something small: ‘today I will take a walking break during lunch, begin day one of my seven-day social media break, and cook my lunch for the week, instead of ordering out. Remember, great things begin with regular, practiced small steps. So say what you will do or become and then follow the baby steps that you will have implemented.

Just say NO!

Do you hate saying no to family, a friend or your boss? Don’t beat yourself up over it. It’s far more common than you’d think. But saying no can help you feel better about what you need to do to regain control and peace in your life.

We all have those people in our lives who are slightly needy at best and vexing at worst. Why not jam the breaks on their soul-sucking ways? After all there’s only so much time in a day for what we need to be productive and happy. Time is at a premium so stop wasting it on things that don’t contribute to your happiness and health.

If saying no feels too difficult start by saying ‘I don’t.’ Try the refusal strategy of just saying ‘I don’t,’ instead. A study in the Journal of Consumer Research by Professor Patrick and Henrik Hagtvedt found that saying, ‘I don’t, implies you’ve established certain rules for yourself, suggesting conviction and stability. And because it’s personal, it also maintains the social connection which we, as humans, crave.

Saying, ‘I can’t,’ may sound like an excuse, thus leading to a debate, ‘I don’t,’ exudes certain established rules for yourself, which infers conviction and stability. And again, because it’s personal it maintains that social connection which we need.

There are many more ways to reduce stress, improve your mood and increase positivity in your life. Now you are armed with seven positive tactics that will help you to get ahead in the new year. By implementing these seven tactics you will improve your quality of life.

Again, these are simple steps but you must do the work to experience the benefits of positive change. The hard part is in front of you. But it’s also realistic. If you’ve read this far congratulations! You are focused and ready to implement these seven tactics. You’re well on your way to a more positive and healthy new year.