Earlier this week, I spoke about benefits of positive thinking.
Now, let’s talk about 4 dangers of positive thinking.
It’s Your Unlocked Potential, and let’s go!
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And make sure you stay until the end, as I will talk about what I disagree with the book
and the movie “The Secret”.
Now, just to get it out there, while I’m all for positive thinking and believing in
yourself, when you focus on only that, it can be detrimental.
Here’s what I mean, starting with the first reason.
Number one Forced Positivity is Toxic
Often in our society we have the culture of needing to be happy and positive all the time.
We are often forced to keep ourselves smiling at work even when we’re unhappy or exhausted.
Or we can’t show any signs of weakness among our macho friends,
otherwise they’ll call us weak.
Life…is more than just being happy and joyful all the time.
And expecting us to always act this way is a toxic perspective.
Don’t get me wrong.
I’m not anti-positive.
It is important to find a balance, which I will also talk about in the near future (the
importance of balance) so be sure to look out for that.
What is more important is to accept a range of emotions, to grow, and have resilience.
Of course, we do not condone hate speech and anger towards other people or towards themselves.
But embracing and acknowledging our struggles
allows us to deal with our emotions in a healthier way.
Number two - Being Overly Positive Causes inflexibility
Rigid or strict positive thinking can allow one to become delusional.
Because positive thinking is all they can do.
They become void of other emotions, and become close-minded.
They are less likely to receive negative feedback or criticism, because anything negative is
something they avoid.
They will not want to improve, they will not want to grow, and they unfortunately become
difficult to interactive with.
Positive emotions may be the only range of emotions they want, and this may cause a lack
of empathy or only be with others that just like them.
Number three – Positivity does not mean understanding
Many times, we say “cheer up” or “it’ll get better” when cheering someone up.
But when people are going through tough times, positive statements like these CAN be upsetting.
Because at that moment, they are upset for a reason and they don’t want to think
2 or 4 years down the road.
They want someone to comfort them and be there for them.
Instead of being positive, many times when we’re upset,
we just want others to understand how we feel.
And as friends or family, we need to show empathy and display support.
We need to embrace flexibility in our thinking, and be vulnerable.
By being vulnerable, it does not mean being weak or negative, but simply saying “hey,
I’ve let my walls down for us to create a meaningful bond”
and atmosphere and that I’m here for you.
Number four – Positivity Without Action means Nothing
For those that have seen the movie or read the book “The Secret”, you will know that
the book promotes the law of attraction and positive thoughts.
In the book, it said “If you believe that you are rich and wealthy and successful, The
Universe will respond to these vibrations and soon provide you with the wealth and success
you desire.”
Or “If you believe that you are beautiful, then The Universe will deliver”.
But the truth is, if you ONLY have positive thinking, no action, ONLY positive thinking
– where does that get you?
You and I both know very well that even if you work hard, 12 or 14 hours a day, you might
STILL not get what you want even with actions AND being positive.
The truth is, there are so many factors in life, life can be so unpredictable.
For example, do you go out driving your car thinking you will crash or get in an accident?
NO!
Because if you did, you wouldn’t drive.
So, your positive thinking is right there.
But the truth is, you may still get into an accident totally not being your fault, but
someone else’s.
Like a drunk driver.
Then are you thinking about drunk drivers or you're attracting drunk drivers?
Some examples in the book talked about cancer.
That for three months, the patient only watches their favourite show and laugh and be happy
everyday.
Positive thinking cured cancer.
This idea is dangerous.
Because someone who thinks this way are not properly informed or don’t think cancer
cancer treatments will work.
And by this logic, doesn’t that mean someone, somewhere out there, is positively thinking
there will be no more cancer?
Why hasn’t it disappeared from the face of the earth yet?
Are we not being positive enough?
And here’s the trick for the book.
The book said if you think otherwise, it will not happen.
So essentially, it is a disclaimer that if it doesn't happen, you are not believing
in it enough.
This is plain fallacious.
So, it goes to show positive thinking cannot solve everything, even though many people
believe so.
While there ARE some good points in the book, it should not be taken as an instruction or
some sort of blind faith.
Positive thinking IS good, but we should also embrace negative ones too.
Think about project management and risk management, you think to prepare for the worse in case
it happens, and because you have to prepare for the worst
in order for an event to be smooth and successful.
It is about balancing positivity and negativity, and applying them accordingly.
So, what do you guys think?
Do you agree with my points?
Are there any other dangers of positivity you know?
Let me know in the comments down below.
And I will see you all in the next EI180S on Wednesday!
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