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A business career can come with stress and pressure at home. Stress from your career can spill over into your personal life, affect your relationships with family members and trigger a cycle of negativity. However, practicing positivity can improve your well-being at home and in the office. Having a positive presence at home and at work can help your loved ones and employees see things from the brighter side. After all, positivity is contagious. In this article, I’ll share seven ways to practice positivity in business and family life.
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1. Redirect negative thoughts
To practice positivity, it is essential to learn how to redirect negative thoughts. There is no room for negativity in your life when you are at home or running your business. Instead, you can redirect those negative thoughts and channel them into something more productive. For example, if you run your business, you can use self-doubt as motivation to consult with your partners and staff to make a business decision together.
Meanwhile, at home, if you have feelings of self-doubt, you can confide in your loved ones and ask for their support instead of keeping your negative feelings all to yourself. However, if you are in a good headroom – this may sound a bit contradictory – but it’s also good to constructive focus on negative thoughts. Here’s why: When you constructively focus on negative thoughts, you look at the possible negative situations of an event, which can help you create solutions for that “potential” event. It is a healthy habit to think negative thoughts, albeit constructively. But don’t focus on it; use negative thoughts as a superpower to be constructive and preventive.
Related: Harnessing the Power of Positive Thinking to Grow Your Business
2. Identify Solutions
It is normal to have negative feelings about problems at home or while running your business. However, after the first wave of negativity has set in, it is more constructive to focus your efforts on finding solutions to the problem than to let the negativity control you.
If you encounter a problem while managing your business, think about it, speak with your team leaders or call a staff meeting to discuss the problem with your team. Collective brainstorming sessions usually help to come up with possible solutions to the problem.
If you run into a problem at home, it’s important to come together and deal with it as a family. Discuss the problem with your partner first and try to find possible solutions. Teen isolation is typical, but a positive attitude can help you find solutions to problems faster and more efficiently.
3. Discuss problems in a positive tone
When you are at work and notice problems with your employees, it is ideal to talk privately with them one-on-one and discuss problems in a positive, constructive tone. That way, instead of feeling like you’re admonishing them, your employee would see that you’re behind them and want to fix the problem as much as they’d like.
If you and your significant other run into a problem at home, it’s essential to discuss it in a positive voice and speak from the heart emotionally — but not overly emotionally. Remind your partner that it’s not you against them. It’s more like ‘us together versus the problem’. Using a positive tone is also crucial when discussing issues with your children. Instead of yelling at them and possibly alienating them from you, try talking to your child in a soft voice. Try to talk to them as if they were adults and discuss the cause of the problem and how to solve it.
4. Do positive self-talk
While it may seem uncomfortable or strange, talking positively to yourself is healthy for you. If you’re nervous about launching that new product, encourage yourself by focusing on how much you’ve accomplished to get to where you are now. Focus on all the positives while objectively understanding the negatives.
At home, you can also speak positively to yourself by congratulating yourself on having a loving and supportive family. You can also encourage yourself to go on vacation with your family. Positive self-talk benefits you; the more often you do it, the more benefits will accrue to your family and business.
Related: How Negative Self-Talk Can Ruin Your Business
5. Take feedback from others
Being a positive beacon at home and in your business also means listening to what others around you have to say. In your workplace, be open-minded about suggestions your employees may have – this can benefit and improve certain aspects of your business. Also be hungry for customer feedback on how to improve a product or service you offer.
At home, you should also be open to feedback from your partner and even from your children. While pride can dictate us to refuse to listen to what our children have to say, sometimes they notice problems and come up with solutions that adults don’t see right away. Put your ego aside and be open to objective perspectives.
6. Give compliments
A compliment can go a long way in your business. Sincere compliments can be the reason why a customer buys from you regularly, other than the quality of your product and service. Compliments can also motivate your team to do their best for your business. A simple compliment can turn an employee’s bad day around.
Meanwhile, you should also compliment your loved ones regularly. Do you notice that your partner looks well dressed? Compliment them! Did your children score high on a test? Compliment them! As long as you give genuine compliments, you can give people a positive vibe and make their day a little brighter.
7. Be thankful for what you have
Gratitude is something we should practice more often. When you find yourself wanting more and more but can’t get it, it’s important to stop and appreciate what you have. If you run a business that you are passionate about, appreciate how far you’ve come since you started. Be grateful for the opportunity to manage your business and the employees and customers who continue to support you. Show appreciation to them in every possible way.
It is very important to be grateful for your family and loved ones. Taking your partner on a romantic evening together is a way to show your partner how much you appreciate him. Give your children gifts on special occasions or important moments, or take them on a family trip to an aquarium or amusement park. Make your loved ones feel loved and appreciated by doing something special for them or simply by telling them how grateful you are for them.
Related: How to Become a Positive Thinker
Janice has been with businesskinda for 5 years, writing copy for client websites, blog posts, EDMs and other mediums to engage readers and encourage action. By collaborating with clients, our SEO manager and the wider businesskinda team, Janice seeks to understand an audience before creating memorable, persuasive copy.
