Paying attention to the good things
We often forget to pay attention to the good things happening in our lives. This is primarily due to the negativity bias in our brain. Science tells us that we need to apply five times the effort to take in positive experiences to counter one negative experience (perhaps a mere negative thought in our mind). But the good news is that we can train our minds to incline towards the positive. In his book, Hardwiring Happiness, neuro-psychologist Rick Hanson provides a series of practices that can sow the seeds for positivity, contentment and joy in our lives.
Some examples involve intentionally bringing to mind positive aspects of an experience, for example the qualities of a supportive person you know, or sharing in somebody else’s joy. I remember how happy my daughter was when she recently had a go at painting on canvas. She was very proud of her achievement, and I still remember how it felt to share this sense of joy with her.
So, spending time ‘unpacking’ the positive and tuning into resulting sensations in the body is a key part of the practice. When the experience is truly felt this way, our brains are able to register it positively. Repeating such practices over and over, can train the mind to naturally incline towards the positive (this is neuroplasticity at work) .. even if it means seeing the silver-lining in a downpour of negative experiences.
‘Feeling happy’ is a skill that can be learnt!
