Living Positively
Are you tired of hearing all the grumbling and complaining around your house? Do you ever find yourself just feeling down for no reason? Maybe it's time the family has a positive attitude adjustment. It may take some time to get everyone in the swing of things, but before you know it everyone will be enjoying life more.
Growing up, many of us heard "Can't died in the poor house"; meaning that saying you can't do something will get you no where. How can you bring that phrase to life? Simple --put it into practice. Set up a money jug, and every time someone says something negative, they have to contribute a set amount of money, like a nickel, every time. You could make it a contest, maybe even between the kids and the adults. Whoever wins by being the most positive, having the least amount of money in their jar after a set period of time, gets both jugs of money.
If you don't want to deal with using change, you could keep a chart. Figure out what the reward will be for having a better attitude. Instead of penalizing people when they are negative, you could give a point every time someone is "caught being good" or being especially positive. You could even award bonus points if they are positive despite something disappointing happening, like failing a test at school.
Another idea is having a time set aside to just share what we're thankful for. Even though most people do this at Thanksgiving, it is a good thing to do year round. We tend to take the good things for granted. By being thankful more often, it's hard to be negative. Just shifting your focus that little bit can make a huge difference.
A praise board is another way to help the family be more positive. Set up a bulletin board somewhere everyone will see it. Give each family member a section of it, or maybe even use small, separate ones for each of the kids on their bedroom doors. Then everyone gets index cards and they have to write something nice about the person and put it on their board. Tell each other the things you appreciate about them. Give them compliments. Encourage them if they are down about something. When the board is full, take the cards down and put them in a file box. Then if they have a bad day, they can either look at their board, or back through the box of cards with encouraging words just for them.
By just making a few changes, it is amazing how quickly the household's mood can change. The little things can really mean a lot. Once your family starts being more positive with each other, take it a step further and share your good mood with your family and friends.
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