In a world seemingly full of negativity, positive thinking appears like a big boon.

We live in a world that thrives on fear. Fear is used by the governments and media to manipulate the masses, by corporations to manipulate employees and by parents and teachers to manipulate children. By the time these children grow up, they are so full of shame, guilt and lack of faith in themselves and the world, that they see no way out. And for these people, positive thinking is a big boon indeed. To switch from a constant stream of negative thinking to focusing on the positive can bring about big shifts.

There are some things in life that are very useful in certain circumstances but a pain to carry around. Like a ladder. Positive thinking (and the law of attraction) is that ladder. It pulls you out of a deep ditch that life worked you into, helps you climb out and changes your life. But then, you start carrying it around, and that’s where the problem begins.

How can Thinking Positive be Bad?

Really. How can something that is positive, be ‘bad’? Contradiction? Not really. If a coin identified only with the ‘head’ and refused to acknowledge the existence of the ‘tail’, what good would that do?

When we refuse to acknowledge the existence of our negative emotions, it is akin to refusing to acknowledge the trash in our house, and choosing to focus on the flowers. Over time, the trash starts to stink and the flowers wilt. If however, we tackle the trash, convert it into manure, then our flowers grow even better. But for that we have to get our hands dirty.

Putting this into Context

Negative emotions are not meant to be avoided. As mentioned earlier, there are times when people get stuck in a negative spiral, where a short phase of positive thinking might pull them out of their mess. But unless we work on and transmute our negativity, we cannot completely utilize the power they bring to our personalities.

Also, positive thinking creates a suppression of negative emotions which eventually manifest as physical disease – because the body needs to find a way to release them.

Neither Positive Nor Negative: Don’t Think

When we are focused on doing what we need to do, there is very little thinking. We might choose to think – i.e., plan, execute, delegate, etc., but when we are really engaged in the action, there is very little scope for thinking about the outcome, because all our energies are dedicated to the present. In this moment, there is no positive or negative. There is just action.

It is when we are concerned about the outcome that thinking becomes negative or positive. If something unwanted happened in the past, we resist reality and either feel miserable or suppress it and convince ourselves that things will get better. If we are waiting for the outcome, we project a positive or negative outcome and feel happy or sad. In either case our thoughts are a lie, because the future isn’t here yet, and we have no idea what it will bring. The only thing that is real, is the present. And when you are in the present, there is no positive or negative. It just is as it is.