Why do we need to work on our positive bias?

Us humans need to work on our positive bias every single day as sadly it’s not our natural way of being.

Here is why?……

1. We have a FEAR response

We are naturally constantly scanning for fear and our amygdala gland is at the ready to fire off signals that we are in danger. 

There are so many things that could trigger our fear response e.g. a house bill, a difficult conversation, someone cutting you up when you drive, your phone beeping over and over, ambulance noises, covid etc. It will be slightly different for each individual but there are so many potential triggers out there.

Once we are triggered the amygdala gland is firing signals and the rational part of the brain (the prefrontal cortex) shuts down, our sympathetic nervous system switches on and we may experience a racing heart, sweaty palms, brain fog, dry mouth and dilated pupils.

A little bit more on our fear response

Our fear response is a primal response of our nervous system which has allowed us to thrive and survive as a species. Our nervous system is scanning for fear and threats the entire time, to keep us safe from our environment. Our nervous system is very ancient and the oldest part (dorsal vagal) evolved with ancient, extinct reptiles. So VERY VERY old! 

We should really give our nervous system some credit for the complex functioning that it runs day to day. But without sounding ungrateful to this incredible system, in a nutshell we need a programme update. Modern life unfortunately, over stimulates our stress (fear) response and can leave us in an overactive state that isn’t good for our health. 

2. The negative bias 

All humans have a negative bias as their hard wiring. It’s much easier for us to focus on the negative than the positive. When we come home from work we’re more likely to relay the one negative thing that happened that day rather than focusing on the positives. When something happens it’s easier for us to fester in negative thoughts and feelings about it then we would with more positive situations, in fact it’s very easy for us to over look them. When thinking about the future it’s easier to predict and worry about the negative outcome. We often see the world through the lens of what we don’t have and what we lack, rather than seeing how much we have in the present moment. 

It’s important to acknowledge that the negative bias and fear response is always on guard.

Other things at play….. 

Uncertainty - life is uncertain and the only thing we can be certain about in life is that it’s uncertain. Our ego doesn’t like uncertainty! Our fear response doesn’t like uncertainty. Us humans in an ideal world would like to be certain about things. Our nervous system responds better when we feel safe and uncertainty can make us feel unsafe. 

When we work on the positive bias (along with other practices such as grounding & self-regulation) we learn how to be more fluid with uncertainty and change. We learn how to ride the wave of uncertainty more smoothly and efficiently. 

Lack mindset - a lack mindset is a product of our fear response and positive bias. You can learn more about this mindset in my previous blog post ‘Understanding & Cultivating Abundance’.  

So why do we need to consciously create a positive bias? 

When we have a strong positive bias we’re able to be more fluid with our thoughts, less reactive, less rigid in our responses and we’re able to see the world through different lens. The reason why we need to consciously create a positive bias is because it’s not something we’d naturally do otherwise.

If we’re not cultivating a positive bias we can become really rigid in our thinking, we might feel quite stuck in situations, we might be really hard on ourselves, we might feel afraid or be stuck in anxiety, we might be overly stressed. 

So what can we do to cultivate a positive bias? 

1. Firstly we need more self-awareness and a curious mind. We need to be more aware of what triggers us so we can catch thoughts in the  moment. We need to be more aware of our negative bias at play. Get more and more curious about your thoughts and the energy your thoughts carry. Notice whether the thoughts you’re having are carrying a negative, neutral or positive tone. Becoming more curious and self-aware is key to cultivating a positive bias. 

2. A huge part of cultivating a positive bias is practicing appreciation and gratitude daily. I know you’ve heard it all before but the more I’ve practiced it the more it has supported me in my life. It supports us in feeling more self-love, self-worth, abundant, generous, less afraid. In a way that feels easy and natural for you, bring awareness each day to the things that you appreciate in your life (big & small) and yourself. As you do this have an inner knowing that you might not have these things and invite the appreciation for those things in your body.

3. Master the inner critic - when you notice your inner voice not serving you begin to talk to yourself like a best friend. Imagine that a best friend is going through what you’re going through. What advice would you give them?

4. Practice thought monitoring exercises. See blog post ‘Manage Your Mind’.

5. Reframing - begin to reframe thoughts so you’re not just focusing on the negative outcome. Reframe thoughts to support you. 

6. What if’s - notice the negative ‘what if’s’ that you’re telling yourself. Flip these ‘what if’s’ to positive outcomes. 

7. Affirmations - use powerful affirmations to help you refocus your thoughts and drop out of your ego mind. 

8. Journal - when we write stuff down our thoughts are forced to slow down and once we have slowed we are able to redirect our focus to other more positive outcomes / possibilities. 

9. Visualise - visualise your future self acting out in a way that you wish. When we visualise the positive outcome and what we wish to create in the future we’re addressing subconscious fears. 

There are many more things that you can do, but what I’d suggest is that you choose 2 - 3 things that resonate with you, and practice those each day. 

If you’d like to learn more about the above join me for a FREE self-discovery mini course that I’m running from the 21st - 23rd Feb. Hit button below to discover more.