How to say positive in uncertain times

This guest blog post by Lois, currently studying BSc(Hons) Applied Psychology was originally published on our Chat to or students web page on 8 April 2020.

Sometimes it is difficult to stay positive when there’s a lot on your plate and things aren’t necessarily going your way. I’ve learnt from my experiences how best to combat these negative moods and thought I’d share my top tips with you:

Set small goals

Even though small goals may seem insignificant, you’ll feel a lot better about yourself and your work load if you tick off 5 small tasks than 1 big task; break down your workload and this will help you maintain focus.

Create a ‘feel good’ list

This can go hand in hand with your to-do list. Write down things you enjoy doing, whether this be reading a book, painting your nails or going for a run. Once a day, make time for yourself to do something on your feel good list. It’s important to remember self-care when you’re feeling stressed, but it’s also important for maintaining your well-being.

De-clutter your mind

Write down any thoughts or worries you’re having. This always helped me because I felt as though the worry had been ‘taken out of my mind’ once I’d written it down.

Practice affirmations

As cheesy as it sounds, it never hurt anyone to say the words “you’ve got this” or “you can do it” or “keep going”. Keeping yourself motivated is really important when you’re feeling stressed. It’s often a case of mind over matter – if you tell yourself you can do it, you’ll be less resistant to achieving great things.

Reflect

At the end of every day, I come up with one positive thing that has happened in the day and one thing you were grateful for. There’s always a positive in every day – you just have to find it!

I hope this helps you to stay positive and keep motivated!