Positive Mental Attitude Starts Here 🙂

What a question, when I start thinking about this my mind explodes with all the memories over my life of positive influences and positive occasions. And then some of the negative ones and how they could have been managed better. I’m also a realist so whilst my optimism may drive my husband bonkers I do still stop and think about the way that I’m responding to things and the impact this has on others close to me and even those not so close!

Some people are naturally positive, I know I sit pretty firmly in this area however I also know lots of people who have turned their mental health and relationships around with positive thinking and with the positive impact of people! This is key, surrounding yourself with people who think positively can hugely impact how you feel about yourself. I often get things wrong especially when I’m reacting to my children but the opportunity to stop, think and apologise if my response hasn’t been great is often the opening to improve the situation and give them a more positive memory. I do this with every decision or reaction I make.

Taking responsibility for ourselves and our reactions, if someone responds to me in a negative way I try to think about what I have done to create that feeling. Sometimes it’s nothing but sometimes it can be something small I have done or not done, or even that I didn’t think about the whole picture when decision making. As a leader of a team of teachers and business owners this is vital to ensure that the business continues to run well and provides an open and honest forum for all. My first thought when making decisions is how each and every member of my team will respond, and they will all respond differently, we don’t all like change or decisions made by others so it’s key to work out the positive side for each person and use that in discussions.

Positive works amazingly in the pool, over the years I have seen thousands of parents and children in the pool and you can without doubt tell which child will come out with a positive experience in the water. The environment that they are in is strange and when introducing them to each element of the water we need to do this in a careful way to maintain that positivity. Each child is of course really different even from a really young age, they will tell you when they are not happy or comfortable in a situation. If this is the case then remove them to a place where they are comfortable, generally in the arms of mum or dad and maybe out of the pool or just sat in a quiet corner for a feed.

Smiling works wonders, even if parents don’t feel like it, we work hard to encourage a continuous smile at their baby/child, this builds the bond further and ensures that they know they are having a positive experience even if the parent feels anxious. In these cases our teachers should help support and guide the family to a calm response. Some children are ready for a lot of fast paced moving around the water and some aren’t, if they are not ready then smiling and moving away from the action, taking it at their own pace.

I think that the most important part of feeling positive is by helping others feel positive about what they are doing or what they are involved in. Contributing in any way you can to the community around you and supporting others, putting them first is hands down the best positive feeling in the world. It doesn’t have to take time and it doesn’t have to cost money, there are so many things we can do to support our communities that there are opportunities for all. In the face of any situation, even those without hope there is always laughter or relationships that can warm us even a little bit. If we let this in then we can begin to feel more positive about the future. This positive and thoughtful behaviour breaks down all barriers, it’s as simple as that!