Positivity: Post #3--Broaden the Mind

Broaden the Mind: Positivity prepares your mind for opportunity and options.
a.    Back-of-hand exercise: Study the back of your hand and describe to yourself what you see. Next, make a list of what you might do if you had a half-hour free. Then, think of a former joyful moment in your life. Savor it for a bit. Then again construct a list of what you might do if you had a half-hour free. Now compare the two lists.  Often the “positive” experience list is longer because positivity opens (broadens) our minds, allowing creativity.
b.    Positivity opens the brain, allowing it to see “the big picture” of possibilities. Neutrality or negativity shrinks our peripheral vision, not allowing us see options.
c.    Students do better on standardized tests when they have a self-generated positive experience before taking the test.
d.    Doctors and positivity: Cornell researchers gave doctors candy which they could not eat until after a diagnosis was made; as a result, their diagnoses were more thoughtful, creative, and accurate.
e.    Positivity and trust: As positivity grows, we trust others more, and they trust us more!  A positive spiral up—a virtuous cycle.
f.    Positivity makes you see others more like you and less separate (from Me to We). Experiments using positive, negative and neutral experiences before classifying how we view others demonstrates this “me-to-we” phenomenon. And, it works cross culturally.
g.    Oneness: Positivity creates a sense that we are all one and “breeds
helpful, compassionate acts.”
h.    Positivity transforms us by connecting us to something bigger than ourselves—oneness with others and nature.