Does Positive Thinking Really Work?

Guest Article by Susanna Grinsvall

As the host of an online workshop about Conscious Manifestation for Highly Sensitive Women, I frequently receive the question: Does positive thinking really work? In this article, we’ll look into the topic of conscious manifestation from the perspective of positive thinking.

A number of years ago, the personal development industry made it trendy to talk about – and to practice – positive thinking. The hit movie The Secret (2006) by Rhonda Byrne popularized the Law of Attraction, and further emphasized this trend.

First of all, I’d like to reframe the language use. “Positive” in this context means “empowering”. “Negative” in this context means “disempowering”. It’s all too easy to fall into judgments and polarization if we think that “positive” is a synonym for “good” and “negative”, a synonym for “bad”. It is what it is. The Universe is neutral and never judges anything we do, say, or think. It simply reflects back to us what we give out on an energy level, like a mirror.

Negativity bias for survival

One of the reasons why there’s no point in thinking that “negative” means “bad”, is that negativity serves an important purpose. This may sound contradictory at first, but consider this: the human brain has a negativity bias for survival. This means that the brain gives more attention to negative information or events than to positive information or events. Why? The brain stays alert to any threat that could put us in danger. If we didn’t have this built-in survival mechanism, we wouldn’t be here to tell the story.

I learned this in the online course Blooming Brilliantly: Understanding and Loving Who You Are as a Sensitive Person by Julie Bjelland.

Problems arise when we focus so much on negativity that we remain stuck in unwanted situations. It can easily become a vicious circle. We can observe this on both individual and collective levels. The survival mechanism is meant to keep us alive, but we’re not supposed to live our entire lives in survival mode. We’re designed to thrive! You can learn more about this in the article “Are You Ready to Thrive as a Highly Sensitive Person?”. 

Positive thinking shows you what’s possible

The first step to get out of survival mode and into thriving is to open your mind to new possibilities. Positive thinking can help you do this.

Some people seem to think that they have to work hard to the point where they sacrifice themselves to reach their goals – only to find out that the joy or satisfaction they obtain is short-lived, once they get there. How could it be otherwise? Sacrifice leads to depletion, which leads to resentment. And then you’re back on square one: negative thinking as a default mode, reacting to the current circumstances that you call “reality”.

When you shift your thinking, you shift your energy. This is good news because we live in an attraction-based Universe. Your external reality constantly gives you feedback about your inner state. Paying attention to this feedback can help you connect the dots.

So, here’s what positive thinking can do for you:

• It shows you new possibilities.

• It helps you feel good.

• When you feel good, you become attractive to others.

• When you feel good, you connect with others from a place of abundance instead of lack. This is very beneficial to your relationships.

• It raises your vibration, thus helping you to materialize your desires and visions.
  

…but it can only take you so far

As you can see, practicing positive thinking can bring about many benefits… but it can only take you so far. Here’s why: the Universe responds to EVERYTHING that you’re sending out. Not just your positive thoughts.

In addition, when your vibration rises, energies with lower frequency come to the surface to be released permanently. You can think of this as a window with dirt on it. As rays of sunshine (your consciousness) make the dirt visible, you have a choice – to deal with it and release it, or to ignore it.

If you choose to deal with it, you might feel not-so-good while in the middle of it. In this scenario it can be a good idea to practice deferred gratification, knowing that you’re investing in yourself and your future. You’ll also need to have faith that you can go through it and come out stronger on the other side. There are many professionals out there (psychologists, therapists of different orientations, energy workers, healers, spiritual counselors…) who are trained to help you make the process smoother.

If, on the other hand, you choose to ignore the low-vibrating energies that come up, at some point you’ll reach a plateau. From there, your personal and spiritual growth will be impeded. In order to raise your vibration further, you’ll need to release those low-vibrating energies, however uncomfortable it feels to you when they surface.

Alignment + inspired action takes you all the way

Needless to say, you also need to take action to bring your vision to fruition. Positive thinking without action is just wishful thinking. Now, there are different kinds of action. Many people in Western cultures miss this nuance; hustle cultures are common where hard work is encouraged or even required.

I’ll tell you a little secret: it’s not the action per se that will bring about your desired outcome. There’s another – far more important, but often overlooked – component to the equation: your consciousness. In other words, ultimately it’s the quality of your consciousness that will determine your outcome.

When you live in alignment with your true self and act from there, it looks almost like magic to outsiders. Things happen easily for you, while for someone else doing the exact same thing, results are less impressive.

Positive thinking can help you come into alignment, but it cannot replace alignment. Thinking – whether empowering or disempowering thinking – is a mental process. There’s much more to you than the mind. Your mind is a tool that you can train to magnify your intentions and thus your outcomes. It remains a tool though.

While positive thinking is an excellent starting point, thoughts alone will seldom take you all the way to your destination. Stubbornly focusing on positive thinking and at the same time neglecting the actions that are needed to progress, can be denial in disguise. If for instance, you’re going through a process of grief, positive thinking could be counterproductive. Instead, honoring your sadness and sorrow and allowing these emotions to be there will help you feel at peace.

In conclusion

Positive thinking is helpful when you want to create something new, or even just to feel more energized throughout the day. To answer the question “Does positive thinking really work?” then, we’ll say: yes, absolutely – but it’s no panacea.

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Susanna Grinsvall is a writer and workshop facilitator with a degree in psychology and Lacanian psychoanalysis. Her deep understanding of psychology and the Law of Attraction, experience-based insights, intuition and exceptionally sharp sense of observation all shine through in her impactful words and authentic voice. To learn more about her work, please visit www.susannagrinsvall.com/workshop.

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