Thinking Positive Isn’t The Key To Happiness

Thinking positive isn’t the only driving factor of success and happiness. There are other qualities worth considering.

Eric S Burdon
5 min readMar 3, 2020

If I think positively, will everything work out for me?

No. No, it will not.

As much as I love to think optimistically and positively, one thing I’ve come to realize over the years is that positivity isn’t going to solve all of your problems.

The idea that positivity will solve everything or make everything alright was popularized by thought leaders and by authors of various books. The most notable is The Secret, which wraps it in the term “the law of attraction.”

The idea that things will come to you so long as you are echoing the same frequencies. For example, if you wanted a bicycle, you’d focus on your desire for it and the universe will bring heaven and earth to you to get you that bicycle.

I’m exaggerating it a little bit, but the theming is still prominent.

If we think a certain way it will shape what’s happening in our reality.

And it kind of does work. But only if other elements are in play.

You Need Motivation

Our reality is formed in two ways: how we think, and how we act. By this logic, thinking positively does work. At least in a vacuum.

If you think positively, yes, your view of people is going to change. Your overall attitude of various things will shift. Our very identity will begin to shift.

But these things don’t define us.

They define us in the context of how we view ourselves, but not how the world sees us or where our life will go. The universe is vast and unpredictable and willing things into existence isn’t something the world does.

Instead, what will define us is what we do with those views of the world. Whether it’s something small like getting certain possessions or getting that promotion to affecting the larger scale, like becoming a leader of a country.

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Eric S Burdon

Entrepreneur, positive-minded. I used to say a lot, but now I do a lot.