Positive Thinking
Positive thinking is often described as forcing cheerfulness. A more useful version is quite different: noticing an unhelpful interpretation and choosing a fairer one.
Reframing, not denial
“This is fine” is denial when it is not fine. “This is hard and I have handled hard things before” is a reframe. The second is both truer and more useful.
Limiting beliefs
Limiting beliefs are the sentences you treat as fixed facts about yourself — “I'm not a numbers person”, “I always ruin this”. Writing them down is often the first time they get examined at all.
Self-talk you can sustain
Aim for language a sceptical version of you could accept. That is what makes it survive a bad week.
