Starting the New Year with a P.M.A. (Positive Mental Attitude)

Starting your job search starts with a positive attitude. Envision yourself with the job you want. What does it feel like? What are you wearing? What does your day look like? Starting your day with positive self talk is a great way to move into a more pleasant reality. Think of yourself as your own best friend who only speaks good things to yourself. How do you do this? By following one simple rule: don’t say anything to yourself that you wouldn’t say to anyone else. Keep your internal dialogue respectful, gentle and encouraging. This type of positive thinking leads to less stress and better health outcomes, according to the mayoclinic.com.

Here are some other ways to keep things positive as you search for a new job:

1. Find the humor: give yourself more permission to laugh. Call up the funny people in your life and have them give you a pep talk. At the end of the conversation you’ll feel lighter and less burdened by what’s not going right in life.

jobs2. Focus on gratitude: there are always people and things to be thankful for. We live on Maui! Have gratitude for the beauty of the ‘aina and enjoy what it has to offer. Sometimes just being thankful for our next breathe is all we need to do to turn our attitude around.

3. Move your body: take a walk, swim in the ocean, hike a trail or ride a bike. Physical exertion gets the endorphins, your body’s natural pain killers, flowing through your body. This is generally known to create a greater sense of well being.

4. Reward yourself: create your own motivation for following this to-do list. Are you having trouble following through on applying for jobs? Give yourself small rewards. Take your dog for a walk, play a quick game online, keep yourself moving forward.

5. Change negative thoughts into positive ones: Is there something negative you always say to yourself? Turn it around and speak positively. Example: No one will hire me without a degree. Change it to: I have a ton of life experience and am great with people.

We are our own biggest roadblock in life. If we can get out of our own way, the opportunities are out there. You can have the job you want. You can get the training you need. It is possible. Just start by saying, Yes I can!