It’s tough to have a conversation WITH POSITIVE WORDS when the WORDS in your mind ARE NEGATIVE.
Imagine the voice in your head shouting: “He’s so arrogant!” or“She’s so indecisive!”, or other not-so-nice words even as you’re saying to a colleague “I’d love to collaborate with you”. In fact, one of the biggest challenges in communication is when you want to say something “nice” but your thoughts are quite the contrary.
Here’s an idea:
How about changing the negative— “half-empty”—interpretation of “arrogant” to a neutral or positive— “half-full”—one such as “He knows his abilities” or “He’s self-confident”. OR…. changing “She’s “indecisive” to “She’s open to new ideas” or “She’s flexible”.
In my communication keynotes and workshops, I sometimeS ASK the question “Is your glass half empty or half full?”
To demonstrate the negative-to-positive point, I have the participants pair up, review a list of negative/” half-empty” adjectives and come up with a more “half-full” positive word for each.
I love this activity because it’s a powerful reminder of the crucial relationship
between the words we choose to use and our perspective—rose colored, clouded or
somewhere in between.
In the wise words of writer Anais Nin “We don’t see the world as it is; we see the world as we are.”
Here are a few more examples of turning a negative interpretation into a positive one:
“Penny Pincher” becomes “uses resources wisely” or “efficient”
“Goes along with the crowd” become “willingly participates” or “cooperative”
“Pest” becomes “persistent”, “interested”, “involved”, “eager”
How would you convert the following words from “half empty” to “half full”?
“Nitpicker”
“Impulsive”
“Hyperactive”
“Diva”
31 POSITIVE Words from my Facebook Friends
Recently, I posted on Facebook a request that people post a positive word that begins with the first letter of their first name. It started out as a just-for-fun activity, but the words I received were so inspiring and uplifting that I thought they were share worthy beyond social media!
You might want to select some of these words to create your own personal mantra to repeat regularly…sort of like the maid in the movie The Help reminded the little girl that she was kind, smart and important!
If you’re in pursuit of a more positive perspective and need to replace some “half-empty” words with more positive words, I hope some of the 31 words below from my Facebook friends will give you the results you desire. I’m certainly making a note to self!
- Joyful
- Righteous
- Successful
- Marvelous
- Thankful
- Awesome
- Grateful
- Considerate
- Wonderful
- Love
- Courageous
- Kind-Hearted
- Loyal
- Rockstar
- Magnificent
- Precious
- Adventurous
- Creative
- Fierce
- Victorious
- Renewed
- Delightful
- Dependable
- Vivacious
- Mellow
- Happy
- Magical
- Exciting
- Almighty
- Curious
- Admirable
Want more on how to stay positive and handle your communication challenges? Take a look at some of my other blogs: How to Stay Positive and Hopeful in Hard Times and Nothing Nice to Say.
