Turning Negatives into Positives

The last year has been an interesting time to be alive. I’ve seen lots of people struggling and I felt the urge to write a blog that talks about silver linings and why being kind is so important to me. I’ve come to the conclusion in the past few years that life is not about what you have and how many people like you; it is about how you leave your mark on the world, finding your purpose, and leaving people better than when you found them. The most empowering thing I have discovered in my life this far was finding my place in the world and being at peace with who I am as a person in this big world.

The first thing I would like to write about is that we need to get better at not judging a book by its cover. We live in a society where people are so quick to judge or not like someone because they don’t feel the same way. This makes me sad. We definitely need to get back to where it’s ok to feel differently than someone else. Or not jump to conclusions when we actually have no idea what could be going on in someone’s life. You never truly know what someone is going through. A family member might have passed away or they are on the brink of losing everything. I think it’s important we get back to showing people love and kindness. When I was 28 years old, I was having a really hard time with life for many reasons. A lot of people in my life had no idea. People tend to struggle in silence. One of the most important things I did to make myself feel better was I decided to do a daily act of kindness. It could be as simple as holding the door for someone or smiling at a stranger. I did grand gestures as well. I love buying dinner for people anonymously and watching the smiles on their faces from a distance. When you bring joy into people’s lives, their happiness wears off on you and before you know it you feel happy inside as well. You also never know the impact your gesture has on people. You could have changed a day that was going terrible for someone just by being kind. This is why random acts of kindness are so important to me. I chose to be kind in a time I didn’t feel good inside and eventually, it made me feel happy again. Another thing I did was something my mom taught me. She said to tell myself every day that I am happy and eventually you will start believing it. Boy was she right! Every night before I go to bed, I tell myself all the things I want to accomplish and do in this life. 90 percent of my goals have come true. The power in positivity is no joke. I felt the urge to share this with the world because mental health has been at an all-time high in the past couple of years and I feel it is important to be the person that helps people that are struggling not the person who ignores someone who is struggling.

The second thing I want to talk about is finding the silver linings. I think most people can agree the lockdowns have been extremely difficult. The silver lining in them for me was that I got to spend more time with my mom and relax a little bit more than I normally would. It’s also made me appreciate things that I once took for granted. I love love love to golf and I sure am enjoying my rounds a lot more. I am beyond excited to go to Flames games and concerts again. Which are my two favorite things to do in this city I call home. Also, I’m appreciating my time spent with friends a whole lot more. No matter what we go through you can always find a positive out of a negative.

The last thing I would like to talk about is being happy. One of the best things I have ever done for myself is, getting selfish with my own happiness. Sounds weird right? Well to put it simply how can you be good to others if you are not good to yourself? BE SELFISH with what makes you happy and say goodbye to what doesn’t make you happy and this very much includes people that drag you down. I have been told a couple of times I’m very quick to turn my back. This comment has come from people that are quick to judge and do not take the time to learn the whole story. So, here’s the truth in this; yes, I have walked away from people in my life, but I did not do it lightly. I give one hundred percent to people that deserve that hundred percent. But why give that hundred percent to people that want to drag you down? Again, how can you be the best version of yourself if you don’t treat yourself right? By allowing people to treat you badly you are essentially treating yourself badly. So, surround yourself with winners. I promise you there are just as many people out there that want to see you win as there are people that want to see you lose. Two people in my life that I am super grateful for are Christian Twomey and Mathew Said Morley. They want to see me win and they have my back wholeheartedly. It feels pretty good to be surrounded by winners. At the end of the day, you create your happiness. Do what you need to do to be happy because we have one chance at this life. Let’s make it the best life we can.

Thank you for reading and lots of love always,

BLB

~keep your head up and your heart strong~