Rewire Yourself to Be Optimistic

Hello, friends!!

If you don’t yet know me, I am Abby Johnson, serving as your Kansas FFA Vice President. I am a member of the Southeast of Saline FFA chapter in the North Central District. Fun fact: In my five years of agriculture classes, I have had four different teachers but have been thankful for every single one of them! All of these advisors have had a role in inspiring me study agricultural education at Kansas State University! In FFA, my favorite memories include contest days (especially poultry judging days!), national convention trips, and jam sessions in the school suburban! I am ECSTATIC to have the opportunity to serve you this year, in whatever capacity that may look like.

Another fun fact about me is that I LOVE to listen to podcasts and TED-talks! Since walking to class has become my normal, I was listening to “Break Your Addiction to Negative Thinking” by Rob Dial on The Mindset Mentor. The focus of the podcast is about how we become “addicted” to negative thinking because of the chemical reaction that happens in our brain.

After we think negatively for long periods of time, our brain begins to crave that chemical reaction. Because of this, negative thinking becomes normal to our brain. This reaction not only happens when we think negatively, but also happens when we are stressed!

I realized while listening to Rob Dial that I have become “addicted to stress”. Sometimes, we may find ourselves purposely creating stressful thought patterns & processes so that we have to perform under-pressure because our brain has become conditioned to the feeling.

How can we fix this? If we find ourselves caught up in constant negative thoughts, we must be intentional about positive thinking. Dial suggests that for every negative thought you have, immediately think about three positives. The only way we can break our addiction to negative thoughts is to flush it out with positive ones.

If we can be intentional about

• Stopping our negative thoughts in their tracks

AND

• Matching each negative thought with three positive affirmations,

soon we will become masters of optimism.

Here are some positive thoughts to think about:

• We are living in a time with the opportunity to create change!
• Fortunately, we live in a time of technology which gives us the ability to continue learning, even if it’s at a distance!
• Staying connected with friends, no matter where they are, is more accessible than ever!

I challenge you to WIRE YOURSELF TO BE OPTIMISTIC.

Thinking positively,

Abby