Rethinking Positive Thinking

"Positive thinking often hinders us," says Gabriele Oettingen, author of Rethinking Positive Thinking: Inside the New Science of Motivation as reported in Work & Family Life (February 2015).

"'Dreaming about the future calms you down... but it also can drain you of the energy you need to take action in pursuit of your goals,' Oettigen observes.  In other words, positive thinking can be feel-good exercise that actually lessens one's personal readiness to pursue a needed or desired goal.

"The solution is not to discard all of the happy talk and 'get real' with whatever challenging tasks need to be done....  What will work better, she says is a hybrid approach that combines positive thinking with realism.  It works this way:  You think of a wish and, for a few minutes, let your mind wander freely and imagine that wish coming true.  Then consciously shift gears and spend a few minutes thinking about the potential obstacles that are likely to stand in the way of realizing your wish."

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