At midnight on New Year’s Day, I found myself in a sort of slump.
I was surrounded by my closest friends, expected to feel elated for the year ahead. Instead of being present and joyful, I found myself hiding away in my brain, dreading the new year.
My head raced with negativity about the new year. The pandemic is still here. I’m missing out on my first year of college. What if 2021 is just as awful as 2020? It was a mess in my brain!
My best friend turned to me concerned, as the obvious dread read on my face. She said “Emily, get out of your head! There’s so much to feel happy about right now!” You’re probably thinking what I thought at that moment – what kind of crappy advice is that? My initial thought was that she was invalidating my feelings but what I learned soon thereafter is that my best friend gave some awesome advice.
My new year’s resolution is to work on my mindset because as I have learned in the last few weeks, positive thoughts foster a positive life.
It’s easy to get stuck in a rut of negative thoughts but actively working on your mindset can truly catapult you towards your goals. The law of attraction is a philosophy that accompanies the idea of mindfulness and positive thinking. As of lately, it has changed my life. The law of attraction advocates for thinking positively to attract positive outcomes and transform your life into your true desires.
Renowned actor Jim Carrey deeply believes in the law of attraction. In a commencement speech he gave at the Maharishi University of Management, Carrey talked about how his father could’ve become a great comedian but didn’t believe it was possible for him so he got a “safe” job as an accountant instead.
“I learned many great lessons from my father,” Carrey said. “Not the least of which was that: You can fail at what you don’t want. So you might as well take a chance on doing what you love.” Carrey’s words about committing to your dreams resonated with me and inspired me to make a change in my life.
As absurd as this may sound coming from a freshman, I didn’t really like majoring in environmental science and thought it was too late to change it since I already had taken classes towards it. Instead of believing that it couldn’t be done or I needed to stick with my intended major, I took a leap of faith and changed my major to journalism – something I always wanted to pursue – but was terrified of rejection to my writing. Yet, here I am writing for the Daily Aztec, and I am happier than ever!
An active way to work with the law of attraction is simply erasing words like “can’t” or “impossible” from your vocabulary. Anything is possible! Look at where you are and where you really want to be, then actively make changes to get there. Take that leap of faith and positive outcomes are a guarantee.
Additionally, gratitude is a major stepping stone to mindfulness and it has something I have focused on recently too. I am not saying you have to feel amazing about every part of your life right now – change is the whole idea, right?
However, being grateful for what you already have is integral to thinking positively. This means being grateful for the nutritious food on your plate, clean water to drink and other basic human needs. There is an abundance of things to love and appreciate right now and the key is to deeply feel the gratitude. Make a list, say it out loud, do anything to make yourself appreciative, and this will attract more things to be grateful for.
With gratitude comes love, so love yourself and love your life because everything positive is already on its way to you.
Emily Mooney is a freshman studying journalism. Follow her on Twitter @emilyymooney
