
“Just think positively”, “keep your head up”, “good vibes only”, “be the energy you want to attract”, “positivity will get you through”, “keep smiling”.
Every day on Instagram posts and Facebook feeds I witness these mantras, phrases, sayings, whatever you want to call them. In fact, they seem to be everywhere – on posters, on clothing, in books. It seems positivity is taking over the world… well, if a metallic gold message on the side of a mug is actual positivity.
But I call BS. I don’t think these ‘positive’ messages are often very genuine, I don’t believe the people posting them are often realistically representing this in their actual life or that they even wholeheartedly believe what they’re posting. And I don’t think having a positive mindset, even if it is 100 per cent real will guarantee you happiness.
This ‘positive mindset’- genuine or not is creating almost a feeling of guilt for those who don’t intrinsically think this way or who don’t adopt this type of thinking, a ‘negative thinking shame’. But I am here to say, it’s OK to not be a positive person, it is completely natural to have negative thoughts and that you don’t need to feel ashamed if you do.

The truth is (if you didn’t get this already) I am not a ‘positive’ person. That doesn’t mean I walk around in a black cloud and never smile. It means that I am pretty hard on myself, I don’t believe the best in everyone, I worry about lots of things, I question things and I do not believe that ‘everything will work out’ with just a positive mindset. If people want to have those beliefs and that ‘positive’ mindset then go for it, if that works for you. But for those who don’t feel that way that is just as OK, it does not mean that you aren’t going to achieve success or that you have a ‘poor attitude’. Because that is not the truth.