By Marisa Spano (Columnist)
There is no greater joy in life than being positive. However, living a busy and hectic life can make that a little hard, especially as a college student. I have had my own ups and downs with negative and positive thoughts and I have learned first hand that mastering the positive ones can make your life much greater.  

I am sure you have heard the idea that our mind controls our body.  But what does this mean? Taking charge of your mind is a vital factor in keeping your body healthy. A positive attitude helps to cope with the daily affairs of life. It brings optimism into your life and makes it easier to avoid worry and negative thinking.

Adopting positive thoughts for your way of living will bring constructive changes into your days and make you happier and more successful. Positive thinking is a mental attitude that brings the mind thoughts, words and images that bring you to growth, expansion and success. It is a mental attitude that expects good and favorable results.

A positive mind anticipates happiness, joy, health and a successful result. Whatever the mind expects, it finds.

It is very common to hear people say, “think positive” when feeling down and worried. But how do we use this? We should stop and think what the power of positive thinking really means.

All of us affect the people we meet. This happens instinctively and on a subconscious level, through our thoughts and feelings. People sense our aura and are affected by our thoughts. This is why we enjoy being around positive people and prefer to avoid the negative ones. Nobody likes a Debby Downer.

Negative thoughts, words and attitude bring up negative and unhappy moods and actions. When the mind is negative, poisons are released into the blood, which cause more unhappiness and more negativity.

In order to turn the mind toward the positive even as a completely negative person, some work inside your inner self is needed. Your Attitude and thoughts will not change overnight; it takes time and practice. These affirmations are called self-suggestions. It is a powerful tool for transforming your inner self into an amazing health generating, self-healing entity.

Start by:

-       Ignoring what other people might say or think about you.

-       Using Imagination to visualize only happy and beneficial situations.

-       Using positive words in your inner dialogues, or when talking with others.

-       Smiling more; it helps the positive thoughts flow.

-       Expecting success.

-       Getting inspired

-       Displaying confidence

-       Not giving up

-       Start saving quotes

Finding quotes and posting them all over my room was one way I was able to create a more optimistic mindset; you never know how much a quote can affect you. Finding some that fit you can make you feel better and think more positively.

Positive attitudes lead to happiness and success and can change your whole life. If you look at the bright side of life, your whole life will become more optimistic. According to medical research optimists are sick less and live longer than pessimists. Positive outlooks on life strengthen the immune system, cardiovascular system and the body’s ability to handle stress.

Optimistic, happy people believe that their own actions result in positive things happening and that they are responsible for their own happiness. They never blame themselves when bad things happen.

So next time instead of dwelling on the bad, analyze it to figure out what good can come of it.