By Lillian Cunningham — 2014
“With poetry,” Collins says, “you don’t have to go through a windshield to realize that life is precious.”
Read on www.washingtonpost.com
CLEAR ALL
Elizabeth appears to be a naturally positive person. However, she’ll be the first to admit that getting to this place took real work. A cancer diagnosis over twenty years ago led her to reevaluate her life and shift her perspective to one of gratitude.
Research has shown that practicing gratitude can boost your resilience to stress, promote well-being, and reduce depression. In addition, gratitude interventions have been shown to lower blood pressure, decrease inflammation, and improve immunity.
No matter how great your life may be, you will eventually deal with disappointments, setbacks, failures, and even loss and trauma.
“Tragic optimism” is the search for meaning during the inevitable tragedies of human existence, and is better for us than avoiding darkness and trying to “stay positive.”
2
Focusing on past U.S. presidents, Goodwin highlights key traits of a successful leader. “Even though problems change over time,” Goodwin says, “there are indeed traits that are held inalterable by our most successful leaders.”
Cultivating gratitude doesn’t cost any money and it certainly doesn’t take much time, but the benefits are enormous.
In low seasons, while you sit in the waiting room of life, patience is a superpower. But by adopting these seven mindsets, you can run circles around life’s challenges.
We’ll be better prepared for life’s challenges if we cultivate these 12 inner strengths.