A terrorist attack in NYC. Problems in Washington. The crisis here, situations there. Wow! Where is the positive?
Let’s be real. It can be overwhelming. And if there are already things going on in our life, it is often that much harder.
I do read the news. I limit myself to a period of time to see what is out there in the world. I am not an ostrich with my head stuck in the sand. But the key phrase there is, I limit it. I used to spend hours a day devouring the news. I had news apps and news sites all ready to roll. Notifications poured in during the course of the day. And then one day, I said “why”. I stopped. It was hard. I had become addicted to the news. Perhaps it was the fact that I owned newspapers, but whatever the reason was, I changed it. (You might have thought I would have learned during the week of 9/11. How many towers could you watch fall on CNN? All the while my mother was a couple of rooms away in her final days of cancer.)
So, what are our options?
- We can watch the news and let it run us over. we can believe everything we are told and allow the polarity of the day begin to consume us. (Sometimes it turns into Chicken Little and “the sky is falling”.)
- We can avoid the news completely. (But with Facebook and other social media platforms, how realistic is that?)
- We can read only the positive news. (But I am not sure this is realistic.) As a positive news site, I would love you to participate in what we do. I think reading positive news is important.
- You can control the narrative. You can make choices about the news you read. Be selective. Limit your times of the “negative” news and increase your times with positive news.
I like the fourth option. I think it is important to be informed. Maybe it is only your community news you have interest in. Perhaps a state or national interest. It is not just a case of being relevant, but it brings perspective and balance to our life as well. Were it not for the onslaught of negativity last year during the election cycle, I might not have moved forward with this project. If people had been unaware of slavery or the mistreatment of children no one would have stood up to bring justice. I am not saying we need bad to see good, but sometimes our perspectives change in the viewing of something “bad”.
Let’s begin to add value to our lives by controlling the feed and the sources.
Over the years, I see myself as an optimist. (Not a Pollyanna.) One who looks for solutions in the middle of challenges, light in the midst of darkness. I look for the good in the people I am with, the businesses I work with and the culture I live in.
That leads me to the next place. If positive news begins to take hold of people’s minds and their thinking, that is good. But if someone begins to see that they can bring positive changes to situations, providing solutions to challenges, THAT is AMAZING!
When I read a story about “paying it forward” or helping others, it makes me want to do something like that. Over time a few seeds of positivity turn to a trend and a trend to a culture.
In a day where lives can be changed, fortunes made or lost, all on the power of a Facebook post or Tweet, I think we can do much to change things with positive news.
How will you approach the news?
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