Positive thinking and Positive Framing

The concept of ‘Positive Thinking’ can be misunderstood.

A good friend says to me often – what’s the point of positive thinking – if all it does is deny the reality?
And I get her point.
Positive Thinking is not about pretending everything is OK when clearly it's not.
Nor is it about meaningless affirmations that have no basis in reality. There is no point intoning to the mirror every morning ‘every day I am getting fitter and fitter’ when all you do is eat cake and sit in front of the TV.
And in life, often things happen that seem outside our control. Maybe your boss really is a bully. Maybe you really were in a car accident!
We just can’t positive think these things away.

Well, my standard answer has always bee that Positive Thinking is not about pretending that what is real is not – its about choosing how you respond to what is really going on in your life. Which I why I really like the distinction I heard between.

Positive thinking and Positive Framing

Positive Thinking, when misunderstood,  can be little more than responding to the facts with an alternate proposal, in a way, trying to dominate or suppress a truth with an alternative.

Whereas – Positive Framing is responding to the facts with action. Action can look like all sorts of things, internal work or external.

Positive Framing says: “OK so I am not as fit as I would like to be, what am I going to do about that?”

Positive Framing says “My boss is bullying me, I cannot manage alone, what will I do and what will I learn?”

Positive Framing says “I have been in a car accident, I am injured, I am in hospital and I am afraid … now what, what is there to learn, what is there to do now?”

Optimists tend to be positive framers: face a situation fearlessly, find the good and act.

Does this distinction resonate with you too?