Thinking is an art,
and has a technique,
like every art.
Rudolf Steiner
Positivity
Observing the positive
Always try to see the positive aspects of something negative.
In many situations you encounter, you see the negative and ugly aspects quite clearly. In this exercise the aim is that you always see something positive, too, without denying the negative. When something is negative, you can emphasize the positive within or besides that. There is always something beautiful or good that lies concealed in everything. The exercise should not lead to an uncritical attitude and a vague "everything is good and beautiful" or to denying the negative.
The exercise is built on the previous exercises; it is a new step because of the combination of thinking and feeling. To see the positive or good in the negative, you have to overcome your reactions, opinions and prejudices. The circumstances become more interesting. Questions like "What does this tell me?", "What can I learn from this?", "Why is it that I did not hear?", may help in this exercise. A good opportunity to practice this are reviews, evaluations, etc.: you always mention one more positive point then negative ones. And if you criticize, then only as a starting point for improvement.
There are two aspects to this exercise:
- Strengthening the perception. You must not let the negative or the ugly distract you from looking for the positive. You strengthen your interest by searching for that.
- Becoming independent of your feelings by looking for the positive. You have to restrain your negative feelings, otherwise they keep you away from further observation.
During and after this exercise you still see the negative, but you try to find something positive in it. Sometimes this only succeeds when you look back, which may be days or even years later. As you observe more and see the situation from different angles, you will restrain your opinion at first and you become more open and will observe more comprehensively. Therefore the exercise leads to greater tolerance. Ultimately, there is almost nothing that does not have something positive in it.
Difficulties
- You are so overtaken by the negative or the negative is so overwhelming that you do not get around to the positive.
- You may be unable to withhold your criticism, because your judgements grew over the years and you accept them as established facts.
- You tend to forget to look for the positive at the moment itself. In that case: look back at a later moment.