There is a lot of talk about using the power of “ positive thinking ” in order to get what you want out of life. The general consensus is that the more you keep your mind tuned to your Personal Positive Network, the faster you will attain the things that you want in life.

That is all very true. However, is it the ONLY path?

As humans, we realize that something in our lives is good because we compare it to something bad. We know what a full stomach feels like because we know what it is like to be hungry. We know what a white shirt looks like because we compare it to a black shirt. We perceive “good” in the world by comparing it to our perception of “evil”.

The human existence is one of contrast – we experience things as being either pleasurable or not so pleasurable based on our perception of the opposite of that thing. Without contrast there can be no good or bad, there can be no right and wrong, and there can be no black and white.

If you think of happiness as a positive emotion, then you must also have experienced sadness. If you think of money as being something that makes you happy, then you must have realized what it is like to not have enough of it. If you think of perfect health and weight loss as being keys to your joy, then you must also have the knowledge of what it means to be overweight or unhealthy.

So, bearing all of that in mind, if we are supposed to attain our goals in life by positive thinking , a question is then raised about what happens to everything that we don’t perceive as “positive”.

Based on the fact that we experience positive things by comparing them to what we perceive as negative, then the fact remains that the negative things MUST exist. They have to be “out there” somewhere, or else we wouldn’t have anything to judge our positive feelings and experiences on.

Let’s jump ahead to a time in your life when you will experience some of that negativity. It’s bound to happen eventually, if you’re not already dealing with it frequently. Eventually you will have something that – no matter how hard you try – brings about a negative reaction or situation in your life.

If you are truly skilled in the art of positive thinking , then these circumstance will be rare, and they will pass quickly. However, the fact remains that regardless of how much of a positive person you are, there will come a time when you have to deal with something that you consider to be negative.

In a classic state of irony if one ever existed, it is possible for you to USE that negativity to achieve a positive result! Here are 3 examples:

1) Mental – If something bad happens to you or becomes a factor in your life, you can embrace that negativity as a reminder of what you DON’T want in your life. If that negativity is brought about by a bad relationship, then embrace the fact that you will never be in that kind of relationship again because you now know what you DON’T want. You can take positive steps towards making sure that your next relationship has none of the negative aspects of the previous one. That same concept could be applied to almost any negative situation that affects you mentally.

2) Physical – When you are upset about something – especially angry or frustrated –then exercise ! Pound out your frustrations on the treadmill or weight training floor. Take a kickboxing class or use a punching bag. Go hit the sidewalk and see if you can break your personal land-speed record for the 2-mile run. In a nutshell, use your negative emotions as POWER to juice up a great workout. The positive side effects are that you will feel much better after your brain releases the exercise -induced endorphins, and you will also be more calm when you return home or to work where the negativity was introduced to you in the first place. Also, you get to be more healthy!

3) Task List – Using the same example as when you exercise , take that bottled up negative energy and explode it onto the things that you have to get done in life. You would be amazed at how fast you can clean your house from top to bottom when properly motivated, or how quickly you can knock task after task off of your to-do list when you are screaming around with the power and the speed of a freight train behind you!

None of the words in this article are meant to imply that you should try to find negativity in your life just so you can energize your personal output. You should also not focus on your negativity and use it’s power as a “crutch” to get through life or to stay on top of your responsibilities.

No, as this article started out saying, being positive IS the way to go, and you can use the power of positivity to literally build the life of your dreams .

However, when life throws you a curve ball and you have no choice but to deal with negativity, then turn it into a positive thing by doing something good with it!

Author's Bio: 

Aaron Potts offers free self empowerment teachings at http://www.todayisthatday.com/blog/ and is the author of eBooks that teach about positive thinking, the Law of Attraction, and weight loss. Get his free newsletter or check out his books at http://www.todayisthatday.com