Why positive thinking doesn't work for smart people and what to do about it.
From the Coach Approach blog
With the mega success of the hit movie, "The Secret," I assume just about everybody has been exposed to the wildly popular idea of positive thinking. Not a new concept in the field of personal development and success psychology but the movie put a spin on it referring to it as the Law of Attraction (LOA) - claiming some ancient roots and basically that what you think about you will attract like a magnet, either good or bad.
Hordes of followers were energized by the movie and who wouldn't be? All I have to do is think about something - like a little red bicycle - and I will get it. LOA gurus and coaches sprung up everywhere to help the masses work the program. Think about something with all your might and it will be created.
Still others pointed out the caveat - you have to BELIEVE that you already "be, do, or have" the object of your desires. And here is where it all falls apart for smart people. They can't convince themselves of something that is not empirically true in their perception. They refuse to fool themselves when they take some pride their intellect, rational thinking and perhaps education.
The fact is people who think positively do have greater success, better health and more satisfying relationships. (If you need to be convinced, see the work of Dr. Barbara Fredrickson, Ph.D.) How then is a smart, thinking person supposed to convince herself of something other than the thoughts served up by her marvelous brain?
Well here is what we know from the available science.
