Positive Life Lessons from 8 Celebrities

We have an average of 6,200 thoughts per day. And about 80% of these thoughts are negative and most of them are about things we cannot control.

There is an evolutionary perspective to this. When our ancestors lived in the wild, the danger was all around us. As a result, it is our natural instinct to think of the bad scenarios so that we can mentally prepare ourselves for the upcoming threats. It’s our way of protecting ourselves. But in the modern-day and age, it does us more harm than good. All those sleepless nights because of excessive overthinking, all those strained relationships because of the constant negative thoughts and the extreme amount of stress can’t be good for us and definitely not on a regular basis.

Why is thinking positive so important?

So, what do we do? We need to slowly re-wire and condition ourselves into thinking positively. We need to consciously realize that these negative thoughts protected us when we were in danger of living among the wild animals in the forest. But today, we need to learn to let them go.

There is tremendous scientific evidence now that confirms what we always knew – that a positive mindset results in positive outcomes in our lives. And for that, we also need to talk to ourselves with kindness and positivity. Our experience of life is wholly dependent on our thoughts and expectations.

The role celebrities have in influencing our thinking

Thinking positively is not a new recommendation. It has gained so much popularity these days that we almost always dismiss it as something we already know instead of treating it like a reminder. It has been around for so long, that we now have success stories of those who have used their thoughts to defy all odds. In this article, we will talk about some of those success stories. While we may know and follow these people, relate to them and their expressions, we may not know the story behind their success.

Celebrities that Inspire Us

Here are few celebrities who changed their lives by changing the way they think. These known names have influenced our thinking on many occasions, through their work or art; making us feel connected and heard.

Demi Lovato

The 29-year-old singer has seen a lot in life at a very young age. Being a child star was not always easy for her. It came with a lot of sacrifices, the major one being her years of childhood and youth. There was a lot of pressure on Lovato to look a certain way and behave a certain way. After all, she was an idol for millions around the globe. To cope with all the hardships, she got into substance abuse and even battled an eating disorder. In 2018, she had her second drug overdose episode. However, this time, it was life-threatening, and everyone thought she wouldn’t make it.

Luckily, Demi survived. Her close encounter with death gave her a newfound respect for life. She ventured on the path of spirituality and affirmations. Lovato released a series of documentaries on her YouTube channel explaining her story and why she is on the path she is now. Lovato said that she is constantly trying to expand her consciousness and learn new things. She wants to teach her fans the power of meditation and spirituality and how it can turn your life around beautifully. In her podcast series – ‘4D with Demi Lovato’, we get to see a beautiful spiritual and positive side to her. Lovato is a constant reminder to us that no matter how hard life gets, it’s never too late to start over.

J.K. Rowling

12 rejections later and after lots of dedication, J.K. Rowling has managed to sell over 400 million copies of her Harry Potter series worldwide. And not to forget the lovely movies which are still and will continue to be adored by people. Rowling is a living example of how things always work out in the end, we just have to keep trying. Our efforts are bound to pay off at some point or another.

Rowling said that, “It is impossible to live without failing at something, unless you live so cautiously that you might as well not have lived at all, in which case, you fail by default.”

She did not give up even after she was rejected several times. She lost her mother, suffered from depression after her divorce, had to sign up for welfare benefits to support herself and her daughter. Slowly but surely, she overcame these adversities. She believed in herself, and she was always ready to learn. She continued to pursue her dream, not taking rejection as a failure, finally making the Harry Potter series, a reality. This is what we admire about her, her courage, determination, and a positive mindset.

Jim Carrey

Jim Carrey is a Canadian comedian, actor, and writer. He faced several difficulties in his life, including the time he had to drop out of school to provide financial support to his family. He always knew that he wanted to be a comedian and he never let that dream die out. He eventually became a comic genius and ever since has starred in various films too.

Carrey is a true role model. He stuck to his dreams and rose to fame despite having to start from nothing. He believes that is best to live in the present to avoid a life of pain and regret. He believes in seizing every moment and chasing the things he truly wants. This is exactly what he did with his career too.

In an interview, he told his fans that it is better to fail at what we love doing rather than failing at what we don’t. He also stands firmly against people-pleasing. He talks openly about failure, the power of manifestation, and being true to our authentic selves to attain inner peace. We love and learn from Jim, a man with integrity, truth, and of course, humor!

Oprah Winfrey

We all know who this beautiful, empowering woman is. A TV show host, an actress, an author, a philanthropist, and the list goes on. Oprah didn’t become a billionaire overnight. She faced several trials throughout her journey. But in overcoming those challenges, she understood her true self, and now spends her life encouraging us to discover who we really are, emphasizing that service and significance bring success.

Oprah strongly believes in the power of affirmations and a positive mindset. She has spent her recent few years devoting herself to the theory of the law of attraction. She believes that you attract what you put out there and what you believe. She has a positive mindset and inspires us to manifest our meaningful lives and accomplish our goals.

Michael Phelps

This American swimmer holds the Guinness World Record of the maximum Olympic medals (28). Phelps’ dedication and determination are inspiring to all of us. It takes every living cell of our body, every drop of blood and sweat, lots of sacrifices, and every inch of dedication to win a single Olympic medal. And Phelps won 28 of them.

Phelps firmly believes that everything is achievable with the power of our minds. Being an athlete is both – the physical practice of your craft as well as the training of your thoughts. According to Phelps, our mental health plays a vital role in our success at any sport. He promotes and talks about the importance of mental health, and that big accomplishments require consistent smaller efforts.

Maya Angelou

Maya Angelou is a celebrated author, poet, and civil-rights activist. She was born in Missouri and didn’t have an easy life. She was raised in a broken home when her parents split, and she was physically abused by her mother’s boyfriend, Freeman. When this came out to her family, Freeman was murdered by Maya’s uncle. This left her so traumatized that Maya lost her voice for several years, thinking that her voice may kill someone.

It took Maya a few years to overcome this, and her teacher’s encouragement to help her speak again. Her life and career were affected by the works of famous authors like Shakespeare and black female artists. She wrote about important topics such as feminism and racial discrimination, and won the lifetime achievement award as “Women Who Moved the Nation”.

Maya strongly believed that despite encountering several defeats in life, we must not feel defeated and rise above all odds. She was a strong lady who stood for herself despite all odds and chased her dreams. Maya strongly believed in the power of affirmations. She didn’t let failure stop her from achieving her dreams and had a generally positive outlook towards life, which we respect and honor.

Arnold Schwarzenegger

Arnold was born in 1947 in Austria after the second world war. He was born into a very modest household with a very simple way of living. Ever since a young age, he had big dreams and goals. Arnold always believed that it was important to have a goal for life. According to him, man is aimless without a vision. It is this vision that motivates us and guides us through life and helps us achieve our goals.

Years of hard work and unnerving courage to pursue his dreams is what made Arnold one of the best bodybuilders of his time. Although he came from a small town in Austria, he created a blueprint for his life and worked towards making it a reality. He won the Mr. Universe contest at the age of 20. It’s this dedication of his and positive mindset that led him to win 14 titles in bodybuilding, including one as the Greatest Body Builder. Arnold Schwarzenegger is now also an actor, producer, businessman and, politician.

Matthew McConaughey 

Academy Award-winning actor, Matthew McConaughey is truly a self-built man. McConaughey uses his influence to make a difference in the lives of others. He actively promotes mindfulness and meditation. As an optimist, he acknowledges that life is not easy for all of us. However, he propounds that we can make it easier for ourselves by focusing on the joy of the journey. He professes that happiness can be found in the smallest of things; we just need to keep an open eye for it! In his recent bestseller, GreenLights, McConaughey talk about his philosophy of creating a life worth living.

Choosing Positivity

There lies a fine line between toxic positivity and the kind of positivity that is healthy for us. As we navigate life, we must acknowledge our emotions and allow ourselves to feel them. We hold the potential to program ourselves into thinking better, looking over at the silver linings when the going gets tough. All of us go through ups and downs. These negatives are just as important as the positives. So, let’s address them, learn from them and grow from them.

“Things turn out best for the people who make the best of the way things turn out.”

- John Woodens