Hope: An Overlooked Power

Hi, welcome back to your Daily Mindfulness. In today's session, we're going to talk about cultivating hope. Now hope is an overlooked emotion, and it's really important in times of difficulty uncertainty and pain. And I think many of us can identify with that feeling of not having hope. Being hopeless.

Interestingly, hope is the only emotion that requires a negative experience in order for it to arise. And it's the result of believing that change is possible and that we have the tools to make those changes happen. So how do we start to develop this belief and these tools? I'm going to give you two thoughts to reflect on from the book, Learned Hopefulness. The first is to think to past experiences that you overcame. Experiences that were difficult, that maybe you didn't think you'd be able to get through, but you did.

Look back to those experiences. Remember them. Remind yourself that you made it through and let it inspire you in the present. The second look to other people who have overcome difficult experiences, especially those in similar situations or who are similar to you. That trigger something called vicarious self-efficacy.

We get inspired by watching another person go through something difficult and then feel that we can do it as well. These two strategies will help cultivate hope in the present moment. They might not be relevant to you right now, depending on what you're going through, but I hope you can keep this in your back pocket. We all go through difficult experiences and it's imperative that we have a sense of hope in those moments to keep us from falling into anxiety, despair, and depression as always. Thank you for your practice.

I'll talk to you in the meditation and take care.