Eliminate Negative News from Your Life

I was listening to the radio on my way to work today and heard a report about the increasing death toll from the tragic earthquake and resulting tsunami in Samoa when I realized how hearing this "update" was actually one of the insidious ways that bad news creeps deeper and deeper into our consciencenous.

This won't be the first time you've heard someone point out the fact that bad news gets more attention than good news. It's hard to live on this earth and not notice that. Unfortunately it must be what sells, otherwise the news organizations wouldn't do it. But what I realized listening to the news this morning was, it's not just that bad news is reported more often than good news, but that it's reported over and over again. When something like what happened in Samoa happens, we don't just hear the story and it's done, we hear about it over and over and over again for weeks. We'll get updates on the death toll, updates on the negative economic impact, updates on how many bodies are found in the rubble, and on and on it will go. It's not so much that good news isn't reported once in a while, it's that it's reported once and that's it.

This weekend "Run for the Cure" was hosted across the country. Our local city's run had over a thousands people participate (quite a feat for a city of 100,000 people). The difference in the reporting of this event is that it was mentioned quickly, once. We won't hear about it for weeks. We won't get daily updates from people who participated on how they benefited, what a great time it was and how it made a difference, like we might if it were a story about a tragedy. Good news, you see, doesn't sell.

So, what are we, the people who strive to stay positive and encouraged in a discouraging world, to do? I would like to encourage an all out boycott of mainstream news, but I know that isn't practical for many. Although it is what I try to practice as much as I can. It's not that I want people to stick their proverbial heads in the sand and pretend like the world is a harmonious heaven on earth, BUT, it would be beneficial to our collective mental and emotional health, I think, if we didn't feel so compelled to stay up to speed, and share, every negative bit of news we hear.

So if you feel like you can do it, try abstaining from the evening news. It's 90% negative stuff that either a) Doesn't directly affect you OR b)You can't do anything about OR c)Both. So why poison your brain with it? Many will claim that they NEED to watch the news to stay "up to date". I'd ask, why? To me, if you aren't a world leader, there is little benefit for me to know about Iranian nuclear armament for example. And, guess what, if it's something you really need to know about, there are plenty of folks out there who will ensure that you're up to speed on all the negativity happening around the world.

So, should you just stay in your own little bubble and live a quiet life, detached from the rest of the world? Of course not. Community enriches life and staying connected to others it important. But why not replace some of the negative news most of us fill our brains with every day, with some positivity instead. One of the great things about the internet is that you can now access many sources of Good News that are out there. These publications for the most part can't afford to be in print, because not enough of us read them for them to stay in business, BUT they can produce online publications for little cost.

Here are just a few of the great newspapers out there that you can visit that are chalked full of Good News! And better yet, they're free!

• http://www.happynews.com/
• http://alittlegoodnewstoday.org/
• http://www.goodnewsnetwork.org/

What you'll see in these publications is NOT a naive happy-go-lucky, head in the sand, attitude toward life. You'll read stories of bad things happening, when they do, but instead of the focus being on the loss and tragedy in those stories, you'll read about the positive results of these tragedies. The way the negative event spurred positive actions.

It's what the world needs more of. The truth is there is a TON of great stuff happening in the world. Let's start filling our minds with THAT news. But be careful, if you do this for a while, you may feel a little out of place the next time your colleagues or friends want to talk about the latest plane crash or suicide bomber. But, the upside is, while you might not fit in as well anymore, you will brighten the lives of those around you, as well as your own. And you may just find this "horrible" world, isn't so bad after all!