UXL Blog

If you’ve been troubled by how people have been treating each other (with so much political divisiveness and name-calling lately), don’t give up hope. Your hope is powerful, and it CAN make an enormous difference.

Even in the darkest times, we can find sparks of hope. A single candle can illuminate a dark room in the same way that a grateful thought or an inspiration can illuminate a mind. Although the science is still fresh, research is starting to find that hope is a powerful factor in lifting people out of poverty, motivating people to find work, and encouraging investment (financially, educationally, or otherwise) in the future.

In a study on poverty, the researchers found that, “families that are stressed and impoverished — trapped in cycles of poverty — can feel a hopelessness that becomes self-fulfilling. Give people reason to hope that they can achieve a better life, and that, too, can be self-fulfilling.”

Hope is self-fulfilling.

If we all decide to be hopeful about a better, brighter future, we CAN make that happen. We’ll be propelled into action and motivated to keep going, to keep trying. On the other hand, if we choose to have a defeatist attitude and believe there’s nothing good in our collective future…well, that, too, can be a self-fulfilling prophecy.

When you have hope, you ask yourself constructive questions such as “What if..?” and “How will I…?” If you hold the belief that you can do something, you start seeing the paths of possibilities.

I challenge you today to think about what you’d like in your life, and what you’d like for others. Focusing on a smaller scale, ask yourself: What are my personal goals? How do I envision my future?

Then, zoom out your lens and focus on your community, or even your nation. What are your wishes for others? What are your hopes for the next generation, and the one after that? What does an ideal community or nation look like?

Start thinking about your goals and dreams as REAL possibilities, instead of wishes. By changing your mindset to a “How can I…” instead of a “I couldn’t possibly…” you’ll start finding ways to make your goals happen.

Our minds can do amazing things. If you find yours blocked by pessimistic thoughts, try focusing on the possibilities buried within the doubt. Find hope in your life and see where it can take you.

MARGARET SMITH IS A CAREER COACH, AUTHOR, INSIGHTS® DISCOVERY (AND DEEPER DISCOVERY) LICENSED PRACTITIONER, AND FOUNDER OF UXL. SHE HOSTS WORKSHOPS FOR PEOPLE WHO NEED CAREER OR PERSONAL GUIDANCE. 
CHECK OUT MARGARET’S ONLINE LEADERSHIP COURSE.

Tags: elections and hope, hope for a better future, hope in dark times, Margaret Smith life coach, Margaret Smith professional speaker, post-election discussion, power in hope