Positive emotions are a huge part of our emotional range. Though they’re usually pleasurable to experience, they’re far more than just ‘happy feelings’, and they come and go just like the negative emotions do.

Some of the most common positive emotions are joy, gratitude, peace, hope, inspiration, relief, satisfaction, cheerfulness, enthusiasm, optimism, happiness and love.

Often, we think negatively as our ‘go-to’ response when things don’t seem to be going our way, but we can learn to focus our energy more positively. Doing so has an enormous impact in this area (how we respond circumstances) and we can use it to make a significant difference in our lives.

Use the following questions as prompts to build a memory of positivity you can use as a resource when you need it:

• When have you felt full of optimism and hope?
• When have you feared the worst but still believed something good would happen?
• When have you found an inventive way to try and create a better future?
• Has a deliberate focus on the positive ever lifted you up or shifted an outcome for you?
• What brings you joy? Peace? Love?

Positive emotions have considerable impact on the brain - they increase performance, lift our spirits, broaden our horizons and can even trigger the reward centres in the brain, reducing stress hormones. When we experience positive emotions, that also signals the brain we are engaged in activities that align with our values and meet our needs, which trickles down to create even more positive impact.