The Philosophies and Nature of Positive Thinking: Agathism and the Amygdala in the Brain

Without a doubt, many people everywhere right now are spiraling into a depressive state of negative thought about the condition of the world. You may be one of them and consumed by the media's attention to showing the worst things taking place all around you and even near your own backyard that has the potential to go to hell in wastebasket. And with that comes the perhaps slight deterioration of reading the old positive thinking books that were useful tools for millions of people around the world going back decades. One of the first, famous series of books on the subject were by the late Norman Vincent Peale in the 1950's and his "Power of Positive Thinking" concepts. While controversial for some due to the incorporated elements of religion in his ideas--it worked for many, many people spanning multiple generations. His books still sell well today, but maybe mostly from an older generation who remember his name nostalgically. The newer generations are being brought up in a tumultuous world that's in need of a deeper philosophical spin in order for them to be able to survive without thinking they're living squarely in a doomed generation and no concept or recollection of prior better times. While Peale's books are still worth reading, other sides of the coin are worth exploring when you realize how complex the concept of thinking positively is. And I say that with no negativity intended.