Fake Smiles Aside, Positivity is Contagious.

Designing and working with a positive mindset is critical. It not only affects you, but it influences everyone around you.

What does it mean to have a positive mindset? For a lot of people, it means plastering a fake smile on your face all day and saying things like “Sure, totally,” and “Everything’s great!” We might see those people as naïve, non-confrontational, or fake. But having a positive mindset doesn’t make a person naïve. It means being aware of how you’re feeling, being in the moment, and being open to proactive change. To put this in real-world terms, it’s “shit stinks” versus “shit stinks, but at least there’s a flush.”

Below are five methods for maintaining emotional balance and being a damn good colleague.

1. Stop complaining and do something about it.

Work environments and projects can be difficult, stressful, vague, and sometimes too challenging to navigate. It’s easy to lose sight of goals when your immediate feeling is to curl up into a ball and hide, or when you’re so pissed that you want to break something. We carry our frustrations around in different ways, and that’s okay. But too often we get comfortable in complaining mode. That’s when you have to take a breather. Complaining feels good, but so does spoon-feeding yourself a whole tub of ice cream while watching reruns of Seinfeld… that doesn’t mean it’s good for you.

When it comes to design, we try to problem solve instead of complain. Our daily interactions should be no different. In Norway, we have a saying: “There is no bad weather, only bad clothing.” This expression illustrates something that’s out of our control, such as weather, and makes us see that we’re responsible for dealing with it. It’s poetic but pragmatic. This doesn’t mean we shouldn’t vent from time to time, but if you’re an always-complainer, you’re not a problem solver, and I would argue that you’re probably not the best you can be as a designer. There’s a difference between a pity-party and a pita party. One sucks, the other doesn’t.

2. Know when to take a break…

You’re on a deadline, but stress is gnawing at your soul. Tension builds. It twists itself into knots in your back, it aches in your body, it revs your heart, it makes you sweat. Too often I’ve experienced this and too often I’ve said: “I just need five more minutes.” The more time that passes, the worse it gets, and the deeper and darker the hole becomes.

I’ve learned that a one-minute break can help, but taking a five-minute break can bring your feet back onto firm ground. Take a walk. Get up and get a glass of water. Drop your pen half-way down the hallway, walk away, then go back and pick it up. Anything will do. What’s worth noting is how much a simple break can do for both your body and your mind.

3. Know when to stop.

Sometimes you get overloaded and your brain just stops. It’s late, you’re crunched for time, you’re working on a deadline, and you’re hungry. Aside from negative effects on your health, you exude negative vibes and those affect how efficiently you think. It’s important to be aware of your limits, and to acknowledge that at a certain point, you’re staring at your empty screen. You’re better off getting some sleep and waking up with a fresh mind the next day.

Think about it like this. If you’ve been on the road for 10 hours, and your eyes are drooping, your heart is pounding, and you’re sweating profusely… it’s probably safer for you to pull over and take a break. The same thing should apply to work.

4. Be aware of your hidden demon vibes.

If you’ve ever worked with someone who’s grumpy or pessimistic all the time, chances are you dread and avoid that person. If you sit next to them, maybe you’ve asked to be moved. If you’ve had to work on a project with that person day in and day out, maybe you’ve even quit. Are you that person? The way you unintentionally project outward can be really off-putting to colleagues. Watch out for your hidden demon vibes.

Growing up, my family dinners always had a healthy dose of debate, or argument, depending on how you look at it. We’d get excited about things and rant the house down. This is not the kind of vibe you want in meetings. People pick up on vibes, and may misinterpret what you’re actually feeling. People pin a lot to perception, and it could hurt your career and work friendships. One thing is for sure, if it looks like a duck and it quacks like a duck, chances are people will think it is a duck.

Even a smidge of negativity and stress can greatly impact your health and mind. Stress affects your digestion, your memory, and your ability to make decisions. It makes you more prone to illness. But know that your negativity can also induce others to experience those same emotional reactions. In other words, your bad-day vibes can harm someone else’s health. Ask yourself whether you want to be that type of person.

5. Put your best golden child foot forward.

People can become uncomfortable around abrasive people, and not understand how to approach them. But if you’re open, people will generally be more trusting and comfortable. Positive vibes are unanimously recognized and unmistakable. Smiles and laughter are contagious, and can be felt by everyone around you. How you intentionally project yourself outwardly can be really beneficial to others. Think of it as a gesture of decency.

People are more susceptible to information when they don’t feel small. If you know that I’m a diva and I walk around with an attitude, you probably aren’t going to run your idea by me. It’s also true that I probably wouldn’t give you very good feedback. Finally, you probably won’t care about my feedback. You won’t value it because you know I don’t have your back.

Maybe you’re thinking, well, if I’m positive and nice all the time, then I can’t be assertive and no one will take me seriously. Remember that having a positive mindset isn’t necessarily about being “nice” or “kind.” It’s about being aware and actionable. Be assertive, but don’t be a jerk about it.

In the workplace, it’s important to lift up your colleagues, acknowledge the good work being done, and be there for one other to build trust and a safe, productive space for an exchange of ideas. Positive mindsets enable that, and in turn enable people to do their best.

Again, positivity isn’t a feeling. It’s an actionable mindset.

Empower yourself to be it.