The Power of Positive Thinking- is it for real?

A dear friend recently shared the power of positive thinking with me. It has helped her immensely, both personally (finding a space in a congested carpark only by visualising about it...how cool is that?) and professionally (being promoted when others are being asked to leave...that is worth visualising!). Inspired by her real life experience, i thought to give it a go too! She had advised me to start by thinking positively and visualising for smaller things...so the first thing i thought about was getting a call from my agency. I saw myself (in my mind's eye) being called and agreeing to go and completing the assignment and...two months down the line, a pay cheque for the same! I even visualised myself following up for my delayed payment and politely asking the Accounts guy if their company was facing any problems financially since our payments were being delayed.

With a big network of freelancers at its disposal, the agency has ample choice. I, on the other hand, look forward to being called for an assignment! So, it was not impossible but a difficult thing to happen. And yet, i wanted to test her faith... if everyone else was busy or away, may be the agency will have to just do with me...the positivity was taking me everywhere now.

At 7.30 in the evening, I did indeed get a call from the agency- post the office hours. How magical is that? I immediately called up my friend and shared the news with her, and then with my kids. It is a great quality of mind that kids can cultivate and benefit from. With this thought i told my younger one to think and visualise about one thing the next day, on the condition that that one thing should be 'possible' (don't ask for the moon just yet, e.g.). He was very excited and told me that he was going to visualise that i will finish my work early and come to pick him up from school.

"Fair enough", i thought. Both the positive thoughts are 'possible' and connected. We were both excited the next day, lost in our own positive thinking. I confirmed with the agency at 10.30 if we were going ahead with the assignment. The answer was a loud "Yes". And yet, there was tiny little voice in my head that told me to wait. At 11.30, I got a call from the agency to tell me that the assignment had been cancelled, just now!

Needless to say that my son was equally disappointed when i did not appear in his classroom that afternoon and had questions about the power of positive thinking...

I have still been advised that it works. It works for migraines- if you keep asserting to yourself that you are fine, that migraine attack will probably bypass you. It works for self confidence, if you keep telling yourself that you are doing just fine. But i have yet to find proof for myself...does it work for a mom who is worried sick for the health of her brood? or is there not a very thin line between positive thinking and denial? (I have headache but i am thinking i am fine...am i just denying it, or am i forcing my brain to be stronger about it???). I have tons of doubts...and hope that positive thinking actually works; because if it does, it will save me a lot, in both stress, and money!