Recognition is the first step toward change. Having an awareness of your negativity bias can help you to think through a situation and choose a different response.

For every negative thing you say or do, concentrate on saying or doing at least five positive things. For example, if you say something critical to someone you work with, make a point of saying or doing five positive things that will help you to develop and maintain a more positive relationship with that individual. In a marriage, it takes at least five good acts to repair the damage of one critical or destructive act. With money, the pain of losing a certain amount is greater than the pleasure of gaining that same amount.

Play a daily game with yourself, called the Happy-Healthy-Wealthy Game. At the end of the day, create an intention for tomorrow to do at least one thing that will make you happy, one thing that will make you healthy, and one thing that will make you wealthy (however you define wealth). Commit to honoring these intentions tomorrow, even if nothing else gets done. If you want to increase the impact of playing this game, share your intentions via text or email with an accountability partner. At the end of each day report "done" or "not done" for today's intentions, and also share your intentions for the following day. Repeat this daily. Doing this exercise will help you live a more balanced life and, will also help you to consciously choose to do something that makes you feel happy.

Identify some positive things you can concentrate on when you catch yourself thinking negatively. These could be inspiring quotes or affirmations, a poem that uplifts you, lyrics to a song that makes you feel happy, or a positive memory or story you've written down so that you can read it to yourself during a low point. Tap into these positive things whenever you find your mind wandering to the negative side. As Willie Nelson says, "Once you replace negative thoughts with positive ones, you'll start having positive results."

Collect "warm fuzzies." Every time that you get an email, Facebook post, card or letter from someone thanking you for something that you did or praising you for a job well done, store it in your "warm fuzzies" file. When you catch yourself focusing on negative thoughts about yourself, open the file and read what's in there to reaffirm how wonderful you are.

Fear of failure or fear of what someone else might think often convinces us to let go of our deepest desires. Fear is a form of negative bias. If fear is holding you back, be aware of its negative impact. Read this article I wrote, which offers tips for overcoming fear: Does Fear Get in the Way of Your Success?

Keep a Worry Log. Before bed, write down your greatest fears and date your log entry. After you have done this for 30 days, start reviewing your Worry Log, beginning with what you wrote 30 days ago. Continue to do this nightly. As you review each entry from what you wrote a month ago, you will discover that most of the things you were worried about never came to pass.

Keep a Gratitude Journal. Take a few minutes each night before bed to write down all of the good things that happened to you throughout the day. Within as little as a few weeks, this will help train your brain to focus on the positive things that happen to you. By focusing on what you are grateful for, you'll be rewiring your brain for happiness.

We've all heard the saying, "perception is reality." Your perception of reality is what creates YOUR reality. The key to changing your reality is to practice realistic optimism by shifting your focus. Here's an interesting exercise that exemplifies the power of focus:

(1) Tell someone your life story or a life experience as if it were a tragedy, emphasizing all the terrible aspects of that experience.

(2) Now, tell the same story as an uplifting and delightful experience, focusing on all of the positive aspects of that same experience, without denying the facts.

Perception is reality!

Begin each day by sending a card of gratitude to someone you care about. This could be the high school coach who had a huge positive influence on your life years ago; an employee at the hardware store who provided you with exceptional service; or, the barista who greets you with a smile and an uplifting thought every time you stop by the coffee stand for your favorite beverage. I've been doing this daily gratitude practice for more than eight years and it sets the tone for the rest of my day. This one particular practice has truly transformed my life!