Feeling a little negative today? There's a reason for that, and it's not the one you think. We are, according to neuropsychologist Rick Hanson, programmed that way. From an evolutionary standpoint, it makes sense. It was important to early humans' survival to focus more on possible threats than on possible rewards. Fast forward to urban life and the workplace, where the threat is not so much from hungry fanged animals or an enemy's spear (except metaphorically) but from stress and worry. Unfortunately, though, our mental mechanism remains the same. Negative thoughts stay with us a lot longer than positive ones. Whether those thoughts are based on real experiences or simply on our fears, the affected neurons are the same. And, as they say in the field, "neurons that fire together, wire together." Which may sound pretty hopeless, but don't get all negative about it. There are ways to stop the cycle:
http://www.attn.com/stories/2587/what-negative-thinking-does-your-brain?utm_source=mentalfloss&utm_medium=fbpost&utm_campaign=syndication
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