{"id":22934,"date":"2026-03-11T13:54:00","date_gmt":"2026-03-11T13:54:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/gpbookstore.org\/articles\/uncategorized\/what-does-imagination-have-to-do-with-positive-thinking\/"},"modified":"2026-04-10T06:15:15","modified_gmt":"2026-04-10T06:15:15","slug":"what-does-imagination-have-to-do-with-positive-thinking","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/gpbookstore.org\/articles\/positive-living\/health-and-wellness\/better-living\/positive-thinking\/what-does-imagination-have-to-do-with-positive-thinking\/","title":{"rendered":"What Does Imagination Have to Do with Positive Thinking?"},"content":{"rendered":"

While my colleague Edward Grinnan<\/a> is away on his book tour this month, I\u2019ve been keeping up with him by email\u2026and by reading his book, The Promise of Hope<\/em><\/a>. Along with his own amazing story of transformation and the inspiring stories of others, Edward shares the nine keys to powerful personal\u2014and I might add, positive\u2014change: honesty, willingness, imagination, commitment, faith, forgiveness, acceptance, resilience and love.<\/p>\n

The one that really jumps out at me is imagination. Some might say positive thinking is an act of faith\u2014in yourself, in others, in a higher power. That\u2019s true, but it is just as much an act of imagination. Why do I say that? Well, to think positive, you don\u2019t have to be a creative genius. But you do have to make a mental leap from the present to the future, from limitations to possibilities. You have to move beyond what is and envision what might be.<\/p>\n

Norman Vincent Peale might never have become minister to millions and the godfather of positive thinking if he hadn\u2019t done this himself one dark day. As Edward relates in chapter three of his book, Dr. Peale was just Norman then, a student preacher crippled by self-doubt and fear (of public speaking, no less). No wonder he was struggling in seminary. One day a professor called him \u201ca scared rabbit\u201d and declared, \u201cYou better change the way you think about yourself before it\u2019s too late.\u201d<\/p>\n

In despair, Norman prayed for help. What\u2019s interesting is that he didn\u2019t beg God to transform him into a compelling speaker who could effortlessly command a room. Instead, he prayed, \u201cLet me see myself not as a scared rabbit but as someone strong and confident who can do great things.\u201d He asked for imagination and at the same time he was already exercising it, picturing himself changed for the better.<\/p>\n

Dr. Peale envisioned a major, life-altering change, but imagination also works with smaller, more mundane shifts. Let\u2019s say you\u2019re grumbling, I\u2019m so busy there\u2019s not enough time in the day to do everything. <\/em>First, re-imagine that defeatist, negative thought and transform it into a more empowering one: I\u2019m busy but there\u2019s time to do what matters. <\/em>Then zero in on those things that matter and visualize how you\u2019ll do them. Maybe you\u2019ll consolidate three trips to the grocery into one. Maybe you\u2019ll carpool with another parent whose kids are at the same day camp. Maybe you\u2019ll ask a coworker to help with that presentation. You\u2019ll definitely have a more positive attitude. Imagine that!<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

While my colleague Edward Grinnan is away on his book tour this month, I\u2019ve been keeping up with him by email\u2026and by reading his book, The Promise of Hope. Along with his own amazing story of transformation and the inspiring stories of others, Edward shares the nine keys to powerful personal\u2014and I might add, positive\u2014change: […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":9,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"ep_exclude_from_search":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[339],"tags":[15,27],"ppma_author":[494],"class_list":["post-22934","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-positive-thinking","tag-faith","tag-positive-thinking"],"acf":[],"yoast_head":"\nWhat Does Imagination Have to Do with Positive Thinking? - Guideposts Articles<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"noindex, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"What Does Imagination Have to Do with Positive Thinking?\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"While my colleague Edward Grinnan is away on his book tour this month, I\u2019ve been keeping up with him by email\u2026and by reading his book, The Promise of Hope. 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