Do you ever find yourself getting stuck in negative thought patterns and expecting the worst possible outcome in every situation? It’s a common mindset that proves difficult to change when you finally decide you’ve had enough. Unfortunately, negative thoughts tend to breed and multiply on their own – even when you’re not consciously trying to think negatively.

The good news is that turning a negative outlook into a positive one just takes a bit of patience and persistence until the positive thoughts begin to take over.

Below you’ll find three simple steps to begin forming positive expectations on a daily basis:

1) Develop self-awareness to recognize negative expectations. One problem with negative thoughts is that they often form below your conscious level of awareness, and you get so used to them being in your head that you hardly notice anymore. To turn the tide of negativity, you’ll have to develop a stronger level of self-awareness. One good way to start is by performing self-checks several times a day. Pay attention first to how you feel. If you’re feeling positive and productive, most likely you’ve been thinking positive thoughts.

However, if you notice that you’re feeling irritable, pessimistic or stressed, you’re probably focusing more on negative thoughts. When that happens:

2) Challenge and change the negative thoughts. Believe it or not, it’s fairly easy to challenge and change negative thoughts with a little willpower and concentration. For example, if you find yourself feeling doubtful about your ability to finish your work on time, you might engage in a bit of self-talk like this: “Okay, so I’m feeling a bit worried right now, but really everything is okay. I’m strong, I’m smart and I’m capable of finishing my work on time. I’ll do my best and everything will work out fine.” Even though nothing has changed in your outer circumstances, this type of self-talk can get you thinking and feel more positive.

3) At the same time, while you’re changing negative thoughts to positive, work daily on developing a general positive expectation habit. Each day when you wake up, affirm confidently, “Today is going to be a great day! Everything will go my way and I’ll enjoy plenty of lucrative opportunities and fun!”

When you encounter obstacles or problems, see them as opportunities to learn, grow and strengthen yourself. Perception is 99% of the game! If you simply work on shifting the way you look at the experiences of your life, you can easily conquer your negative thought habits.

The more you focus on changing your perspective to emphasize the positive, you’ll empower yourself to create better circumstances in your life. Before you know it, you’ll be enjoying better and more frequent opportunities and attracting other like-minded, successful people to connect with.