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While it would be crazy to deny the global economic situation, and even crazier not to make some lifestyle adjustments during this time, it's still possible to keep a positive frame of mind.

Does this sound like a paradox? It's not - and for me, it's the key to emotional and economic survival right now. Here's why:

1. I just keep remembering that life is all about change. Nothing ever stays the same. Times get good, times get bad, times get boring, times get exciting, things leave, new things enter - it's change change change. Sure I'd love world peace to be here now and always, and economic prosperity to be here forever. But from what I can see, nothing - not the good, not the bad - stays put. Somehow when I let go of the fantasy that our lives should be 100% safe and abundant, I feel less frightened; less contracted; less desperate. Maybe it's just me, but when I can be less needy and less judgmental, I become less frightened.

2. When I was a kid I rode horses. One of the main things I learned was not to panic, no matter what was going on, because panic made things worse. Panic is contagious. Panic makes us freeze up or else it makes us act wildly without thinking or praying first. That doesn't mean we don't need to act quickly at times. It does mean that when we act, it must be from a logical, somewhat trusting, thought-out frame of mind. If you're with a bunch of horses and for some reason you panic, the horses and the other riders will pick up on it, and soon you've got mayhem. I don't know why or how that is, but that's been my observation.

3. "Positive" doesn't mean mindlessly dancing around like a lunatic. It doesn't even mean you have to smile. To me, "positive" simply means neutral. It means I'm not living through my dreads and dramas, but rather catching these fearful thoughts when they arise, labeling them, and perhaps substituting them with a more helpful idea.

Instead of "OMG I'm terrified and I just saw a movie where this woman lost her house and she was homeless and then OMG my health insurance premium just went up and I feel fear down to my bone marrow," I think "I'm having another fearful thought about being homeless. I'm going to go look at my budget and see where I can cut back on expenses." Or, "There's that awful homeless thought again, I see it and validate it, but I'm going to do something fruitful instead of hanging on to it. Perhaps I'll update my resume."

I just want to get to neutral. I'm not needing to be hysterically happy. Perhaps neutral is the new positive.

4. Times may be economically rough, but nothing helpful will come from a mind that is frozen, fearful, negative, and reactive. There's no denying reality, but we can choose how we can best respond to these times.

It could be totally true that the human race is toast and the planet is coming to an end. Even still, what good would it do to panic and act ugly? Focusing my mind on more positive thoughts could indeed be a total crock, but I don't care - I'd rather do that than live in emotional pain. There may not be life after death, but I don't care - I believe in life after death anyway, because that's what I want in my head.

So we do the work: we stay up on the news, we read intelligent books and periodicals, we cut back on spending, we budget, we do charity work and help others, we pray or meditate to soothe our souls, and that's it. That's all we have control over. The rest of it we have to let go of, if we want to live any sort of productive life.

I love the Serenity Prayer (written by Reinhold Niebuhr):

God grant me the serenity
to accept the things I cannot change;
the courage to change the things I can;
and the wisdom to know the difference.

I've got a bunch of Prosperity Exercises on my website at http://www.women-lifestyles.com