Mike Robbins was living his dream. A baseball star at Stanford, he played in the College World Series. Later, he was drafted by the Kansas City Royals and played three seasons of professional baseball.

Then …

“I blew my arm out. And my career ended,” Robbins recalls in a telephone interview from his Concord, Calif., home.

“I was devastated. What was I going to do with the rest of my life?

“Through introspection I discovered what I was really after was appreciation for myself and appreciation of my life,” Robbins said.

And he realized his biggest regret was not missing out on what could have been, but “It was that I didn’t fully appreciate it while it was happening,” he said of his professional baseball career.

Along the way he met Richard Carlson, motivational speaker and author of “Don’t Sweat the Small Stuff.”

Carlson helped him see the good stuff in his life … and learn how to live with an attitude of gratitude.

“He mentored me and taught me so much about writing and life,” Robbins said.

Carlson wrote the forward for Robbins’ own self-help book, “Focus on the Good Stuff.”

Three weeks later, Carlson died unexpectedly, leaving a hole in Robbins’ life and a mission to continue sharing the lessons Carlson helped him discover.

“I wrote the book to be down to earth and practical and as authentic as possible,” Robbins said of “Focus on the Good Stuff.”

“It is about giving people simple, but very powerful tips and techniques to improve their lives, relationships and work situations.”

Thursday, Robbins will stop in Lincoln to talk about his book and his belief in the powers of positive thinking before heading to Omaha to give a private seminar.

Positive thinking.

Think positive.

Attitude of gratitude.

It is the mantra of the 21st century — and probably every century before it.

From Norman Vincent Peale’s “Positive Thinking” series of books to Rhonda Byrnes’ best seller, “The Secret,” people are flocking to the notion that thinking good thoughts will yield good results emotionally, physically, financially and socially.

The underlying premise to all this is “the Law of Attraction” — “like attracts like.” Its origins can be traced back to ancient Hinduism, but its philosophy transcends all major religions — Christianity, Judaism, Buddhism and Islam.

From the dawn of humanity, people have believed that positive people attract other positive people, positive thoughts lead to more positive thoughts, negativity begets negativity. Socrates, Plato, Pythagoras, Beethoven, DaVinci and Sir Isaac Newton all were said to embrace the Law of Attraction.

Even modern science offers statistical credence to the hypothesis. Studies find positive thinkers have less stress, lower blood pressure, stronger immune systems and better relationships. Several years ago, a study by the Scripps Gerontology Center and Miami University concluded that people with positive attitudes live, on average, 7½ years longer than those with negative attitudes.

On the scale of positive thinking, Robbins’ approach is a little more moderate than some of the other positive thinking gurus. And unlike Byrnes’ immensely popular “The Secret,” which promises wealth, success and achievement to those who truly believe, Robbins encourages a less materialistic goal — appreciation.

He also says positive thinking does not eliminate or even negate the need to complain, disagree or voice concerns. It’s not an either-or, one-or-the-other way of thinking, Robbins said.

“Dealing with fears and doubts, challenges and issues and anger and frustration is part of being human,” he said.

“But it is how do we go about it? If I am complaining just to complain, it will not get me anywhere. If I have an issue, concern or fear, I want to work through it. … People just have to look at their intent.”

As appealing as living positively is, it is very difficult.

We live in a culture of negativity, Robbins said. We are surrounded by negative words, thoughts, images and actions — from the media and politicians pointing out all that is wrong and needs to be fixed to our personal and professional relationships in which mutual dislike of someone or something unites us with others.

And perhaps the most insidious level of negativity is centered on ourselves, Robbins said.

“We are hypercritical of ourselves. In my book I call it the gremlin, this little monster that is constantly criticizing us,” he said.

“Even people who pick up books like mine or want to grow, so often the motivation is to think something is wrong with them or this thought that ‘I am broken.’”

That’s not to say there isn’t bad stuff in the world. There is plenty of it.

“But we are almost unconscious about how obsessed we are with negativity,” Robbins said. “We are constantly griping and are not aware of it.

“It’s like the air conditioning is on and you don’t notice it until it goes off and you say, ‘Man, that was loud.’”

So what should we do?

The Law of Attraction is built on the core concept that “we are more responsible for our lives, and the results of our lives, than we often admit,” Robbins said.

“If you feel like you are being victimized by everything, look to see who is at the scene of every crime — you are,” Robbins said.

And so the premise is simple: If we change ourselves, we will change how we feel, how we interpret things, how we are perceived, and ultimately how we live our lives.

“Identify the negativity. Assess yourself in what forms of negativity you engage in. And when you notice it or see it, transform it or move beyond it,” Robbins said. “You don’t have to be victimized by it.”

His book is filled with quick and easy solutions for all sorts of negative influences.

—  Work in a “toxic” office? Turn your space into a “complaint-free” or “gossip-free zone.”

— Get together with others and create a one-day “complaint fast.”

— Make a conscious decision to be around as many positive people as you can. “We often will do what people around us do,” Robbins said.

And know your world will not change overnight.

“This  is an ongoing process. You do not read one book and it’s all better. You need to really integrate into a life of positive thinking. It’s a practice like any other practice,” he said.

“It’s not like I woke up one day and everything was great. It was more of a process and personal discovery.

“I saw my life and thought, ‘I can see myself when I am 50 or 60 years old, sitting at the end of a bar talking about how good it used to be and how I almost made it,’” he said of his professional baseball career.

“I didn’t want that life. I was upset. I had a choice on how I was going to handle it. Ultimately whether I made it to the major leagues or not, I was not going to give my life or my power away to that as the only thing that would make me happy.”

That conscious decision changed his life.

He believes it can change other people’s lives, and perhaps one day change the world.

“The place where it really has to start is with ourselves. I think we will fundamentally change the world if we all just start loving ourselves a little more. If we start with appreciating and honoring ourselves, we in turn do it with others and do it when we communicate with others,” Robbins said.

“If we pay attention to the beauty and good stuff in the world, it is difficult to imagine too many scenarios where we would be violent with one another.”

Reach Erin Andersen at 473-7217 or eandersen@journalstar.com.