In The Know Radio Show: The Power of Positivity
During the holidays, we pause to be grateful for the blessings in our lives and hopefully give the gift of being present with our families and friends. But this season, for some, can also stir up feelings of unhappiness and be a reminder of all the things we didn’t get around to doing this year.
Instead of focusing on the things that you didn’t do, I encourage you to celebrate the things you did accomplish over the last 12 months. As the adage goes, “you never fail until you stop trying.” Having a “can do” attitude, even in the face of disappointment, gives you the confidence and the faith to step out again with a new plan and new strategy to get things done.
Your attitude is the biggest contributor to your success. Even a talented person is more likely to fail if they are saddled with a poor attitude. Success is 90% attitude and 10% skill, in my opinion. When we were kids, we believed there was nothing we couldn’t do. We tied that bedsheet around our neck and set off to save the world. As adults, sometimes we lose that youthful optimism and trade it for cynicism. But negative thinking and negative talk will get you off track and convince you that your failure is fatal. The truth is your blessing is indeed still in route if you don’t cancel the order.
Many people may not know that I have my motorcycle license. As a lifelong learner, I took a class at Nashville State Community College and learned on a little 250. During the course, the instructor told us something that has always stuck with me. He said, when you are turning, look in the direction that you want your bike to go. Your bike will follow your lead. And sure enough, when I wanted to weave through the little orange cones they skillfully placed throughout the obstacle course, I was able to make those tight turns by focusing on where I wanted my bike to go.
And I think that principle applies to life as well. Many times, we can’t control the things that happen in our lives. We can’t control the actions of others. But, we can control the words that come out of our mouths and the attitudes we take on. When we speak life over our situations, it’s like looking in the direction we want to go. Regardless of how the situation looks, our perspective on it will determine if it makes us or breaks us, keeps us on the road or veering off onto the curb.
Being positive doesn’t mean that you minimize or ignore the pain of disappointment, however. Things don’t always work out. People leave. Sickness comes. Jobs are lost. You should never let anyone make you feel bad about having a human response to a bad situation. But the difference is in our attitude. Will you allow circumstances to make you bitter or better? Will you stay down or pop back up?
I encourage you to make a choice today to see the glass half full. Decide to have a good day no matter who cuts you off in traffic or what happens at work. No one can steal your joy, but you can surrender it. Keep your head up and keep pressing forward. Look in the direction you want your life to go and start heading that way.
