|
ATTITUDE
ADJUSTMENT: Come
On, Get Happy!
|
Attitude Is Everything
Why? Because your attitude sets the tone
for how receptive you will be to any opportunity that
is presented to you in your life, how you are perceived
by others and, therefore, what opportunities will be offered
to you. Your attitude will either open doors or close
them.
Human
beings, by changing the inner attitudes of their minds,
can change the outer aspects of their lives. ~ William
James
Now,
you may say, "But I have a terrible job,"
or "I have to deal with unfairness in my workplace,
so I have a right to be ... angry, depressed,
bitter, cynical, etc." All of that may be absolutely
true. You do have a right to feel that
way. But succumbing to those feelings leaves you with
nothing but hopelessness, a feeling of being defeated
— in fact, it strips you of your freedom —
your freedom to choose!
Everything
can be taken from a man ... but the last of the human
freedoms — to choose one's attitude in any given
set of circumstances, to choose one's own way. ~ Viktor
E. Frankl
You
also have the right to choose to not let
your current circumstances strip you of hope, strip
you of your power to decide, strip you of your freedom
of thought. Only you are in charge of your own life
and your own mind. So, will you choose a path that doesn't
serve you, a path that limits your opportunities, a
state of mind that ultimately leads to your own destruction?
Or will you choose the path that frees you to find and
pursue your happiness?
Why
are we Masters of our Fate, the captains of our souls?
Because we have the power to control our thoughts, our
attitudes. That is why many people live in the withering
negative world. That is why many people live in the
Positive Faith world. And you don't have to be a poet
or a philosopher to know which is best. ~ Alfred A.
Montapert
I
suspect that what most people want is their freedom.
Freedom from feeling trapped in their current circumstances,
freedom to set the course of their own lives, freedom
from the whims of others' decisions, freedom from enslavement
to a job that you do not like, freedom to live the life
you want to live. The irony is that the only thing that
will purchase your freedom is the strength to free yourself
from your own negative thoughts and beliefs.
The
greatest discovery of my generation is that a human
being can alter his life by altering his attitudes
of mind. ~ William James
If
you're an intelligent person, you are no doubt bristling
against this idea. After all, you're not an idiot, you
can see the truth, and the truth is that a lot of things
are wrong in the world. Your superiors at work are lame-brained,
they pursue all the wrong goals, and they always approach
things in the absolutely most absurd way. Your spouse
is unsupportive, and your kids are bordering on delinquency.
There's no way you're going to smile and say everything
is hunky-dorey when everything's a mess. After all,
you're the only one who seems to know it! It's just
beneath you to be Pollyanna when the sky really is falling!
A
strong positive mental attitude will create more miracles
than any wonder drug. ~ Patricia Neal
That's
not what you're being asked to do. You don't have to
put your brain in storage to acquire a positive attitude.
You do have to learn how to see things
more creatively, how to tackle tough issues more constructively,
how to communicate the severity of problems clearly,
yet offer hope and solutions enthusiastically. It takes
strength of will to see people and things not only as
they are, but as what they might become. In short, you
must throw away the attitude that says, "This is
a useless mess," and adopt a new attitude of, "What
can we do with this mess?" That's how sticky notes
were invented, after all.
Creative
power, is that receptive attitude of expectancy which
makes a mold into which the plastic and as yet undifferentiated
substance can flow and take the desired form. ~ Thomas
Troward
It
won't be easy. In fact, it is very, very hard. It will
require a great deal of strength to control your thoughts,
your beliefs, your attitude. But the pay-off is fourfold:
1) you will be strong — of will, of character,
of mind; 2) you will not be easily influenced or manipulated
by others — they can no longer "push your
buttons;" 3) you will be your own person, controlling
your own destiny and outcomes; and 4) you will reap
the benefits of a positive attitude.
Nature
is a harsh teacher, and one of her lessons is that only
the strong prosper and survive. The weak survive only
under the mercy and protection of the strong —
and one could argue, don't really live much at
all. It takes intelligence and fortitude to
get there.
Weakness
of attitude becomes weakness of character. ~ Albert
Einstein
A
positive attitude helps people live longer. A positive
attitude helps people survive tragedy. A positive attitude
attracts positive people. A positive attitude opens
doors you never knew existed.
Isn't
it in your best interest to develop the strength to
control your own thoughts, though you may be surrounded
by idiots? When you weigh the costs/benefits
ratio, aren't positive thinkers way ahead of the pack?
If you doubt it, just remember that Art Linkletter is
now 90 years old, and still at the top of his game!
Now who's smart?
The
greatest revolution in our generation is that of human
beings, who by changing the inner attitudes of their
minds, can change the outer aspects of their lives.
~ Marilyn Ferguson
|
