Attitudinal Antidotes!

In a recent Dear Abby column, readers responded to her question, "What is society's greatest problem?" The top responses included:

• intolerance of others
• lackof personal responsibility
• personal isolation
• ignorance of our own power to act

Coincidentally, in our last newsletter we highlighted the importance of having a great positive attitude:

"Positive attitude is about the daily choice to smile to the infinite variety and mystery of life (Thank you, William Saroyan!); to take true responsibility for ones actions and choices; to seek out and foster the strengths in yourself and others; and to press forward productively in the face of setbacks and unexpected change." (For the rest of the article, click HERE.)

See how a positive attitude addresses many of the problems in society?

Society's Ills	Attitudinal Antidote
intolerance of others	choose to smile to the infinite variety and mystery of life
lack of personal responsibility	take true responsibility for ones actions and choices
personal isolation	seek out and foster the strengths in yourself and others
ignorance of our own power to act	press forward productively in the face of setbacks and change

Remember, all things being equal -- talent, skills, knowledge, experience, reputation and personality -- the person with the great positive attitude will reach the goal.

Of course, bookstore shelves are filled with positive attitude tomes. Search Amazon books for "positive attitude" and you get 48 books available, from Donald Trump to Dilbert and everything in between. Some of these books are laughable because they start form the premise that positive thinking and positive mantras alone will solve problems.

If your garden is full of weeds, it does you no good to chant, "my garden is beautiful, my garden is vibrant!" What does make a difference is when you get down in the garden and pull the weeds!

So, I guess that makes me an optimist. I think that if you actually take ACTION, and approach the situation with a positive ATTITUDE, you can solve most problems that come your way.

In fact, I am one of those who sees the glass as neither "half full" nor "half empty". In my mind, even a glass half-filled with water is still totally full - half with water and half with air (both of which are vital for life).

So, what is it in your own situation that would be improved with a positive slight shift in attitude combined with a little action on your part? In this moment, right now as you are reading this, give the question some thought.

Really... right now in this moment. I'll wait.

Now, whatever that situation is, decide in this moment to shift your attitude just a little... It's actually easy, because it happens when you just choose to do it.

OK?

Now -- slightly more challenging -- take a little action right now... Even the smallest of forward steps is enough for the moment. Just writing it down or making a list is a small forward step.

Done?

How about that!? Don't you feel better about the situation already?

Has THIS article given you food for thought? We always enjoy feedback! Contact me at john.sweney(a)brookwoods.com.