How you act toward others will be how they’ll act toward you. Your attitude precedes everything that happens to you in life. If you think about car wrecks, you’ll have car wrecks. If you hang around with negative people, you’ll start to get negative. Hang around people with problems and you’ll attract problems.
A PRODUCT OF YOUR ENVIRONMENT
My mom told me as a kid, “You are the people you hang around with.” While I resisted her wisdom at that time, I know now that it’s true. Today I would take that great statement even further and say, “You are a product of all that you surround yourself with!” That includes the TV you watch, the newspapers you read, the friends you have, the movies you go to, your hobbies, your interests, your family, and everything else that you are involved with.
Every winter season the newspeople spend hours each day convincing you and your family that the flu season is coming, that you’re susceptible, and that millions of people will get the flu. They used to call them epidemics, and now they call them pandemics. Do I think that people actually get the flu because it’s promoted with such dedication? Absolutely! The media get everyone thinking about the flu, worrying about the flu, talking about the flu, and people will start to think they’re getting the flu until finally they do get it!
When the media start promoting recessions and tough times, people everywhere tighten up, and this perpetuates exactly what was promoted. Entire economies can be frozen by what is promoted on television and in newspapers! The attitudes of entire nations of people can be shifted from positive to negative in order to influence the actions of many so that just a few benefit. The newspapers and television have been used for years to influence the attitudes and actions of the many. If the actions of millions of people can be altered by the news, certainly your attitude can influence one other person for the good or the bad.
Even the “medical profession” agrees that most mental and physical diseases are actually psychosomatic (of the mind). This has been proved with placebo pills that in many cases result in as much healing as those who took the real medicine. Even though the placebos are nothing but sugar pills, people believe they will help them, and so they do.
I believe that the single most valuable asset I have in my life is my ability to stay positive when everyone else is losing their minds. When everyone around me is freaking out and worrying and singing the blues, I choose to stay positive. By staying positive, you become the obvious leader, and people will follow your lead. If that position in life is desirable to you, then you need to do everything possible to protect your attitude from things that bring you down. You’ll also need to take a preventive step and guard yourself against other people who may have the agenda of affecting you negatively.
It is not enough just to be positive; you have to actually protect yourself against those who are being negative. Watch out for friends, family, work associates, and others around you who have an agenda of negatively affecting those around them. Attitudes, like diseases, are contagious. Your enemies are not your problem when it comes to attitude; the problem is the people closest to you. Would you let your best friend leave his garbage in your house? Of course not! But that’s exactly what he’s doing when he comes over and starts telling you bad news, gossip, and all his troubles. You’re allowing him to leave his mental trash in your environment, and you become infected.
TIPS FOR HAVING A GREAT ATTITUDE
If you aren’t getting paid the way you want to and you know what you’re doing, I assure you that your attitude is part of your problem! If you want a bigger paycheck, get a bigger attitude. The questions to ask are, how do you change it?; how do you stay positive?; and what can you do to ensure that you’re smiling, happy, and loving life?
Here are some helpful suggestions that I’ve used in my life when I wanted to make sure I had a beaming, positive attitude.
Avoid newspapers, television, and radio.
Stay away from “can’t do” people, people who have trouble in life, and people who don’t do well. You can try to help people, but don’t hang around with them and be affected negatively. This includes family and friends.
Get everyone in your life on the same page with where you’re going and what you want in your life, as well as what’s expected of them in order for you to get there!
Avoid drugs and alcohol because of the negative influence they have on your mind. They make you lethargic, slow, and unsure! Prescription drugs affect the mind as badly as the street drugs do, and some are proving to be even more dangerous. Just look at the side effects and warning labels. Control your attitude by being aware and alert, not by being drugged and numbed.