Thomas Jefferson did not say that! He did say this: “Nothing can stop the person with the right mental attitude from achieving their goal. Nothing on earth can help the person with the wrong mental attitude.” (adjusted the words ‘man’ to ‘person’ – MTublin )
Now let’s recognize if this was a top of mind issue more than a couple of hundred years ago, it is not a new fad item to discuss the importance of your attitude today.
Think about it – how many people you know and interact with, who you deem to be successful, are happy, seem to be enjoying life and are fun to be around? Now are any of the people, who you deem to be successful, sour, pessimistic, and generally not fun to be around? It is their attitude that makes all the difference!
“Your own attitude toward your life and toward others you come into contact
with will be reflected back to you exponentially.” – Mitch Tublin
If you are not happy with your current situation and circumstances you find yourself in and you are really serious about changing this around – start with changing your attitude. This cannot be undertaken lightly. We all resist change. This is especially true when the change involves ourselves! When the change involves us changing our behavior and our way of thinking and reacting.
Here are three steps to get you started:
First – Speak with others around you. Ask family members, friends, co-workers the following question – “Would you help me out as I am seeking some feedback from those who know me… How would you describe my attitude on a daily basis?” Really listen and pay attention. This is not the time to defend yourself or to take offense to the honest feedback. Take notes and then begin to assess what the feedback is telling you. Is there a general theme running through all of the feedback? Identify one or two attitude changes you plan to change.
Second – Based upon the one or two attitude changes you plan to change, what would be different – even better – once you implement and adjust your attitude in these areas? Write these down as this is your why – the actual reason you must undertake these attitude and behavior adjustments.
Third – Look at who you are spending the most time with in all areas of your life. You will need to make some changes. Odds are you will need to seek out people who are more positive and have an enjoyable personality. If you are generally grumpy and pessimistic you may have become more comfortable by surrounding yourself with people who are generally grumpy and pessimistic. This is not going to be easy. Stick to it and don’t befooled by staying ‘comfortable’.
No change for the positive is easy.
Are there more steps? Absolutely there are! It is not my goal to overwhelm you. Start with these three steps and stay on track toward the changes you want to make.
Would it be helpful to you or a group to work with a seasoned coach to make these changes in attitude a reality? Contact Mitch Tublin here!
Mitch Tublin runs a boutique consulting company with a main focus on personal development, executive coaching and business advisory services.