HOW’S YOUR ATTITUDE?

Recently I read an article in the AARP magazine about people who are inspirations to others. I was inspired when one of the ten featured was Scott Hamilton, figure skater and cancer survivor. He has a fantastic personal credo. It is “ The only true disability in life is a bad attitude.”

You can control your reactions to events that occur in your life. Things happen to all of us. Some events are life changing great extraordinary wonderful ones, and some that are devastating. Scott Hamilton firmly believes we are defined by how we deal with setbacks. Notice he said setbacks not endings. How do you personally deal with problems? Do you tackle it with a “can do” attitude or do you shrink with paralyzing fear and negativity? We each have to figure out how best to tap our core inner strength. Many times a person is defined by how we handle our adversities and overcome them. Having a bad attitude will not help you clearly focus on what can be done to improve your personal dilemmas. Listen to your “self chatter” and hear how you deal with daily life.

To better your attitude, ask yourself these questions and really listen to your answers.

1.    What am I doing to contribute to my current situation?

2.    What responsibility do I have to “own” this issue?

3.    What do I really have control over?

4.    What am I willing to change about my attitude that will bring me the results I want to accomplish?

5.    What can I do now to feel better about myself?

 

Be patient with yourself, as change takes effort. Ask others to help support and to hold you accountable with your new attitude. You alone decide if it’s worthwhile to make the change.

"Be the change, you want to see in the world." - Mahatma Ghandi