The social media meme displays the number “13” who is saying to all the other numbers, “I’m the worst number ever!”
Six-six-six replied, “I’ve got you beat.” Twenty-twenty chimes in, “Contest over.”
One cannot live in times like these without paying the toll.
We internalize our environment, affecting how we feel and even infecting our beliefs; the result is that we view our lives differently than if circumstances were otherwise. As evidence, utilizing an example from the late Zig Zigler, picture your typical morning. Imagine your attitude. Rate it on a one-to-ten scale; most of us land somewhere between six and eight most times. Now, imagine that same “typical” morning, with one aberration: you awake to voice mail from a loved one, “It’s been too long. I’m thinking about you. I can’t wait until we get together. I love you and hope your day is filled with joy.”
It is without a doubt that in scenario two, we’d face the day energized, enthusiastic, and determined. Problems that would have normally knocked us off-trail become insufficient bumps in the asphalt.
Nothing changed — except our attitude. Because it improved, we took on more; facing more upbeat the day ahead, and closing our eyes at night more fulfilled.
Attitude — the complex interaction between feelings and beliefs that affect how we view the world, and therefore how we react to it — matters.
Yet, a question remains: “Is our attitude determined by us or by outside circumstances?”
The honest answer is it’s some of both, but with enough understanding of what determines this mindset, we can wrestle back the reins and become masters of attitude, therefore leading happier, more fulfilling lives — even amid the madness churning around us like a hurricane in the Gulf of Mexico.
Attitude has nothing to do with logic; it’s more primal; it’s “right-brain” driven.
Therefore, telling yourself (or anyone else) to “get over it” is like trying to teach a pig to sing; it wastes your time and annoys the pig.
