“Nothing can stop the man with the right mental attitude from achieving his goal; nothing on earth can help the man with the wrong mental attitude.” – Thomas Jefferson
It’s all about the ‘tude, dude.
Ever heard of “stinkin’ thinkin'” before? I have… a lot. Way too often I heard the phrase, “Stop that stinkin’ thinkin’!” The sad reality is, I heard that phrase often because people directed it toward me. I didn’t realize it was something I could stop. Stop complaining? Stop arguing? Stop worrying? That’s just a part of life, right? WRONG! It doesn’t have to be.
My attitude today is nothing like the attitude I had a year ago. I’m sure you’ve heard Jim Rohn’s quote that “You are the average of the five people you spend the most time with.” If not, then I’m telling you right now that it’s not just a quote. It’s TRUTH. The attitude of the five people you spend the most time with will become yours as well; however, only you are responsible for your own attitude. Your attitude is not the fault of anyone else’s actions, words, etc., BUT others’ attitudes will certainly rub off on you. So if you’re in need of an attitude adjustment, you need to take responsibility for your own attitude AND your first order of responsibility is to check who those five people are.
“The greatest day in your life and mine is when we take total responsibility for our attitudes. That’s the day we truly grow up.” – John C. Maxwell
When things aren’t right in your life, there’s always one place you can point to that is guaranteed to help you get on track – The Bible. Paul wrote to the Philippians: “Do everything without complaining and arguing, so that no one can criticize you. Live clean, innocent lives as children of God, shining like bright lights in a world full of crooked and perverse people.” Philippians 2:14-15 (NLT)
I don’t know about you, but I’m not one to read the Word of God and say, “No.” We aren’t supposed to complain. Complaining breeds more complaining. Sulking breeds more sulking. Misery breeds more misery. Arguing breeds more arguing. You getting this yet? If you want to get anywhere worth going in life, you have to have a positive attitude.
“A positive attitude causes a chain reaction of positive thoughts, events and outcomes. It is a catalyst and it sparks extraordinary results.” – Wade Boggs
It’s not that some people just have it and some people don’t. It’s a choice. That’s right, a choice. You can either choose to complain about circumstances and ask, “Why?” and “Why me?” or you can ask “What?” As in, “What can I learn from this experience?” and “What is God trying to teach me?”
“Your living is determined not so much by what life brings to you as by the attitude you bring to life; not so much by what happens to you as by the way your mind looks at what happens.” – Khalil Gibran
Guess what happens when you have a positive attitude and view life through the “What?” glasses? You attract other people who are positive as well. I don’t know about you, but I cannot stand being around negative people and those that complain all the time. I know you all know someone like that. How often have you hung around them and when you left them you were in a sour mood? Probably every time.
Take an inventory of the five people you spend the most time with and of your circumstances. Get an accountability partner; someone that’ll keep you in check if you start complaining. The #1 person I spend time with is Mariah and she’s the most positive person I’ve ever met. She’s also not afraid of keeping me in check either and somehow she always does it in the sweetest manner.
Are you ready to move up in this life or do you want to continue on your same path? “Your attitude, not your aptitude, will determine your altitude.” – Zig Ziglar
“Check yo’self before you wreck yo’self.” – Ice Cube
James Rutter 