People are always talking about improving their attitude. It's not so easy when it comes to defining that thing you're trying to improve.
Though there are many ways to define attitude. I’ve learned there are three
stages to attitude. They make it clear not only what your attitude is but also
how it affects how you feel.
1. How you enter - Before leaving for Wisconsin on vacation, I expect a relaxing and enjoyable time. This is the first phase of attitude: it is what you expect before something happens.
For me, I expected fun, exciting, and good things. Someone with a negative nature would expect an exhausting trip, boring, with hot, sticky humidity to contend with.
2. How You Live through It - The second phase of your attitude is the way in which you evaluate progress. Stop and think about this - Do you notice what is going wrong? Or do you notice what is going well? Are you somewhere in between?
I went to dinner the other night with an old friend. We went to a new restaurant that I’ve been meaning to try out. I loved the atmosphere, the location, and my food was fabulous.
My friend on
the other hand noticed how noisy the restaurant was, how grumpy the waiter
seemed, and how bad the food tasted. You see – it’s two attitudes looking for
very different things.
3. How You Exit - The last phase of your attitude happens at the end of a situation or experience. At this point, your attitude affects the way you sum things up.
I was watching a cooking competition-based reality show the other night and, when two people were sent home, they were given the chance to talk to share their feelings for one last time.
They were asked how they felt about the experience. The first smiled and expressed her joy on the friendships she’d made and the good times she had had. The second expressed anger and annoyance at not having won. To her, the experience was a waste of time and an embarrassment. See, it’s how you see and feel things . . . it becomes our attitude. Which attitude would you like to experience life with?
3. How You Exit - The last phase of your attitude happens at the end of a situation or experience. At this point, your attitude affects the way you sum things up.
I was watching a cooking competition-based reality show the other night and, when two people were sent home, they were given the chance to talk to share their feelings for one last time.
They were asked how they felt about the experience. The first smiled and expressed her joy on the friendships she’d made and the good times she had had. The second expressed anger and annoyance at not having won. To her, the experience was a waste of time and an embarrassment. See, it’s how you see and feel things . . . it becomes our attitude. Which attitude would you like to experience life with?
No comments:
Post a Comment