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“Attitude is a little thing that makes a big difference,” according to Winston Churchill. But if a big difference is a bit more than you want to take on right now, a slightly better attitude is a good place to start.
If perhaps you think that changing your attitude won’t really make any difference, consider this from William James. “The greatest discovery of my generation is that a human being can alter his life by altering his attitudes.” It’s worth mentioning that Norman Vincent Peale agreed. He said, “Change your thoughts and you change your world.” Just how much change you want is up to you.
What is stopping you from that attitude change James and Peale think are so important? Mahatma Gandhi had this advice for us, “I will not let anyone walk through my mind with their dirty feet.” I think the point is to figure out who in our lives is feeding the attitude we have and making sure their dirty feet are not pulling us in the wrong direction. I suspect that attitudes are contagious and it’s pretty easy to be infected by someone else’s bad attitude.
While you are considering even a minor attitude adjustment, it will help to keep the words of Isaac Bashevis Singer in mind, “If you keep on saying things are going to be bad, you have a good chance of becoming a prophet. Will Foley put it a little more succinctly, “The world is full of cactus, but we don’t have to sit on it.”
I hear you. You are committing to a little attitude shift but don’t want to get carried away with this attitude thing. Although no one claims credit for saying it, not majoring in minor things is likely worth at least some consideration. Even so, “If you are not enjoying the journey, you probably won’t enjoy the destination.” The tip here is pretty simple: “Things turn out best for the people who make the best out of the way things turn out.”
Is that you shrugging your shoulders and saying, “Who cares?” As Helen MacInness reminded, “Nothing is interesting if you’re not interested.” As the old Swedish Proverb suggests, “Those who wish to sing, always find a song,” and those who don’t, don’t. It’s that attitude thing all over again.
It was Arthur Christopher Benson who said, “Very often a change of self is needed more than a change of scene.” Of course the point is valid; but all things considered, I think going for a change of scene is sometimes a better first choice than undertaking changing ourselves. According to Edward de Bono, “Unhappiness is best defined as the difference between our talents and our expectations.” Since you likely conclude that your unhappiness is because “they” just don’t appreciate your exceptional talents, moving on may be better than – and is certainly easier than one of those attitude adjustments “they” keep suggesting.
Ralph Marston may have argued that “Excellence is not a skill. It is an attitude,” but just who does he think he is anyway? When we are the ones with the skills, others will just have to get over it. Our attitudes are just fine thank you.
Even though I don’t know who said it, “It isn’t our position but our disposition which makes us happy.” As true as that is, I think I still should be the boss. How about you?