Do You Have the Right Attitude?

Your attitude reflects your perceptions. How you feel, what you believe, and your thought patterns all form your attitude about every area of life. Attitude runs on a spectrum, ranging from everything amazing to the sky falling and everywhere in between. It’s normal for your attitude to be in flux given circumstances, energy levels, and the experiences you have in a day.    

If your attitude tends to be positive, with a few bad days sprinkled in, that’s typical. However, if you sense your attitude is remaining negative, it could be a sign your attitude needs an overhaul.     

What Influences a Poor Attitude?    

Many things influence our attitude in positive and negative ways. From the moment we wake, we are washed in thoughts, feelings, and experiences that trigger a reaction. How we interpret our day, given the experiences we have, determines our attitude. As days go by, our attitude is shaped by what we repeatedly allow ourselves to believe.    

A negative attitude could be your default reaction to life, or it could be based on repeated negative or unfulfilling circumstances that cause you to dwell on what’s wrong rather than what’s right with life.    Over time, failing to address a negative attitude can lock your mindset into a state of doom and gloom and make it difficult to break those patterns and be more optimistic.    

Negative Attitudes Have a Cost    

Living with a negative attitude has a price tag. The cost of a bad attitude can include poor mental and physical health and diminished relationships.

A bad attitude can cause depression, anxiety, anger issues and lead to    

• An inflexible mindsight 

• Controlling behaviors 

• Using sarcasm 

• Isolation  

• Blaming others  and more    

This can impact relationships, work, self-esteem, goal setting, and overall go against your best interests.        

Recognizing Your Attitude Needs an Overhaul   

If you sense you haven’t felt joy in a while or recognize you’re consistently forecasting doom and gloom, your attitude may need an overhaul. Once you’ve identified the need for a shift, it’s time to actively begin to look at things in a whole new way.    

Begin to hold yourself accountable for your thoughts, feelings and behaviors. Practice saying positive things, identifying positive aspects of life, focusing on what’s right in the moment, ditching negative people, and beginning to redirect negative thoughts.    

You Can Change Your Attitude!   

Charles Dicken’s book A Christmas Carol is an excellent example of how easy it is for people to get caught up in negativity and infect their entire life. Ebenezer Scrooge was an incredibly arrogant, negative, and unhappy character who was brilliantly able to turn his mindset around to think and act in a whole new way, improving his life and the lives of those around him.    

You can change your attitude as well by becoming more aware of your thoughts and mindset, what created your poor attitude and what triggers your negativity. Then, replacing those thoughts and feelings with more open-minded thinking.    

Sometimes we fall into a rut with our thinking. Reframing our thoughts and outlook can help us bounce back and have a better, more positive attitude overall.