With less than half of Americans happy at work, and millions more wishing they had a similar problem because they lack a job to complain about, it’s easier than ever to be surrounded by grumps. Just because others grouse does not mean that we should.
Our outlooks and attitudes are conclusions we draw. They are choices. Some people we know will only see shadows. Pity them. Look for the sun. Always seek the sun.
Getting re-centered involves a series of personal choices. Navigate your days with dignity, even though others may not. People are herd animals and tend to follow the lead of others.
The president’s declining popularity is a perfect example. The media has lost its focus on where the oil spill blame and accountability belongs: squarely, 100 percent on British Petroleum. Because of that, the fashionable thing to do now is dog-pile onto president Obama. This is unfortunate and, to me, a very un-American trait. In generations past Americans respected the office of the presidency and–whether we agreed with the decisions the commander in chief or not–we supported him. Four years rolls by quickly, in life if not politics, and Americans gutted it out and reinforced their support at the polls or picked someone new. We never used to dog-pile. Now we’ve made it an embarrassing, competitive sport.
When negativity permeates the media, it also permeates the minds of those who watch and listen. Pushing back and refusing to get caught up in omnipresent currents of negativity becomes difficult, a bit like when an outgoing beach tide strengthens into rip currents and undertows. Venture out and be swept along. Too many millions of us have.
Smoke bombs tossed into society from judgmental media are influences but not the root of the problem, nor its solution. Those are found in the morning mirror.
Here are five tips to stay positive when you find yourself slipping into a bit of a funk.
- Make something happen. At my brother’s Notre Dame commencement address many moons ago, media mogul Ted Turner’s advice caused the parents in the audience to shudder.
“You don’t have to know anything,” Turner said, “to make something happen.” Here these folks have shelled out a billion dollars for their kids to get one of America’s best educations and Turner is saying, in essence, “It’s not about the education.” Turner is a doer, not a watcher. He was urging the kids to become the same.
- Honor your profession. Whatever you’re being paid to do, do it to the best of your ability and be proud when you do. Pride radiates; it’s a nuclear fuel that keeps us going.When we honor our professions, our professions honor us. Some days it may not seem that way but trust me: It always plays out.
Workers fall into a performance bell curve when compared with their peers. A few are slackers, a few are great, most of us are somewhere in-between. Decide to be great every day at whatever you’re doing and it will boost your self esteem, which is how you feel about yourself. Staying positive when you’re feeling good is easy, but when you’re down it’s difficult. Sustained good work, day after day, relentlessly moves us toward the high-performance side of the bell curve.
- Don’t tolerate negativity. Deal with things quickly and head-on. Many of us don’t like confrontation and some go to great lengths to avoid it.
Push back and you’ll grow stronger. Keep backing up and you’ll gradually weaken. Refuse to be negative. Be positive, stay positive, and chastise those who are not. To a positive person, rough spots are temporary delays. To negative people they are validation. Nearly everything that bugs us is a temporary frustration. Always push on.
- Say what you’ll do, and do what you say. This is a personal discipline that’s valuable in business. I work for myself and have wrangled with this one all week. Three weeks ago I invested three days and two conference calls en route to crafting a detailed, customized proposal I proudly submitted ahead of deadline. The client hasn’t followed up and deadlines to reengage have come on gone.
What can I do about that? Nothing. How others act is a reflection on them, not me. My work was finished and submitted in two days rather than the four they expected for a very professional reason: I worked on it sixteen hours a day instead of just eight. I held up my end, they haven’t, and whether anything comes of it is to be determined.
The message here is simple: Respect others and honor your commitments. Make those behaviors part of your personal brand. If you say you’ll do something, then do it–100 percent of the time. Business can be incredibly dynamic, so if something comes up that necessitates a change, communicate the change. Keep people informed. Always treat others better than you’d hope to be treated. Behave with disciplined dignity.
- Stay focused on things that matter and jettison things that don’t. People get distracted ultra-easily these days. Whatever needs to get done, attack it with narrow-minded discipline. Do not slack; too many do. Focus, stick to it, and finish it with pride.
All five of these things help us consistently operate in a high-road way. Stay up there, on the high road. The view is better, and life is better. Avoid the low road; it’s way too crowded.