Having and maintaining a positive attitude is vital for
success in life and business. Zig Ziglar gets it right
when he says, “It is your attitude, not your aptitude,
that determines your altitude.” Sure you need skills,
but you can learn skills – in fact a positive attitude will
make it much more likely that you will learn the skills
necessary to succeed. If you take two people with an
equal skill set the person with the better attitude will
win.
Unfortunately it is not always easy to stay positive and
keep a good attitude.
As things go wrong
throughout your day, it is
easy to let negative
thoughts start to take
over. Thankfully there are
many things that you can
do to help maintain a
positive attitude. These are
things that you can do on a
daily, weekly, or monthly
basis to make sure you
keep your positive focus.
1. Read Positive and
Inspiring Books
One of the best ways to maintain a positive
attitude is by reading positive books. These
books serve to encourage you, inspire you,
and teach you. Reading requires that you sit
still and focus, and by focusing on something
positive it helps you to keep a positive mindset
throughout the day.
2. Listen to Podcasts/CDS
The advantage of listening to podcasts or
compact disks is that you can listen on the go.
You can listen to motivating podcasts while
you clean your house, exercise, or on a flight.
In your car, you can play encouraging compact
disks that help you make better use of your
commute. Listening to recordings from people
like Zig Ziglar, Tony Robbins, or John Maxwell
can both teach and inspire you.
3. Wake up Early
One of the best ways to help you maintain a
positive attitude is to create the habit of
waking up early. Waking up early allows you to
get a head start on the day. You can prepare
for work and start your day without feeling
rushed. You can get a head start on important
projects before the rest of the world is awake
to interrupt you. You can spend time reading
or in prayer or meditation. I start each day by
listening to a 10 minute motivational podcast.
4. Exercise
Very few things in life leverage your time as
much as exercise. Obviously it makes a
difference for your physical health, but it also
has significant benefits to your mental health.
Exercise is useful to combat depression and to
improve overall positive mood. Further, if you
exercise early in the morning you can go
through your day knowing that you have
already completed the most valuable activity
you had to do!
5. Plan Your Week and Day
Having a clear plan to your day and to your
week can go a long way to helping you
maintain a positive attitude. By knowing what
you want to accomplish you will be able to
focus on your important life priorities. A
weekly plan allows you to match your long-
term goals to your weekly accomplishments.
Your daily plan allows you complete the
activities you need to do so that you meet your
weekly goals.
6. Understand that Things Won’t Always Go as
Planned
If you plan and expect everything in life will go
as you planned, you will be quickly
disappointed. One of the keys to maintaining a
positive attitude is to understand that things
will go wrong. If you expect things to go
wrong, you won’t be phased when they do. So
have a plan, but understand that things won’t
follow the plan. The plan allows you to adapt
to what went wrong and move back towards
what is important.
7. Get Spiritually Connected
Naturally this one will look different for
everyone, and this is simply an option to
consider. If you are spiritually connected, you
will have a positive outlook on life. This might
mean prayer, meditation or reading Scripture.
Set aside time each day to be connected
spiritually.
8. Be Thankful
Take some time and be thankful. Be thankful
about what you have, who you are, and what
your life is like. Think through all of the things
that you can be thankful for. Even if you are in
a tough time in life there are many things you
have that you can be thankful for. You need to
look for them and recognize them. The very
act of focusing on what you are thankful for
will help you maintain your positive attitude.
9. Surround Yourself with Positive People
The people around you have a big impact on
you. They impact who you are, how much
money you will make, and what you value.
They also impact how you think. If you
surround yourself with negative people you
will be negative as well. You can’t help it.
Hearing negativity all day leads you to
negativity. The opposite is also true. Surround
yourself with positive people and you will be
more positive.
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