Attitude Is Everything

Jim Melvin is an outstanding and an extraordinary leader who's done amazing things in his life.  Recently, at a conference I was at, he asked everyone to look into the mirror.  He gave everyone a mirror and said, "Look into this.”  He wanted them to think about what they wanted to become and think about their attitude, what they look like, what images that they're sending, what messages are they sending — verbally and non-verbally.

Then he pulled out a piece of paper and read something he truly believes.  It's from Charles Swindoll, the pastor and educator from Texas.  He wrote and Jim read…

The remarkable thing is We Have A Choice every day regarding the attitude we will embrace that day.  We cannot change our past. We cannot change the fact that people will act in a certain way.  We cannot change the inevitable. The only thing we can do is play on the one string we have, and that is our attitude.

Look, I'm convinced that life is 10% what happens to me and 90% on how we respond to it.  And so it is, I believe, with all of us, we are in charge of Our Attitude.

And so, dear friend, what Charles Swindoll wrote and what Jim Melvin read is something we must understand and act on every day.  We must look in the mirror and know that a change in attitude is like changing your mind.  You have to decide you're going to change the way you see things.  You can't just pretend you have a good attitude. You have to have, to possess, to own a good attitude.

I know that is easier said than done but all we have to look at the bright side of situations, the positive side of negative events, and the good side of people. That includes you and me.  I've often said I don't look at life as a glass half-full, I look at life as a glass that is overflowing.

So I believe in the remarkable power of attitude — positive attitude, hopeful, believing attitude, faithful courage that accentuates our life in magnificent and wondrous ways.  As Aristotle once said…

Happiness depends upon yourself, upon yourself.

So look, this week, have a great week and have a great attitude.

Wright Chase