Why does attitude matter

Does attitude really matter? This includes both your business life and your personal life. Attitude can be either positive or negative and both types can change the way you think, feel and act.

To be successful it is imperative that you embrace a positive attitude as much as possible. This is probably one of the most significant factors in determining your success. Report Abusive Comment Thank you for helping us to improve our forums.

Is this comment offensive? This is not a good place to be! A positive attitude is the result of a disciplined and deliberate way of seeing, thinking, and responding to life. It is a mental discipline. It is intentional. It is mental toughness. Rather, it sees and acknowledges problems and then focuses on finding solutions and opportunities. It looks for the opportunity within the problem. A positive attitude is habit-forming, and it has an impact on you and people around you.

A positive attitude affects you physically. A person with a positive attitude will almost always outperform a person with a negative attitude. In order to have a positive and proactive attitude, you must be disciplined and deliberate about the way you see and think about events, situations, people, and yourself. The way you think drives the way you feel; therefore, consciously managing the way you perceive and process events is essential to a positive attitude. A key element of mental discipline is paying attention to and managing your self-talk.

It is how you choose to interpret and explain the events you are experiencing. Managing your self-talk is critical because words carry thoughts, and thoughts create feelings. It will never work. The way you think drives the way you feel. When faced with a difficult or frustrating situation, you can choose to focus on the problem, engage in negative self-talk, and focus your emotional energy on worrying and complaining; or you can acknowledge what is challenging, discipline yourself to see the big picture, engage in productive self-talk, and focus your emotional energy on finding a solution or on enduring the challenge.

Make a note this is important that a positive attitude does not ignore problems. It does not gloss over hard issues or disregard what is challenging. In fact, a positive attitude actually sees the situation more accurately and thoroughly because it does not lock-in on the negative aspects of the situation.

A negative attitude tends to be narrow, limiting, and rigid. Once a negative attitude finds what it is looking for which it almost always does , it stops looking and stops thinking. A positive attitude, on the other hand, tends to give greater perspective and insight because it stays fully engaged in the search for a solution. If you think managing internal thoughts to produce a positive, proactive attitude is merely a hyped-up motivational technique, consider the research that confirms the effectiveness and power of this mental discipline.

Here is a snapshot of what Csikszentmihalyi has discovered in his studies:. The most successful people, the happiest people, are those who learn to take charge of what happens in the mind. Sign up to get weekly insights delivered right to your inbox. What is Attitude? What is Negative Attitude? What is Positive Attitude? Disciplined Thinking In order to have a positive and proactive attitude, you must be disciplined and deliberate about the way you see and think about events, situations, people, and yourself.

I could benefit from adding more energy and genuine enthusiasm to the relationships in my life. Or maybe we just take it for granted! I always feel like struggeling to keep a positive attitude, and i have changed my job many times though i always find a way to prove to myself that it is a pointless job and everything about it is just meaningless and stupid knowing that i am an engineer and probably those jobs are sophisticated enough and not stupid at all But still i always have this negative attitude that down sizes anything good i do and make me think that it is pointless and stupid and i am never proud of anything i do , which of course sooner or later makes people look at me the same way and underestimate me.

I really want to get out of this cycle especially that i am 29 yo now and changed my field of work already three times and planning to do a fourth change. Please help!!! Ps: i also changed countries and relocated from egypt to germany and still not happy with any of what i have achieved and always depressed unhappy with my job and feeling lonely and useless. Marie, this is excellent. Sometimes we forget that what we do is important enough to focus on how we do it.

I have the best business mentor in the world. I work in the investment and insurance industry. Our approach is different. Our company does financial planning, and using investments and insurance as tools. We are client-centered and we strive to build a comprehensive, bulletproof plan for our clients, educating them along the way.

My mentor never assumes any negative outcomes or feelings, even when potential clients express discomfort, negativity, doubt, and fear towards finances in general. She is the most gregarious, generous person with high standards, and she delivers high quality to every person she comes across in her life. She often takes me out to high end restaurants with money out of her own pocket, and is enthusiastic to listen to anything I have to say.

She treats everyone really well, no matter who they are and she does not calculating about relationships. I am working on myself in many ways. One of the things I believe I need to work on is to show the right amount of vulnerability. It will help me connect better with my clients and the people around me, as well as become a stronger influence.

Thank you for the reminders we all need Buddhism calls this a Sangha, I suppose: a group of people who support us by practicing with us and reminding us! Thank you for bringing me those gentle increments of joy and useful reminders! From my heart, Matthias.

She was so present and so in touch with herself, it was amazing! I can be gracious, caring, and make sure I really mean what I say. Ideals are dangerous, as they encourage us to be something impossible to maintain, perhaps impossible for us to be. Looking to the natural world for example, guidance. Yes the sun does feel good and is necessary for life, for living. Water is also essential for life, and sun vaporizes it. There are lots of stars, planets etc. Everyone cannot be the life of the party.

Think how boring that would be. Brilliant episode! Found that I had wrong debit card on me and no cash. Very embarrassed as long queue of people behind me and I said that I was so sorry but would have to put all the goods back. Best customer service ever and he proved there were some good Samaritans in the world!

Ps I paid him back the next morning. Reminded me of my high school English teacher. Thanks for reminding me to be more like her. I am currently project managing a building project and the foreman can be a REAL downer! I just realised how much that affects me and how that negative vibe is contagious. What I find with great distaste is the distaste of others being happy. So, I say: Do what you want. Be your gold. Let it shine!!!! But understand some possibly quite a few may not like that. You can do it!

Truly a great gentle reminder to always be kind. I own a business that exemplifies and encourages people to be happy, calm, and and feel rejuvenated. Negativity breeds negativity… choose to spread happiness! Wonderful episode, Marie! I had a similar experience when I was visiting NY! I have since used this example every time I deliver service training. We stumbled upon a street vendor in Manhattan and I was blown away by his enthusiasm and genuine love of what he was doing.

He was selling sunglasses! It was such a life lesson for me- loving life and what we do is possible with a change in attitude.

I infuse my work with reverence and this customer could literally taste the difference. Thanks so much for the inspiration! Great reminder…to look in the mirror and reply the audios of my complaints of what happened to me by moving into a small town. It did cause me to realize that I had gotten sucked down…pruned…forged in the fire.

It has been interesting how your free YouTube videos are one way that God and my guardian angels seemed to help me stay making progress against a very stacked deck! Thanks for spreading positivity and being a Queen B…you are so photogenic and full of great energy…fit to B Queen Bee! It is time to help the world turn that into healthy DESSERTS and be sweet, playful, innovative… with our concerted effort so it can be second nature until it comes naturally.

I took a friend of mine to the supermarket to do grocery shopping. We collected the items required and paid for our purchases separately. Without any indication the packer decided to alternate the bags with my stuff having a white bag on the outside and her bags having an orange bag on the outside.

When we got to the car we did not have to search the bags to see what belonged to whom — he had thought ahead. I was so impressed with his thoughtfulness that I gave him a sizeable tip. What would change in my life if my attitude changed, would be the way I feel at the end of each day after an unproductive day at the office.

I am learning however to fill up my days with learning new things coaching, meditation and the like so that I could have that change in my world perspective. Kids roll into each other when they laugh. As a writer I find that a shift in energy lives on the page.

Great episode, thanks heaps, have an epic day! Typically buses have a designated corner where the students meet, but whenever there was inclement weather, he would deliver students right to their driveway! Additionally, he not only greeted all students by name, but also their parents, with a great big smile. We always think of him and smile! Generally, I am an extremely upbeat, high energy, people person, but lately my work has got me down. Business has changed which required roles to change and it is not something I am particularly passionate about and actually dread doing.

However, if I attempt to put my energetic personality back into it, perhaps I can get through the day much more successfully and become much happier as well! Let me give that a try! Having a loving kind compassionate midwife made all the difference in the world to giving birth feeling safe instead of fearful. It really does make a difference. Thank you for a great reminder on the effects our own attitude has. I will try to keep remembering to take it into my parenting where the impact of attitude is so important.

Thank you Marie X. Two years ago, I sold my house and at the end I was left with no place to stay. This was after I was approached by an agency who was just happy to sell my house but was not interested in me as a person.

We had agreed she would also help us get a new place to stay. Towards the end of the sale, we were clear in our minds, we would never work with this agency again. Her attitude towards me and my husband — her clients had changed.

We were no longer sure whether she was still our agency or not. We found a different agency who not only helped us find a new home but showed genuine interest in us as a people and our needs. At the end of any house sale, a housing agency wants their share of money right? No, this one was interested in getting us a home, appropriate to our needs.

When it seemed like we were going to lose our dream home because we were not able to raise sufficient funds for the house, she always encouraged us that there is a solution to every problem. We did not know how we were going to make this works. We learnt late that she had negotiated with her company owner for help. The company owner made an offer we never heard of anywhere else. She offered to forfeit her share of the pay out for months so we can pay off the lawyers.

She then made a deal with us to repay her later. She did not know us from a bar of soap. She just believed we would pay. Today we live in our own home, and we share a beautiful relationship with our agency and the company owner. Recently, we shared dinner with these two great women.

Since then, we have been referring any friends we know of, who are looking for homes to the same agency — because we know, they will find caring people who are not only interested in a house sale, but will show genuine interest in them as a people and their needs.

I wish I would show a positive attitude towards my admin work and those involved in it. I love organising conversations and sharing with people and organisations about the work that I do.

I find myself always complaining about what has not been done. Perhaps, if I showed up every day with a bit of smile, I would not be seeing so much that is not happening. I guess my expectations on myself and others are always too high. In the process, I tend to miss out on important things in life, the people around me. What area of your life might profoundly shift if you focused more attention on your positive attitude, meaning you focused on how you did something, rather than just going through the motions?

My business for sure — focusing now on the solutions, rather than letting myself bothered by the problems. Shout out to the woman in the toll booth at RDU Airport.

The last time I left I actually waited in line to pay YOU because you are such a shining light of joy. Marie — I had so many of the same thoughts you just shared after passing through her toll both. That woman was like a benevolent queen sitting on her throne taking my dollar bills.

I thought about her for days, especially when I heard myself whining about something stupid. The response is almost always the same — joy and gratitude for unsolicited and genuinely positive human connection. Thanks for sharing! I was just thinking about this the other day, after I was wowed by the cashier at the fast food drive through.

She was, and had been every time I interacted with her before, a joy. She made me smile. My day was better for her having been in it. I mean an extraordinary person. In Taco Bell. I remember something I used to say back when I was in the habit of thinking of things to say.

Take pride in your work and be happy. I love that this came out at the same time as I was having that thought. Universal consciousness and all that. I remember when I was sitting in the coffee shop, I noticed one boy selling sweet potatoes inside the coffee shop.

It was a high end area and thinking why the hell those people working in the coffee shop allowed this boy to sell inside approaching each customer inside the coffee shop to sell his stuff.

He just simply ask to buy his sweet potatoes. I was touched and bought his sweet potatoes even if I am staying in the hotel and no way to cook it! I was also impressed with those people working at the coffee shop by giving this boy a chance to sell his sweet potatoes inside their shop.

Our mindset and attitude make so much difference. I intend to infuse my enthusiasm, joy and LOVE into the online course I am building and the blog posts I am writing for my target audience. What a great reminder for me to be the light I want to see and bring to the world. Thanks Marie and Team Forleo! Hello Marie, I loved this video a lot, conveyed importance of positive attitude in such a positive way..!!

To share an example, I am lucky enough to meet an enthusiastic lady I never ever had encountered before. She, in her mid sixties welcomes new people into her life whole heartedly, sits for hours of conversation with completely strangers and learns new things every day with an instinct of new born baby.

But Marie, I really wanted to know an answer for this question. Fearing accidents, fearing job failure, fearing that you might not end up in the career you choose, fearing loosing relationships etc. I get giddy. It literally blew me away one day when they said, lunch is on us when I pulled up to the window!! Also, I like to either have cash or small gifts at hand to give out at will.

One day I gave the lady at Sonic Drive in a dozen donuts, they were thrilled. Love being kind to others. One of the things that really struck me is how you said the valet asked you how your day was…and really wanted to hear the answer. Stop…and listen. In my work place our cleaning lady has this way of putting a smile on our face.

She mops the entire building everyday but you will never ever see her complaining. Instead, she greets us happily, asks us about her day, and then cleans with so much joy. I see it in her eyes. Her happiness is so viral. I feel so blessed that I got to meet her. I think it will really change my performance in the business that I am building. Being in a state of joy will prevent negativity from creeping inside my head.

Hence, I can keep on building my business without being rattled by my fears. Oh, This is lovely! Thanks for the information marie! So subtle but so freakin important! Your experience got me thinking about a valet in Vegas who just blew me away!! I mean, this guy was crushing it. Hey Marie thank you for the great video, the is nothing exciting like walking in a restaurant and and you meet this amazing person who will just flash you with a smile.

I remember visiting on of the restaurant and it was my first time there and obviously i was not familiar with the food the serve the but believe it or not i had the most great service and the guy love his Job and the energy he putted in it was amazing. Attitude is everything and I have always lived by this mantra. There are, however, times when compassion needs to be exercised, to allow humans to be humans, to be able to express grief, disappointment, pain and to allow healing.

Mario this video just move my spirit to a higher thinking. I Will have to change my plans seriously. Thanks a lot. Hi Marie, Fabulous show today and always appreciated.

I retired from sales Sept 25th , started a part time job at Costco in Leeds on my Birthday Sept 29th, New Years resolution to get employee of the Month, I had my picture on the wall for employee of the Month for May for customer service. Keep up the great work Marie and thanks. Wow this is so essential!

Thank you Marie! The weather can be rainy, snowy or cloudy, you always see his smile and his enthusiasm in what he is doing! That is absolutely inspiring. Love, Jamie. Dear Marie I am so grateful for your generous sharing of these jewels and the honest way you post them. I fall for people with that warmth showing through, and tune in to their good positive and open attitude. Yet, my problem is the fear of being wounded if I open up too much, or maybe I just want to take no risks , so…I am a quite reserved person, and self-defended.

How can I train myself to let my light shine more? Now, you know New Yorkers can be abrupt and all business, but this woman greeted me every morning with a smile and was so efficient and great at her job while some other valets were just standing around. She saw what needed to be done and did it, with a great attitude and smile.

When you have a loved one in the hospital and you drive in from NJ every morning to Manhattan, this was so much appreciated. At the end of the week when I was taking my husband home, I went up to her to give her an extra tip it was Memorial Day weekend and she was working and tell her how much I appreciated her service and to have a drink on me. While we were waiting for our car, some guys she knew delivered her a bunch of pizza from a terrific NY pizza place.

She then brought the box over to us and asked us if we wanted any. My husband took a slice they were huge after eating hospital food all week. Now if anyone knows anything about NY pizza, the tip I gave her probably equaled the cost of the one slice. After my son was discharged from the hospital the orderly who pushed his wheelchair to the lobby was so full of life and personality it was a gift to be around her.

An area where the way I do something would make a huge difference? Congratulations on the great job you are doing. Marie, let me tell you, you were born to do this! I love your blog and videos, they are are truly empowering and they definitily make me stand up and start doing something. I totally get you on the positive energy.

I really want to change this which is actually making me so unhappy. I remember going to the bakery one afternoon on quite a bad day and the guy behind the counter was so enthusiastic that he managed to make me smile with just two sentences! No bad mood survives a smile like his! I used to think that doing a god job was all about performance, about doing the best you can with the time and resources you have — being productive and efficient. If only I had made the effort of taking it one day at a time and focused more on my attitude!

No doubt that my efforts to improve will go to the professional aspect! Thank you Marie Team! I learned a while ago to train myself not to get the best of my environment. I could find meaning in anything and also impact lives by being positive. I know my clients feel that. Hello Marie, I have truly enjoyed your wisdom, insights and the empowerment you put into this world. I would love to share with you a story that is truly the epitome of a person, who has always despite facing a life-altering injury, chosen positivity.

I believe in my heart you will enjoy this and find a very powerful message within…In gratitude — Shawna. Spot on message. Choosing to be positively positive no matter what happens makes a HUGE difference in how I feel and how others feel around me. We just need to rember that. In my experience, It simply feels better to be a bright bulb than a dim one.

Right on Marie! It definitely is the most underrated success secret and a great reminder on not just what we do but how we do it.

Thanks for everything you do! I was with some friends and family celebrating the New Year and we ate at a local place called Cassis Brasserie. As you can imagine — it was a VERY busy night.

The weather was perfect in Florida and there were hundreds of people out in downtown St. The restaurant was jam-packed and full staffed. Shortly after we were seated our waiter who was also quite friendly and nice told us that someone would be bringing bread to the table soon.

A moment later I see this older gentleman pushing a bread cart our way. He had a wide smile, pep in his step and was clearly enjoying passing out rolls to all the tables!!! But his attitude was infectious and adorable. He made you feel like he was delivering GOLD to your table. And he made you feel special! Even though we had a great meal and a stellar night — it was this man and his wonderful attitude that stood out above everything else!

I sure wish I had gotten his name….. President Obama. Hands down. If you want to see an example of keeping a positive attitude when things get tough, look at the way this man lives his life.

We have to look at the big picture here. The positive or the negative? My health. Instead of focusing on a negative body image, the amount I weight, etc.

Love this episode! I work with young children, so a positive attitude every day makes a difference! As I think about this video and your questions, I find that I do not enter situations that I am unsure of or find intimidating with the same energy.

So, my goal is to bring the sunshine with me every time I have an encounter with someone! Thanks Marie! This one resonated really well! There have been so many instances when people have been so nice and infused me with their positive energy.

Lending a hand when fixing my bicycle, or buying a pair of shoes or when serving food at the restaurant. Positive energy does drive your behaviour … and motivates you to do good! I have often experienced that while cooking food… it is not the recipe that matters but the love and enthusiasm with which you make the food that adds the magic flavour to it! I Think we are as a radio and it depends de frecuency we are, the things and people that we get.

If you want to known how a person is, look the people who stay with. I had an very desgasting car accident las year. The consecuences was horrible. Things might shift for me it I brought JOY abd positive energy into dealing with finances instead of reluctant boredom, annoyance and fear ;-O!!! Wow, what a great way to implement what we just heard! Great episode, Marie! My husband is extremely positive and friendly.

Once, when we were ordering food at a restaurant he was chatting with an employee so enthusiastically that when we left, I asked how they knew each other. I would benefit from approaching my work with a more positive attitude.

We experienced a failed adoption match last year and due to my grief I think the joy and positivity I had before the match has faded more than I realized. I was at a conference on my lunch break and decided to order some Chinese food. The young man serving the food demonstrated excellent service.

My daughter was a bit confused and apprehensive while we waited. A few minutes later he returned he must have walked quite a way with a yellow plastic ducky toy in his hand. After a hard day of work, and with a late night of study ahead, it can be really easy to become resentful for having to cook the dinner and do the dishes and put the kids to bed and wash the clothes… I think if I approached theses tasks with more love I could experience a lot more joy.

Years ago I went to order a local burger joint and I ordered a burger and the guy fully sang and danced while he made my burger. Totally made my day! One of my friend is always enthusiastic, what ever work he enjoys, everybody is loved to speak with him. You Know, Im very reflexive about this video. Sometimes I complaint when Im receiving a services from the cashier, the girl who attend in the store, the person in the call center, etc etc.

However my reflection here is that I complaint about others, but what about me … Im really doing my best, Im just focus in the what and the how? I focused on leave something to others or just doing a chore … great insights to reflect about that.

And you are right when you find that type of people like the valet guy … you always say oh my I want that too! Being able to find your positive spirit is so incredibly critical to driving the results you want to achieve in your life. It can be life changing, truly. I made a complete transformation in my life in my early 20s after I finished college. I used positive thinking to change how I saw the world. I moved past a great deal of anger and hurt from the past by filling my mind with love and positive ideas.

I would read a lot of books. In the same way, you are what you feed your mind. It can be easy to let fear, doubt and negativity creep in so make sure every day you are feeding your mind with positive messages.

It was by far the icing on the proverbial New York cake for us. He was fabulous and we all exchanged hugs and kisses before we left… he pushed us to learn how to pronounce some of the names for the cocktails and other foods… he was effusive and lovely. We will definitely be back. To make your case in point and echo some that others who have left comments made , this energy does in fact help your bottom line… How could it not? However, the most important thing is the way we all felt after dinner was over; like we have a new friend ….

Definitely agree and love. I recently retired. I worked with a very spiritual woman who made it a priority to enthusiastically hug every staff member the first time she saw them in the hallway each day.

Everyone loved her. Her positive energy was so special! Very close to home but I have been doing this more with my children instead of plowing through the daily routines and it feels really good for all of us x. Few days ago, I had a date with a friend who we never met since long time ago. She is friendly, enthusiastic, and dynamic. Her ideas always innovative, she gave me much more useful advices about my future, I very thanks for her.

I hope I could have second abilities about what I interesting, so I use my free times to learn more skill. You are Hilarious as well as Brilliant! Thank You! Great post Marie and it really reminded me about an old training video I saw which at the time we were trying to implement in our workforce. The old FISH training based on the fish markets in San Fran who noticed a huge difference to their business once their staff started to have fun at work. The staff were happy and the flow on effect to the customers was happy — so much so it became a tourist destination.

You are so bubbly and jubilant we are very similar in that way! I commend your ability to be transparent and free with your public platform. I also appreciate being reminded that I can make a difference in the world, not matter what I [currently] do for a living.

I met this great shop assistant just before Christmas. She was so cheerful and sweet all the time. We had a nice chat while she was registering my purchases. I just had to go and buy her a gift certificate as a present.

It is not something I usually do, but this girl really earned it with her easy, cheerful attitude that made everything seem so easy. She really made my day! Marie you are such a great source of inspiration and motivation for me! Luisa, this is a great question.

There are always ups and downs, but one key thing Marie does is take action on ideas instead of simply thinking about them.

Thank you so much for your response! Thank so much for you sharing this video to us. It is magical. I agree with Marie that attitude is contagious and it is how you do what you do I call it bedside manner.