I am a positive person, and that translates to the issue that I really have a hard time tolerating negativity. I don’t watch the news because it is all fear based. I bring positivity to all of my interactions, whether at home with my family, in meetings and negotiations, at the grocery store, in my company, as I drive. What does that look like? It means that I am coming from the place, the mindset, that everyone has a positive intent. The checker at the supermarket who does everything she can to avoid mirroring my “niceness” is staunchly set in her views of her role as an embittered, disenchanted, unappreciated employee will not despite my best efforts give me back anything but the token responses. My view of her is that there are things in her life that are not going as she had hoped and dreamed, so it is hard for her to see anything good, especially from the perpetually nice customer that always tries to win her over.
The voice of negativity is so loud and big that it gives a distorted picture of how things are. We see it in the media all the time, and I think that its crazy to live in fear. I get it that negativity is a habit, its like a road with deep grooves that your tires get stuck into. It’s the go to place for some people when things don’t fit into their picture of what life should be like. It can be incredibly frustrating to me when I have to interact with these people. I have said it many times, I am impatient. I realize that not everyone is going to be in alignment with me, and that my version of reality can rub people the wrong way, yet it continues to be a struggle for me when I can’t avoid them. I have worked to be in a position to be able to choose who I work with, and I am blessed to have the freedom to be able to surround myself in my organization with people who share my view, but invariably there are a few that slip through. Usually they are people outside of my work environment. Maybe my lessons to still learn are to accept people as they are in whatever state they come to me in.
I think the only way out of darkness is by shining a light, and negativity is dark. We have so much to be grateful for, and the mindset of scarcity will always always leave you in the dark. Thoughts and emotions are very habit forming, and if you are thinking negative thoughts all the time you will feel like shit. Guaranteed. I can’t get in your head and change what you focus on, but I can bring my positivity to every interaction and maybe in some small way shed some light on the road. It is my mission, my job, my passion, to help show how good life can be. It all starts with your thoughts.