Four Attitudes to Stock in Your Life Arsenal
by Richard (Dimples) Fields sang “If it ain’t one thing it’s another.” We can use the same line to describe our lives. However, we can build an arsenal of attitudes that will help us to deal with the endless round of life situations we have to face.
We can’t control many of the situations that we encounter, but certainly, we can control how we react to them. The key of course, is our attitude. So, if we stock our arsenals with the following attitudes, we will be poised to face anything that comes our way.
An attitude of gratitude
Frequently, when a problem arises, our first response is to lose our temper, complain and cast blame. Plus, the longer with sit with those emotions, we open ourselves to depression and hopelessness.
Then, if someone says that we should be grateful for all the blessings we still have, we mouth a few words of thanks. I call that situational gratitude and it usually doesn’t equip us to deal with problems that arise in the future.
In contrast, an attitude of gratitude is a mindset that infiltrates our lives at every level and we are grateful every day, whether or not we have a problem. Then when troubles arise, our attitude of gratitude kicks in as a first response and helps us to deal with our troubles with a better frame of mind.
We may still be tempted to get angry, throw up our hands in despair and wear our self-pity clothes. But because we have an attitude of gratitude, we have the ammunition to fend off those temptations and stand resolute whatever storms may blow into our lives.
Of course this attitude of gratitude is not something you can pick up one day and make it yours for life. Like all habits, you learn it gradually, falling and failing along the way. But if you persist in making it a lifestyle habit, it will be your first response in times of trouble and save you from becoming a victim of life’s circumstances.
An attitude of compassion
More than the disturbing reports coming from every corner of the globe, I think it is the news that emanates from our country that slowly and quietly builds an attitude of complacency. In the safety of our homes we listen and feel helpless. The problems seem so out of control we believe that there is nothing we can do to stop or slow the downward spiral. But we are wrong. We can make a difference if we cease looking at the forest and focus on the individual trees. We can cease thinking in terms of the statistics and concentrate on the individuals who need help, encouragement and inspiration.
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