Attitude is important

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Hey everyone

 I'll get around to another historical interview eventually. Probably. 

 Anyways.

 I was complaining about doing maths (as usual) and Mum tells me to write an article on attitude. So I did. It really changed my perspective.

 Now she wants me to put it on my blog...

 Well, here we go:


Alright so, you told me to look some stuff up on attitudes and how to get a better attitude. People tell me all the time why having a positive attitude is better, so I decided to focus on how to have a better attitude. However because I'll feel bad if I don't write something on why positive attitudes are better, I'll give you some reasons.

  • It makes me miserable
  • It makes Mum miserable
  • It makes Dad miserable
  • It makes Ral miserable
  • Oh yeah and science says that having a positive attitude is essential to happiness and success

So yeah.

The first thing I decided to look up was how to have a better attitude. In other words, how not to be a cynical jerk. Just when I though all hope was lost, I found this website: http://www.fulfillmentdaily.com/10-habits-to-grow-a-positive-attitude/

These are the tips I found on the website:

  1. KEEP A GRATITUDE JOURNAL
So this one is pretty straight-forward. Apparently, we need to focus intentionally on the good parts of our lives, so they told me to keep a gratitude journal. I need to write down five things that I feel grateful for every day. So here goes:
  1. I am grateful for the fact that I have a mother that cares enough to take me to seminary every morning. Even though I don't always want to go.
  2. I am grateful for having the privilege to homeschool. Not many kids get that.
  3. I am grateful for my sister taking the time to wake up in the morning and come to seminary with me, if only for the drive.
  4. I am grateful to my God for the fact that I can repent whenever I want and become cleansed of my sins.
  5. And finally, I am grateful to Dad for going to work today so we can have money to live. I know it's hard and I love the fact that he can come home soon. So I guess that's kind of two grateful things in one, huh?

  1. REFRAME YOUR CHALLENGES
Wow. So this next one is telling me that there are very few things in life that we have complete control over. We shouldn't let the outside crap turn our inside to crap. It says for us to embrace our challenges and to call them adventures instead of resisting an experience for growth. This is something I definately have trouble with.

  1. GET GOOD AT BEING REJECTED
So this one is gonna be really important for me later in life. You know how Ral says "rejected" sometimes when she gets burned (I'm not actually sure why she does that). This one is the perfect come back. It says that you shouldn't let every broken heart or failed job interview make you bitter or hurt. It also says that Murphy's Law is crap. It says that if you wait for bad things to happen, "the chances are that it will or you'll narrow in on the bad in the midst of the many good things you've missed along the way". This is bloody profound.

  1. USE POSITIVE WORDS TO DESCRIBE YOUR LIFE
Okay so this one says that words have a lot more power than you think. In other words "how you talk about your life is how your life will be". If you describe your life as problem after problem after problem, this is how you will percieve it and you will feel the effects in your body and mind. If you use better words like "simple, involved, familiar or lively" (according to the website), you will "see your life in a whole different light and find more enjoyment in the way you chose to shape your life."

  1. REPLACE HAVE WITH GET
This is a good one. It's the kind of thing that seems ridiculous at first, but if you read it it actually makes a lot of sence. Let's use Dad as an example. He is unhappy at his work. When he complains, he will say "great, and I have to go to work tomorrow". It sucks. However, if he replaces the word have with the word get, your "attitude changes from needing to fulfill obligations to being grateful for the things we are accustomed to having." It changes from "I have to go to work tomorrow" to "I get to go to work tomorrow". Sure the work is hard, but remember what we went through in Smith's Lake? At least we get to see him every day rather than every fortnite.

  1. DON'T LET YOURSELF GET DRAGGED INTO OTHER PEOPLE'S COMPLAINTS
Look at this long title. Now listen to what it's saying. If you are having a good day and someone comes up to you and starts complaining, it can be easy to join in with them. You will fall into the complaining trap. In other words (or Mum's words, as she tells me them about fifty times per day), don't complain! It leads to "lower moods, negative emotions, decreased life satisfaction and optimism and emotional and motivational deficits". And you might find that, with you complaining less, others will too.

  1. BREATH.
Apparently breathing is important. Who knew? Seriously though, your breath is directly connected to our emotions. There are special ways to breath which can help you be happier. Unfortunately they don't go into too much detail on it. I'm sure they're talking about yoga or something.

  1. NOTICE THE RIGHTEOUS IN TIMES OF TRAGEDY
This one is about how all we see on the internet is wars and natural disasters and horrors and chaos. It's all depressing. What they don't report on, however, is that people will band together to overcome trials like this. This website says to hold onto stories of modern day heroes, and selflessness in times of trial. I would like to add to this. When Granddad died, we were all very upset, but we were able to get through it because we knew that he was in a better place, continuing God's work. Focus on the happy sides of things. Band together in times of trials, and look to God. He will always provide help.

  1. HAVE SOLUTIONS WHEN POINTING OUT PROBLEMS:
Even insanely positive people like Ral will admit that everyone has trials. The difference is how we deal with these trials. When we point out problems, whether they be in people or in situations, it is best to also put effort into coming up with a solution. Instead of complaining, me, try coming up with a solution (like creating a robot to do your maths for you).

  1. MAKE SOMEONE ELSE SMILE :)
Last one. Make someone else smile. This one is a good one. Most of the time, we are only focused on ourselves and our own problems. It's good once in a while to make someone else smile. In other words, service. When we do service, we help other people and invite the spirit into our lives. Plus, thinking about someone else's happiness will help us to realize how much impact our attitude and expression has on others around us.

EXTRA:
One for Ral, but also for me and possibly others too. If you want the simplest reason, you can actually find it in the Bible. Ephesians 4:29 says

"Let no corrupt communication proceed out of your mouth, but that which is good to the use of edifying, that it may minister grace unto the hearers."

Other than that, unfortunately, it was hard to find anything condemning swearing. There is a new book around, about why it is good for you. Apparently, swearing is a natural reaction (even chimps do it. Look it up), and it is proven to help your body deal with pain. I did find some things though.

A really good website was https://www.tfpstudentaction.org/blog/8-reasons-to-stop-cussing, which says that the problem with saying swear words is that they desensitize us to swear words. Over time, peoples sense of right and wrong was numbed. "When we are desensitized, the unacceptable becomes acceptable, and the bar of decency falls lower and lower".

One thing I did find interesting though was that there were few articles on why swearing was bad, even though I specifically looked it up. It was as though someone or something was pushing a profanity agenda (get it?). I won't mention names, but I'm sure we all know exactly who it is.


https://www.tfpstudentaction.org/blog/8-reasons-to-stop-cussing
http://www.fulfillmentdaily.com/10-habits-to-grow-a-positive-attitude/
https://www.inc.com/minda-zetlin/swearing-is-surprisingly-good-for-your-brain-according-to-science.html

OTHER COOL STUFF THAT CAN HELP MAYBE:
https://daringtolivefully.com/positive-attitude
https://tinybuddha.com/blog/8-tips-to-help-create-a-positive-mental-attitude/


Comments

  1. PsylovaAugust 12, 2018 at 8:00 PM

    Opinions expressed in some of those web pages are not necessarily mine. Just a disclaimer before I get a flame war in my comments.

    ReplyDelete

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