Attitude is Everything...

I have heard it said many times by many people (most of whom are much smarter and much more intelligent than I am) that it's not what happens to us in life that matters but our attitude towards it - the way we psychologically, emotionally and intellectually frame and interpret those things that have already occurred in our lives or are currently happening around us and to us. It is the meaning that we choose to attach to those events and the significance that we choose to attribute to those events. The extension of this point is that although we obviously cannot control many (if not all) of the things that are happening around us and end up "colliding" with us, what we do have power over and the capacity to control is the reaction to those events.

We have the power, the choice and the capacity to decide how those events will impact and influence us - the power, the capacity and the profound choice whether to be angry or not, whether to feel like a victim or not, whether to feel defeated and diminished or not, whether to feel overwhelmed, upset, frustrated or not.

Of course, this is easier said than done. And the problem is that many of our habitual responses to events outside of us have become so reflexive and automatic that we begin to feel that we are powerless to do anything and are at their mercy. The first step to overcoming this is to realize that we do, in fact, have the control. We have the choice of how we want to respond and thus the capacity to determine the shape and form of our emotions, thoughts and feelings. And it is the ability (which can be exercised and strengthened over time with practice) to reframe those external life events into shapes and forms that do not disrupt the serenity and stability of our lives (emotionally, physically and spiritually) that can differentiate a life of happiness and contentment from one of sorrow, misery, regret and disappointment.

The power of attitude is clearly described in these words of Charles Swindoll:

The longer I live, the more I realize the impact of attitude on life. Attitude to me, is more important than facts. It is more important than past, than education, than money, than circumstances, than failures, than successes, than what other people think or say or do. It is more important than appearance, gifted ability, or skill. It will make or break a company, a church, a home.

The remarkable thing is we have a choice everyday regarding the attitude we will embrace from that day. We cannot change our past, we cannot change the fact that people will act in certain way. We cannot change the inevitable. The only thing that we can do is play on the one string that we have and this string is, Attitude. I am convinced that life is ten percent what happens to me and ninety percent how I react to it. And so it is with you....We are in charge of our Attitudes.