An Attitude Reality-Check

Is the glass half-full? Is it half-empty? Or is there just a half-glass of water? The first, of course, is what we know to be the optimistic viewpoint. The second is supposed to be the pessimistic viewpoint and the third is simply the realistic viewpoint. It’s the realistic viewpoint that I wish to address.

The realistic viewpoint comes before all others. Realism, in my estimation, is simply the absence of judgment. Realism is rooted in facts – not the spinning of those facts. Without judgment attached, you can look at the results of your career and simply say, “These are my results.” It doesn’t matter whether or not the results are viewed as good or bad, whether a job is good or bad or whether a boss is good or bad. What is, is.

Your career is like a shopping mall. I didn’t say your career was in a shopping mall although for some that would be true. But regardless of which door you used to enter the mall, invariably you will find a mall directory board close to an entryway. The only thing you need to find on that mall directory is the “You Are Here” arrow. It matters little how you came to that board. The truth is you made a series of decisions outside of the mall that brought you to be standing in front of the sign at that very point. You can’t blame the government, the economy or your boss for where you stand in the mall. You made all of the decisions outside of the mall and find yourself exactly where you are – and you did it all by yourself. You just have to accept where you are in order to get to where you are going.

The events of life should never be looked at with judgment: “That was a stupid thing to do,” “I’m glad I got in on that early,” How in the world did I end up with this dumb job?” Viewing your results through judgment have the overwhelming tendency to gloss over the decisions of how you got to where you are.

Any long-held opinion or belief that you need to be successful before you can have happiness will delay any happiness until success is achieved. And since success is not clearly defined in that statement, how in the world would you know you have been a success? Does success smack you in the face when you achieve it? Of course not.

Every job you have ever held in your life, every experience, every decision and every event of your whole life has put you exactly where you are today. And every single event of your life provided you with a choice to make. You made your choice. Then this is your result.

It's your past that determines your present. Your past shapes your personality, your character, your attitudes toward work, goal setting, achievement, how you serve others, your values, your ethics and how you view every single event of your life.

Therefore, your present circumstances and the things you do, say and learn today will open the future for you tomorrow. In other words, whatever you learn and experience today will provide you with a new perspective tomorrow. A new perspective brings a new attitude. People don't just change their minds; they make new decisions based on new information.

So if something in your life needs attention, I encourage you to stop making that one thing be either good or bad and simply accept that this is a far as you’ve gotten in your entire life with the information you have. You obviously don’t have a plan for your so-called success or the resources to get it or you would have had it by now. Do you think you’re capable of more? How about having a better job, better boss or a better salary? Then learn as much as you can about what you need to know and then make an informed decision and not a baseless judgment. If you keep doing what you've always done you're going to keep getting what you've always gotten.

Attitude Adjustment: You are here. You did this to yourself. It’s not good or bad. It just is what it is. Where you go from here is largely determined by your willingness to take off the rose-colored glasses and accept that you did this. The more you learn, the more you read, the more you accept your results to be what they are - your results – the quicker you will find that your results begin to change. The more you change, the more your results change. Change your perspective and you will change your attitude. A changed attitude changes results.