"What bookends do you have to start and end your day?"
This was asked of a crowd of over 200 people at a conference. The motivational speaker was addressing how we enter and exit our day. Do we have a positive, reflective approach to our day? Do we view our day with gratitude? How do we answer someone when they ask "how are you?" The speaker continued to share special stories about the ways people answer that question. Some answers included... fabulous, phenomenal, super, terrific, awesome, and stunning. Other stories were funny, uplifting, and priceless.
What stood out for me during the dialogue was that even though I have heard this message before, it is one that I often minimize or not pay attention to. Building gratitude into my daily "bookends" is and should be a natural part of my day. Sandwiching my day between thoughtful and meaningful approaches would guide me to ensure I am consciously aware of the day's events.
Community leaders often build gratitude into community development planning. This "gratitude" is reflective of looking for growth and learning opportunities, building on strengths and successes, sharing stories, and being attentive to volunteers. A "go-for-it" attitude is often part of community success and many communities have benefited from community leaders with this style.
Bookends are not just meant to hold up books. Bookends can be used to withstand the pressure of the day- heavy or light. Applying a reflective, positive attitude toward the day can help build gratitude in what we have done in our communities, no matter how small something may seem.
Friday, December 11, 2009
Friday, December 4, 2009
Have Some Attitude
On one of my recent neighbourhood walks I met Happy and a man with some attitude.
What struck me about this man was his positive, fun attitude. As our dogs met each other briefly the man told me about his ten year old dog. He named him Happy because the man received the dog on his birthday which was on New Year's Day. He thought it would be the best name for the dog as it reflected a "happy day" in more ways than one. I thought this example of attitude was priceless because the man's attitude was very uplifting.
Since then, I looked up the word attitude, and depending on which dictionary is used, attitude generally means "a complex mental state involving beliefs and feelings and values and dispositions to act in certain ways."
This means that it is all up to us; it is up to us to have the attitude that we can accomplish what we want. I once had a co-worker who had a lapel pin that read "attitude". She picked it up at a workshop that focused on having a positive attitude towards anything we do. Often when we hear someone has attitude we think of a "bad" or negative attitude. But, this is not always the case.
When I hear about the stories in rural communities and how amazing activities and changes are happening I know it is because of people's attitudes. Rural communities already have a unique make-up and culture of their own, so having attitude to reflect that is not surprising. The "can-do" attitude has kept many rural communities alive and focused on the values that hold them together. With many influences affecting rural communities the attitude does shift a bit, but it still comes down to the values reflected in rural communities that hold them together.
Attitude is a good thing to have. When people have an attitude of collaboration, breaking down barriers, and focusing on the aspirations of the communities then we have communities that thrive.
I believe it is known that a postive attitude is contagious. If that is true, then the attitudes of positive community building is really spreading in rural Alberta.
What struck me about this man was his positive, fun attitude. As our dogs met each other briefly the man told me about his ten year old dog. He named him Happy because the man received the dog on his birthday which was on New Year's Day. He thought it would be the best name for the dog as it reflected a "happy day" in more ways than one. I thought this example of attitude was priceless because the man's attitude was very uplifting.
Since then, I looked up the word attitude, and depending on which dictionary is used, attitude generally means "a complex mental state involving beliefs and feelings and values and dispositions to act in certain ways."
This means that it is all up to us; it is up to us to have the attitude that we can accomplish what we want. I once had a co-worker who had a lapel pin that read "attitude". She picked it up at a workshop that focused on having a positive attitude towards anything we do. Often when we hear someone has attitude we think of a "bad" or negative attitude. But, this is not always the case.
When I hear about the stories in rural communities and how amazing activities and changes are happening I know it is because of people's attitudes. Rural communities already have a unique make-up and culture of their own, so having attitude to reflect that is not surprising. The "can-do" attitude has kept many rural communities alive and focused on the values that hold them together. With many influences affecting rural communities the attitude does shift a bit, but it still comes down to the values reflected in rural communities that hold them together.
Attitude is a good thing to have. When people have an attitude of collaboration, breaking down barriers, and focusing on the aspirations of the communities then we have communities that thrive.
I believe it is known that a postive attitude is contagious. If that is true, then the attitudes of positive community building is really spreading in rural Alberta.
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