People’s attitudes are formed as a result of various factors such as
personality, the environment one grows up in, the influence of
significant others and our own self-image. A person’s thoughts and
beliefs and the choices they make also contribute to their attitude to
life. PHOTO | FILE
This
was part of the long process that would see her get the crucial tender
documents. When she got to the counter, the angry-looking cashier rudely
told her not to waste everyone’s time since she did not have her
business registration documents.
He then ignored her and called for the next customer.
As she walked dejectedly to the reception, one of the other customers, Maurice, offered to help.
When
they re-joined the queue, Rael said, “I don’t like that man’s attitude!
He doesn’t seem to realise that we are the reason he’s got a job! I
wonder if some people just wake up in the morning with the intention of
making everyone else miserable!”
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Maurice
smiled and replied, “Some people unfortunately have a tendency to have a
negative attitude to everyone and everything they do.
Did you know that attitudes relate to how we think or reason about things, how we feel and how we act in different situations?
Often,
we first learn how to respond to situations from our parents and
significant others, then our friends and also from the media.
Our
parents consciously or unconsciously pass on to us their attitudes to
life. We acquire stereotypes almost without knowing it.”
Rael
replied, “I read somewhere that people form negative attitudes from
experiences they have had in the past. I wonder what bad experiences
this man must have had to make him so angry!” Maurice nodded and said,
“The
people we interact with closely influence how we behave. Another
important factor is exposure. Maybe he has never been exposed to good
customer care!”
John Maxwell, in his book, The Difference Maker,
notes that people’s attitudes are formed as a result of various factors
such as personality, the environment one grows up in, the influence of
significant others and our own self-image.
A person’s thoughts and beliefs and the choices they make also contribute to their attitude to life.
Although
attitude cannot replace competence and experience, it can aid in having
a positive approach to life in general. There is an anecdote about two
people in a prison at night. One looked down and saw the mud and was
instantly depressed.
The other
looked up and saw the starry skies and was instantly uplifted. Attitude
determines how we see things in our lives. The situations may be the
same but our attitudes set us apart. Whenever we act, we are actualising
our thoughts and beliefs.
TWO SONS
A story is told of a father and his two sons— a pessimist and an optimist.
The
father decided to see if he could change their perspective of things by
giving them different gifts over Christmas. He bought the pessimist a
roomful of toys. The pessimist immediately saw something suspicious in
the roomful of gifts.
The father then
took the optimist son to a room full of horse manure. Immediately, the
optimistic son jumped into the pile of manure and kept digging in
happily. His puzzled father asked him what he was doing.
Without
stopping, the boy replied, “I’m digging in. With such a huge pile of
horse manure, there’s got to be a pony in here somewhere!”
According
to Maxwell, it is important to take responsibility for your attitude.
Secondly, keep evaluating your attitude objectively and make changes
where necessary. Cultivate the need to change and keep reviewing your
attitude. Finally remember to keep track of your thoughts.
Watch your thoughts, they become your actions.
Watch your actions, they become your habits. Watch your habits; they become your character;
Watch your character, it becomes your destiny!
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