Attitude is, as the old adage goes, altitude–and so much more. As Jim Rohn put forth in his seminars, there are numerous pathologies of the mind that can wreck all our chances to do well. Below are a few of the most evident ones. This is my own personal pledge against them, inspired by the above’s ideas on the matter and catalyzed by my own dissatisfaction with my attitude. I hope it provides some benefit to you too.
Diseases of Attitude
Poor attitudes, like poor thinking, are like weeds in a garden. They are part of life, for negative, like positive, is normal–just as darkness and light exist as two sides of the same coin. I must therefore learn to handle the negative rather than ignore it. I will not live in it, I will not dwell in it, but I WILL HANDLE IT. To face the negative and overcome it is part of he great war between GOOD and EVIL. Evil is no match for good, but good must be ACTIVE–weeds grow in the vacuum of neglect. And by being active one can take the weeds as far back as he or she wishes.
Thus, I will be active on a daily basis, dealing with the negative and cultivating the positive, and to do so I will make this pledge as often as I must . . .
Disease #1 – INDIFFERENCE
Indifference is the wide road to decay. Thus, TODAY I WILL NOT BE INDIFFERENT. I will approach life with FEELING, I will not be lukewarm, for to be mild is to drift in life–and there is no drifting to success. I will take action today and go with everything I’ve got, with passion. I will not bemoan whatever circumstances I may be in. I will focus on where I want to be.
Wherever I am, I will POUR IT ON. So today I will put everything I got into everything I do. I will not be afraid to feel strongly. I will be hot, not mild–a flame, not a wisp of smoke.
Today I will reject indifference.
Disease #2 – INDECISION
Indecisiveness is a disease that takes root and chains one to the fence of inaction. Today I will not be indecisive, but DECISIVE. I will not be afraid of risk, of failure, of judgment, or any other conceivable consequence of taking action. Today I will not shy away from decisions, but live a life of adventure, of many decisions, and learn from the mistakes. I will not run from choices, but make choices, and today I will make at least three decisions I have been putting off. I will train myself to notice when I am sitting on the fence and right then and there get off.
Today I will never seek permission to take action, to do something meaningful, and never hesitate to act, even in the face of inopportunity–opportunity is always there, hidden when it is not seen.
I will be DECISIVE.
Disease #3 – DOUBT
Doubt is a plague, especially self-doubt. A chronic self-doubter will destroy his future. Thus, today I will not be a doubter, but a BELIEVER. There are many things to believe in, and one of the most important is MYSELF, for understanding self-worth is the beginning or progress. I will therefore believe in myself and be my greatest companion in all that I set out to do. And DO I will, for I learn by doing, and by doing, I BECOME.
Today, I will believe in myself.
Disease #4 – WORRY
Worry is a devastating ailment that causes a myriad of problems. It can drop you to your knees–and it has to me before. But no more! Today I will give up worry and cultivate a free state of mind. I will live a life not without challenge, not without difficulty, but absolutely without worry. In place of the void of worry I will fill my mind with rightness and ideas, confidence and hope, action and belief. I will meditate on this daily.
Today I will not worry.
Disease #5 – OVER-CAUTION
Some people will never have much. The one who is too cautious will amount to little, for caution is the timid approach to life, fearing the ‘what ifs’–this is the language of the poor. Today I will not be too cautious, and instead I will be certain and even a little reckless. ALL LIFE IS RISKY, but the bull for not taking risks if far greater than that of not taking them. Therefore I will take risks, I will give this life a go! I will not tip-toe through life, I will not ask for safety and security, I will ask for ADVENTURE! For it is not how long I live that matters, but HOW I LIVE.
Today I will not be timid. Today I will take risks.
Disease #6 – PESSIMISM
Pessimism is deadly, for in seeking out the negative–what is wrong, why it can’t be done, faults, failure–is to unwittingly seek out one’s own demise, a self-fulfilling prophecy, a pneumonia of the soul. Today I will not be pessimistic. I will be OPTIMISTIC. I will focus on what is right, on opportunities, on what can be done and WHY IT CAN BE DONE! My life is most affected by how I THINK things are, not how they are, therefore I will avoid poor thinking habits and cultivate excellent thinking habits, for the mind is a factory–that which you feed it is that which is creates.
Today I will stand guard at the door of my mind. I will feed it with right ingredients and keep out the wrong ones. I will actively recognize these ingredients, be they actions I take, the actions of others, or externalities of the day–I will see them for what they are, and if they are negative, I will deny them any place in my precious faculty of thought.
I must be wise with what I think about, because everything starts with a thought, for better or for worse. As I think, so I become!
So today I will be an optimist, I will cultivate better habits of thought, and adopt a growth mindset with a focus on what I want to become–and the positive steps to get there.
Today, I will be optimistic.
Disease #7 – COMPLAINING
Complaining about what is will consume one’s future. It is to focus on the negative, and it is to give it more power than it deserves. In complaining you waste time and risk contracting an economic cancer of the bone–a nasty cycle that will have you wither in regrets. Those who complain NEVER make it to their promised land!
Thus, today I will not complain, but take things as they are and focus on ACTION to always improve upon them. I will focus on what I want–on my goals, my dreams, and the steps I must take to achieve them. And, my dear self, I will be grateful. I will smile and be thankful for what I already have, never forget my blessings, and focus with such a positive mindset on what comes next. I will live today with GRATITUDE and PASSION.
Today, I will be grateful.
Overall, though we cannot choose what happens to us oftentimes, and though the world is a constant storm of change, the one thing we always have control over is how we perceive it. In the end what happens happens to us all. It’s how we react, and what we do about it, that separates darkness from life, evil from good, failure from success.
Take sword to the foes of your mind. Cure the diseases of attitude with their opposites. Cultivate the garden of your thoughts. It takes no effort to grow weeds. Yet it takes only a little more to grow flowers.