
Geraldine, a fictional character of Flip Wilson, humorously quipped, “You get
what you see”. Shakespeare voiced a more literary opinion when he said, “The
perception of good or bad does not exist; only thinking makes it to be so”. It
is Buddha who said it as it should be, “The life one leads, is a creation of
oneself mind”.
Can you think of a better way to describe life that how Buddha, fictional
Geraldine and Shakespeare did. Your life is like your own creation; it turns
out just like you mould it.
So what does that mean to us?
The glass half empty mindset,
For those who do not view life through objective lenses, they are subjective
beings. If you filter what you see in life then you are a biased individual.
That is personality and everyone carries his or her own.
Pessimists will see differently to their optimistic colleagues. In the same
vein, introverts see things in differently to extroverts. And life seems to
reward us in equal measure of what we are or what we belief in. For instance,
if you are anxious everything around you can seem fast paced and out of
control; if you are inclined towards depression, your life will have a greyness
about it.
Whatever perspective you have in life will characterise
everything you do in your life. If you see your work as a chore, it will be so
as long as you think this way. Your perception will also affect those around
you and if they are not independent thinkers, you run the risk of being
surrounded by negativity.
The glass half full mindset.
A massive body of research agrees that there is a lot of power in seeing the glass half full. Bright, optimistic people are not only generally happier but also healthier and wealthier according to research. All three – happiness, health and wealth - are what make a complete life.
In a study by a reputable psychologist, Susan Segerstorm,
law students who held onto their optimism ten years after graduation took home
an annual salary of $32,667 more than their colleagues who had lost their hope.
Keeping a positive mindset will drive you towards actions
that will deliver positive results. It does not matter if you hit a bad patch;
keeping optimism with you will deliver good results.
In fact, thinking of bad stuff will actually drive you into
poor results. Instead of doing things that will minimize your failure, you will
instead do nothing or do stupid things that will amplify your failures.
Happy and optimistic people will attract friends who are
similar in character and their positivity will be infectious so a virtuous
circle of friends, colleagues and contacts will be created. The opposite is
true for natural pessimists.
How to change into a glass half full person
So, how do you stay optimistic in the face of failures and
distractions?
Create opportunities out of your problems – instead of seeing a work issue as a
chore, see it as a challenge with which you can impress your colleagues.
Going
networking? Don’t dread walking into a room full of strangers, see it as an
opportunity to meet new people, walk tall, smile and ask questions. And
remember, most of the people you are meeting are probably nervous as well as
you.
Package yourself as an optimist and life will smile back to you = like poles
attract.
Set out to do something out of
your comfort zone and find your confidence and self esteem grow as a result.
In summary.
The life of someone with a positive mindset is likely to be more
fulfilling than that of someone who is constantly negative about everything.
That said, even the most positive people have setbacks and personal issues but
they seem to be able to bounce back from adversity whereas the negative person
accepts it as par for the course of their life. Try to avoid the negative route
– it’s easier than you think!
Mayfair, we care.