How to Build a Positive Attitude and KEEP the Darn Thing!!!!

(This is often utilized by planners as a Breakout after the audience hears the Stoke the Fire Within keynote!) This longtime popular topic is build with realistic tools that audience members can put to use right away. As a Positive News Reporter in TV News, Adams interviewed over three thousand incredibly positive people for his TV features, and shares their valuable and often hilarious insights in this presentation. Charlie Adams Motivational Programs Here is more information on Staying Positive! Charlie Adams, motivational speaker and host of Travels with Charlie Adams with Edgerton’s Group Travel As a TV News and Sports Anchor, I covered former Notre Dame Football Coach Lou Holtz for many years. Holtz is one of the most requested motivational speakers in America. He says there are four things we need to be fulfilled in life. These things have a big impact on our attitude. Take a moment to fill in the blank area below. Something positive to do (focusing on how your job impacts others, volunteering in your community) Something to look forward to Someone to love Something to believe in There is the famous Chuck Swindoll Quote. For many of us, we have read it. However, I am surprised how many people have not read it. The longer I live, the more I realize the impact of attitude on life. Attitude, to me, is more important than education, than money, than circumstances, than failures, than success, than what other people think or say or do. It is more important than appearance, giftedness, or skill. It will make or break a company…a church…a home. The remarkable thing is we have a choice (I like to say we can be somewhat of a Tigger or somewhat of an Eye Ore) everyday regarding the attitude we embrace for that day. We cannot change our past…we cannot change the fact that people act in a certain way. We cannot change the inevitable. The only thing we can do is play on the one string we have, and that is our attitude. I am convinced that life is 10 percent what happens to me and 90 percent how I react to it. And so it is with you…we are in charge of our ATTITUDES.” Chuck Swindoll There is a business man from Ohio, Phil Linden, who had this to say: “An employee needs all three legs of the success triangle (attitude, skills and systems) to make the maximum contribution. However, business typically spends a fortune both recruiting and late training employees based on skills and systems. (I agree. In 23 years of TV News I cannot ever remember a bit of Attitude Training. In my Customer Service program I show the video of McCormick Electrical and how they show the Attitude DVD every Monday morning. It helps their people. Go to www.meservicesinc.com to view the video clip) “If you list the 10 most important characteristics you want in an employee – 8 of the 10 relate to attitude. The person with the right attitude will learn skills and systems. Someone with a poor attitude is far less likely to succeed regardless of their skills or the system.” PHIL LINDEN, LINDENS PROPANE, LAGRANGE, OH Take this time to write down all the things that you have to be thankful for in life: HOW TO BUILD A POSITIVE ATTITUDE (I often share the story of how the young fans at Notre Dame Stadium JUST LIGHT UP when a player throws them a dirty sweatband after a game. The look on their faces is priceless. They have a look of, “I’ve got it! I’ve got the sweatband!” That’s how we should approach each day regardless of how full our platter is with headaches. Hey, we’ve got this day!!) I am not sharing Attitude revelations here when I say ATTITUDE of GRATITUDE but Gary the Bus Driver and many of the most positive, optimistic people I know simply live by that principle. They don’t read Attitude books or know all the quotes. They simply keep it to Attitude of Gratitude. I host Group Travel trips for Edgerton’s Travel of northern Indiana and southwestern Michigan. Gary is one of the motor coach drivers. He is always upbeat. When I asked him how he stays that way, he simply said he maintains an Attitude of Gratitude. In Building a Positive Attitude, I have certain images I sometime bring up in my head to remind myself how fortunate I am. I have an image of WWII prisoners jammed in bunk beds. I saw that picture on a documentary one night. I tell myself how fortunate I am that I was not born at that time in that place. I think of someone like Diana Reeve, who lost her husband Christopher to his horse riding accident. Right afterwards, she got lung cancer and died. She didn’t smoke. I tell myself, “Who the hell am I NOT to be positive when she has been dealt her cards.” In workshops I share Video Clips of people I have done stories on: Brett Eastburn (CHECK OUT BRETTEASTBURN.COM and go to the PRESS area and read the remarkable series the South Bend Tribune did on his ability to keep a positive attitude), born with no arms or legs, but who does not consider himself handicapped. Also, Ril Miss, the blind woman who decided she could find work at a dark room at a hospital! Those people impacted me deeply. I came back to the newsroom going, “Man, I need to quit bellyaching about my so called problems.” BUILDING A POSITIVE ATTITUDE QUIET TIME: This helps me a lot. Others, too. My Dad did it and he was always positive. I start the day with two cups of coffee and quiet reflection. I can control that time. The rest of the day will have enough curve balls. I generally have reflection and prayer for the first cup of coffee, and then read the Bible for the second cup. People say, “With six kids, how do you have time to get up early and have Quiet Time?” I reply, “How can I afford not to!?” It BUILDS the foundation for the day. Write down how long you are going to commit for Quiet Time. Hey, for some folks it could be laying in the bed for 3 minutes. _______________________ NEWSPAPERS ! I have mastered the art of looking for inspirational stories and then reading the quotes of the people. It helps for that day, for sure. THERE ARE SO MANY INSPIRATIONAL PEOPLE IN ALL OF OUR COMMUNITIES! I look for quotes from people on how they have overcome something, and that really helps me for that day. SHOWER TIME/MAKE UP TIME: Have certain things you think of during the shower or make up time. Think of a certain time you were a smash hit at something. Build yourself up. Don’t just have your mind darting all over the place thinking off all you have to do that day. DRIVE TIME: I listen to motivational CD’s a lot in the car. I just finished Dave Sheffield’s CD (theshef.com) which has an awesome story on unloading baggage from our “backpacks” to have the best positive attitude. I have one of Tony Rubleski’s inspirational CD’s in there now. I will listen to Joyce Meyer on the radio. She comes at me straightforward! A fellow co worker said going into work he reflected on who he would uplift that day. Upon getting out of the car he walked slowly to the building, took a deep breath, said a prayer, and did really well at handling “the curve balls.” McCormick Electrical provides their employees with motivational CD’s to listen to as they go from appt. to appt. FOUNDATION QUOTES (We often read or hear motivational quotes and go, “I’d like to remember that” but the business of our lives squashes that nice intention. I have focused on memorizing three that I bring up at different parts of the day) • Sandra Herron: “We can celebrate life or suffer it, and it has absolutely NOTHING to do with our circumstances.” Powerful stuff. • Zig Ziglar: “A positive attitude doesn’t mean you can do anything (a five foot one 47 year old man is NOT going to be center for the Portland Trail Blazers, no matter how positive he is), but a positive attitude means you can do everything better than if you have a negative attitude.” • The Optimist Creed: “I will think about only the best, work towards only the best, and expect only the best.” YOUR HEAD “We were not born winners, not born losers. We were born CHOOSERS” We can choose our thoughts! Here are some ways to keep positive thoughts: Old Indian / Young Warrior: The older Indian talked about the two dogs fighting within him – the grey, angry dog and the white, positive dog. When asked which one won, he said, “The one I feed the most.” We have to be careful which thoughts we feed. When I fill my head with a stupid negative thought, I go, “Uh oh, just fed that grey, negative dog!” Stop/Cancel!! Just like a movie director, when you start thinking negative thoughts, mentally say, “Stop! Cancel!” Say it out loud if you want to embarrass yourself so much to make sure you cut down on negative thoughts! Stop and replace the negative thought with a positive thought, and then go on. Just the Facts, Ma’am (from Dragnet, when you conjure up some ridiculous scenario like yours truly is very good at . . . .) If you find yourself thinking of something like “such and such is out to get me in the office” stop and tell yourself, “Just the facts, Ma’am.” Unless you know every fact of everything supposedly going on, don’t allow yourself to concoct scenarios in your head. What to do when you get wound up When a negative thing happens and threatens to take our Positive Attitude, TRY to respond instead of reacting, like I used to do (!). When my wife and I “are having a disagreement” I keep saying in my head Proverbs 15:1: “A gentle answer turns away wrath, but a harsh word stirs up anger.” I say, “Proverbs 15:1, Proverbs 15:1, Proverbs 15:1” a thousand zillion times. It helps! Joe Alloway, local Outreach Coordinator for UAF, counts backwards by seven from one hundred whenever he gets wound up. It works for him! I have tried it and is effective! SPIN I try to put good, positive INITIAL SPIN on things. It really helps. I share the story of the WWII family who had their home bombed by the Germans. They came out of the bomb shelter. The Dad used initial positive spin: “I always wanted a house with a basement. Now I can build one!” I did the same thing when a tornado crushed the roof of our home five years ago. “Nancy, we needed a new roof and wondered how we were going to handle that big expense.” She looked at me “rather oddly” but it helped! TAKE A CHILL PILL I share the story of the anchor lady I worked with, Debra Daniel, who just smiled as the weather man showed her with little make up when she got to work five minutes before air time. Rather than freaking out, she took a chill pill and rode it on out. I shared the story of my zipper breaking shortly before a big talk. I was laughing to myself as I tried to fix it in a room full of people. I went out in the hall and a waitress went down 8 stories to her car to get me safety pins. We fixed it together. The whole thing was sitcom material. Years ago I would have flipped out and gone zonkers. Now, I take chill pills. GREETINGS For years, I always answered, “Alright,” when asked “How are you.” Hey, have a vibrant answer. It helps keep the positive attitude. When I delivered my workshop in Durango, Colorado, there was the great suggestion to have one depending on the day. These things truly interject positive energy into encounters! Monday: “I’m marvelous.” Tuesday: “I’m terrific.” Wednesday: “I’m wonderful.” Thursday: “I’m tremendous!” Friday” “I’m fantastic!” Saturday: “I am sensational!” Sunday: “I am super!” Here are some other suggestions for what to say when someone asks, “How are you?”: “Better than Good” “If I was better, I’d be twins!” “Blessed!” “Better than most. Not as good as some.” Write down what you are going to say when someone asks how you are. ___________________________________________________________ TODAY In the last year or so I have finally grasped the principle of appreciating the heck out of TODAY and not getting wrapped up in the two eternities on either side. Yesterday and Tomorrow. Basic stuff, but when you get it, it helps. PHYSICAL FITNESS I did a program for Forest River RV this year. A plant manager, 60 year old Floyd Miller, is running marathons on all seven continents. He runs everyday after work. He said it, “Washes away the stress inside…I think of things….clears my head!” I don’t have time to go to the gym. I use free weights around the house, walk briskly on the hills around our home, and run some 10 K’s in the summer. I pale in comparison to many exercisers, but I do something everyday to be active. It helps. How fit you are, I believe, has a lot to do with how positive you are. Write down ONE THING you are going to commit to doing to make yourself fitter: _______________________________________________________________ HOW TO KEEP A POSITIVE ATTITUDE AS AN ORGANIZATION “THE DREADED ‘THEY SHOULD’ SITUATION”: As a group, have a fun “ceremony” to recite “We pledge to cut out….alright, cut back…on saying “They should do this” or “They should do that.” Instead, we will be solutionaholics!” (You can add to it…) I share the story of the HR lady who has a thick black line at her office door. If you come in bellyaching, you can’t cross the line until you have reasonable solutions to go with the gripe. She has black towels for them “to cry into” as they moan and groan. They laugh about that, and things go better. She has a big jar of chocolates for solutions. Positive Quotes on the WALL: Where appropriate, have HUGE POSITIVE QUOTES on your office walls…..where people can’t avoid them. Not just those framed pictures with the big picture and little quote that you have to walk over to read. BIG QUOTES ON THE WALL. NCSA in Chicago has them. Their offices surge with energy. Their people walk around talking on the phone doing exercises. ENCOURAGE This is how you do your part to help others KEEP their positive attitude. Encourage those around you! Mary Kay: “Pretend everyone has a sign around them that reads “Make me feel Important” Tool: Have a Signature Quote at the end of your email messages, by your contact information. To keep positive attitudes, we have to go on the offensive as people. We have to help each other. Those positive motivation quotes at the end of emails help people more than you think! Tim in Fairbanks has “Teamwork makes the Dream work.” I hope this more in depth description of this speaking presentation helps you. Charlie Adams Motivational Programs include: “Stoke the Fire Within” This presentation has an inner theme that can be tailored to the purpose of your event, whether it is Customer Service, Leadership, Attitude or Team. Contact Information: charlie@StokeTheFireWithin.com (574) 807 2279 CELL