Why Your Attitude Is Everything

Attitude is your ability to appreciate even your enemies when they do better than you. Winston Churchill once remarked, “Attitude is a little thing that makes a big difference.” Some of the leaders including Hitler and Mussolini destroyed the world with their negative attitude. The difference between Obama and Osama is the only attitude that made the former a hero while the latter a villain.

Attitude matters more in the current volatile, uncertain, complex, and ambiguous world. It is essential in campus and corporate as the negative attitude often kills productivity and performance in the workplace and the negative attitude shells out unhealthy students from the educational institutions. Therefore, it is essential to emphasize the importance of inculcating a positive attitude in individuals.

There is often a thin line that separates positive and negative attitudes. When individuals and leaders cross that thin line, they can become successful leaders. When you look at Obama and Osama, they are great leaders but Obama has a positive attitude while Osama had a negative attitude. Undoubtedly, both are intelligent but the former with a positive attitude while the latter with a negative attitude. When you look at Winston Churchill and Adolph Hitler, both were intelligent leaders and great orators. The former was with a positive attitude while the latter was with a negative attitude. It is obvious from these examples the importance of attitude over intelligence and eloquence. Additionally, attitude triumphs over experience. When you work in the corporate world, attitude plays a crucial role over experience.

Tools and Techniques to Improve Your Attitude

“The greatest discovery of any generation is that a human being can alter his life by altering his attitude.” —William James

Here are some tips to improve your attitude. Be positive. Visualize success. Set your goals as they remove negative thoughts from your mind and replace them with positive thoughts. Additionally, you are engaged constructively to lead your life with purpose and meaning. Surround with positive and healthy people. Read good books. Learn, unlearn, and relearn. Learn from your failures. Pursue your passions and hobbies to engage your mind creatively. Acquire healthy habits. Do meditation, or yoga, or hit the gym regularly. Eat the right and healthy food. Stop complaining, criticizing, and condemning others. Be a giver, not a taker. Come out of your comfort zone and stretch yourself. Become a volunteer. Join nonprofits to serve others. Work for a cause, not for applause. Express your gratitude every day. Every day morning, when I wake up from my bed, I thank God for gifting one more day to share my knowledge freely with the world. I pray to God to make my day exciting and beautiful with great news. Every day night, I express my gratitude to God before I go to bed for making the day great.

Improve Your Attitude with 5E’s 

“Optimism is the faith that leads to achievement. Nothing can be done without hope and confidence.” —Helen Keller

Attitude is the foundation of your success. It is essential to excel as a leader. The lion is the king of the jungle not because of its strength but because of its attitude. Eagle is the leader among all birds not because of its size but because of its attitude. You can improve your attitude with 5E’s—Education, Experience, Environment, Empathy, and Ethics. Emphasize the right education, experience, healthy environment, empathy, and ethics.  Surround with healthy friends and inspiring books. I was born into a toxic family and grew up in a toxic environment. I evolved as a healthy individual after I joined the Indian Air Force when I was 18 years old. The military environment made me disciplined and dedicated. It inculcated in me a positive attitude and built leadership skills and abilities. It is obvious that attitude can be improved with the right environment. According to the Hindu epic, Valmiki was a hunter who improved his attitude and excelled as a sage and authored ‘The Ramayana.’ So, when it was possible for him to reinvent with the right attitude, others can reinvent and transform as a healthy person. No matter where you come from you can improve your attitude by emphasizing 5E’s

Improve Your Attitude to Soar Like a Leader

“It’s your place in the world; it’s your life. Go on and do all you can with it, and make it the life you want to live.” —Mae Jemison

When I worked as a professor in educational institutions, I emphasized more on improving the attitude of the students than on sharing my knowledge because I believe that students are smart and brilliant to acquire knowledge from the internet and books. What they need is a passionate and inspiring educator who can change their mindset by improving their attitude, behavior, and personality. To summarize, your attitude determines your altitude of success. To conclude, improve your attitude to excel as a leader and soar like an eagle.

“The people who are crazy enough to think they can change the world, are the ones who do.” —Steve Jobs

Written by Professor M.S. Rao, PhD.