Practice being positive.

I am a Toastmaster.  I have been a member of Toastmasters since 2005 and plan to be as long as I can speak.  I earned my Distinguished Toastmasters credentials, (DTM) in 2010.  This is the highest educational award a Toastmaster can earn. Even with this accomplishment I am active in two clubs and attend meetings regularly.  I have helped Charter four clubs and I am working with others to do the same. I have held every club officer position one can have.  I have mentored dozens of fellow Toastmasters.  When I travel on business and have the time I will visit a club meeting in a city I am in.  Why do I do this?  To keep my speaking skills crisp and to challenge my ability to listen, learn and think.

Like public speaking, staying positive takes practice.  Like most activities in life, you only get better at something if you practice doing it.   My investment today in being positive, no matter what happens to me or what I make happen, leads me to a being positive tomorrow, and the next day and the next.
Why is it important to be positive?   People like being around other positive people.  Successful people like being around those who are positive, reinforcing, and say YES!  Saying YES!  To all that is good, is an opportunity to attract and connect with others who will feed off your positive attitude and will reward it by being positive themselves.  It’s self-fulfilling.

Starting your day with a positive saying, or studying something positive or reading an uplifting, positive message, will start you mind off in a positive way.  I recite the Optimist Creed, daily.  It makes me feel good and reminds me to be positive. 

On my way to the office when I am in town, I listen to positive podcasts or cd’s that reinforce this attitude.  When a customer or inquiry calls my office and if I am unavailable they get this positive message:

Thank you for calling the mobile phone of Bradley Beck,

Director of Yes! at Design Master color tool, Inc.
Yes! I am away from my phone.
Yes! I will get back with you if you leave a message
Yes! I appreciate your business
Have a colorful day!

Corny, no actually a little squashy and green-beany, (My kids can’t stand when I say that) I actually get people commenting on my positive voice mail.  Has that ever happened to you?  The point is, being happy and positive is a choice.  Yes! the world has negativity in it, yet I choose not to dwell in the domain of divisiveness and despair. I only have so much time and I choose to make my time, positive.

Being positive is the best defense in a world which thrives on the negative.   Being positive is best spelled out with the following words and their meaning;

·         Possible - capable of

·         Optimistic - a favorable view of events or conditions

·         Sure - convinced

·         Illuminative – to light up

·         Thankful - expressing gratitude

·         Imaginative - create in the mind

·         Vision - sense of sight

·         Enthusiasm - intense favor

The first letters of each word spell out the word, “positive.” I look for opportunities to be positive and to act positive.  When one is persistent and determined to practice their positive attitude, it becomes a habit which will open doors and guide you on the path to success and happiness.

I have studied being positive for years and have been greatly influenced by my parents positive outlook on life.  Then, as I attended school I had positive teaches and friends. And then as I started my professional career in selling, I studied the likes of Jeffrey Gitomer and his “Little Gold Book of YES! Attitude.”  Then, I read classic titles on having a positive attitude like, “Think and Grow Rich” by Napoleon Hill, “How to Win Friends and Influence People” by Dale Carnegie and “Life is Tremendous” by Charlie Tremendous Jones.  I listen to “The Strangest Secret” by Earl Nightingale a least once a quarter.  I seek out positive lectures, seminars, you tube videos and people.

As in Toastmasters, when one presents a speech their words are evaluated.  As we live our lives, we are being evaluated for how we conduct ourselves.   Having a positive attitude has afforded me more in opportunities than the opposite ever would have.

In a phrase, “practice being positive.”