What is one of the most important tools a leader can have? Extensive training, a handful of certificates, or an impressive resume maybe? Surprisingly, all these things pale in comparison to one tool no leader should be without, a positive mental attitude.

That’s right, having a positive mental attitude determines how you experience your life. In turn, it determines how you behave as a leader, and the influence you have on others. We have talked before about smiling and the positive to negative ratio – so this information shouldn’t come as a surprise to you. The underlying message behind all those tips we enjoy sharing with you, is to have the right mental attitude.

When you smile, you make others happy. When you concentrate on being the positive factor in your team’s day, their productivity goes up. When you seek out good things to say about others, you will find more good things about them. This is not coincidental. This is the power of being positive.

I know sometimes that can seem like an impossible task. With all the worries and stresses of today, staying positive might not be at the top of your to do list. You hear everyone speak of the down economy, you watch horrors on the news, and you may have lay-offs or shut-downs in your company. I am certainly not saying staying positive isn’t a challenge sometimes. However, as leaders . . . should we not rise to the challenge? You don’t need to be unrealistically upbeat, just try to remember that you can affect a lot more than you think by adjusting your perception.

Your attitude has the power to not only lift you up or pull you down, but affect your team in the same way. Look for the positives in situations. Remember, as the saying goes, you need “to accept the things I cannot change, and the courage to change the things I can”. You simply need the wisdom to know the difference between the two. Try hard to focus on only the things you can directly influence. Work at making a positive difference on those things. Every day seek out new ways to keep yourself positive and new positive people to be around.
Remember, “Every day may not be good, but there is something good in every day.” What good will you find today?

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