A Positive Attitude Is Attracting. And Attractive.

A Positive Mental Attitude Means "Thinking in the Beauty Way" 

One of the originators of the self-help movement was Napoleon Hill, who wrote: "Your mental attitude is something you can control outright, and you must use self-discipline until you create a positive mental attitude ── your mental attitude attracts to you everything that makes you what you are." 

In a similar vein, Norman Vincent Peale used to preach, "A positive thinker does not refuse to recognize the negative; he refuses to dwell on it. Positive thinking is a form of thought which habitually looks for the best results from the worst conditions."

And management guru John Maxwell said, "Your attitude is the eye of your soul. If your attitude is negative then you see things negatively. If it is positive then you see things positively."

Your attitude and the beliefs associated with your attitude will either empower you or impede you. The choice will always be yours.

In many ways, the thoughts you dwell upon in your mind, and the attitudes that propel you through every day, are more important than the food and vitamins you put into your body. An attitude of I'm a failure or I'll never be happy again, or thoughts like I hate this person or I am going to get revenge on that person, do more harm to you than junk food. A constant diet of such killer thoughts will destroy you long before cholesterol hardens your arteries.

The Navajo people in North America have an expression for this. They believe that the thoughts that dominate their minds will shape their lives, so they want to fill their minds with only that which is enriching, harmonious and enlightening. They call this thinking in the Beauty Way. It's a process designed to rid themselves of all thoughts that are destructive and replacing those with ones that are good, peaceful and heartening.

This makes a lot of sense. If you fill your mind with new learning you will never stagnate. Have an attitude of courage and you will be able to face life's varied situations with greater confidence and strength. Likewise, if you load your mind with optimistic attitudes you will always have hope.

But only you can determine how to fill your mind and what attitudes you will allow to dominate your personality. And remember, your attitude is an expression of what you believe, the values you carry within and the expectations you have for the future. 

This article is excerpted from the best-selling book Project You: Living A Determined Life, available in paperback and Kindle formats at Amazon. 

The Secrets of Self Empowerment

Taking Responsibility for your Personal and Professional Growth 

The foundation of personal responsibility is self empowerment. 

Self empowerment gives you total and complete control for the accountability of your life and the circumstances you encounter. With the right attitude, this can be fully liberating (albeit a bit scary at the same time), for self-empowered responsibility and ownership means:

·     You make your own choices and decisions.

·     You live according to your values and principles.

·     Your stress and anxiety levels are reduced by not being required to live up to the expectations and desires of others.

·     You live an authentic and determined life on your own terms.

What are the secrets to taking responsibility and ownership for your life, decisions, and actions? In a nutshell they are:

• Understanding where your energy and power emanate, so you can call upon these as needed when making decisions or taking action. 
• Eliminating all thoughts and internal chatter about you being a victim or anything or anyone. 
• Accepting that you can no longer blame others, circumstances, bad luck, or fate for the disappointments and failures that come your way. 
• Eliminating the need for control. You can only control what you think, feel, say, and do. Live with it. Accept it. 
• Releasing yourself from the fear of making decisions. No more "paralysis by analysis" in your personal or professional life. No more indecision time. No more being indecisive. 
• Knowing that you can recover and adjust when things do not go your way or as planned. Life is a journey. Enjoy the journey and be adaptable along the way.  

In our previous Project You Life Blog post, we said "if personal change is to happen, it is up to you." 

Hence, you do not need anyone's permission to embark on your personal  or professional change project. The only person you need permission from is yourself. And that's the true secret of self empowerment! 

This article is partially excerpted from the best-selling book Project You: Living A Determined Life, available at Amazon in Kindle and paperback formats.