What thoughts come to your mind when you hear the phrase “difference maker?”
Do you think of someone at work who has a knack for always coming up creative ideas when everyone else is tapped out? Or maybe people like Mother Teresa, Nelson Mandela or Steve Jobs come to mind?
Difference makers are people who have the ability to bring the right attitude to each and every moment of their life. Yes, you read right – attitude is the difference maker! – and having a positive attitude can have a profound impact in your life!
“Your attitude colors every aspect of your life. It is like the mind’s paintbrush.”
― John C. Maxwell
Many studies have shown the correlation a positive outlook can have with success and happiness. Having the right attitude can make a real difference in how you approach life, the relationships you have with others and how you view challenges. Your attitude affects not only yourself but also all those around you.
In The Difference Maker: Making Your Attitude Your Greatest Asset, John C. Maxwell describes attitude as being a primary component in determining our success. While attitude doesn’t change the reality of what is happening in our lives, it can play a strong part in influencing our future based on how we choose to deal with whatever life throws our way.
Attitude is a matter of choice and how we choose to look at things is 100% within our control.
If you’re like me, you may be wondering just how your attitude is formed. It actually takes shape at a young age and it is forever evolving based on your experiences in life. Your personality, self image, the people you surround yourself with, your beliefs and the choices you make each day can all play a part in this.
Having a positive attitude in each moment every day can take a bit of work, even for those who seem to have mastered it. The good news is that when you see just how much it can change how you live, and how it can open doors and help you in overcoming significant obstacles, you will feel compelled to take responsibility for it by developing positive thoughts and habits that will carry you through the difficult moments.
The Difference Maker is a worthwhile read that highlights all the benefits of having a positive attitude, offering tips on how you can transform your attitude into being an asset! Not sure where your attitude sits on the spectrum? Not to worry, you will be guided through a process to figure this out.
Once you have adopted the mindset of being a difference maker, the book highlights big five attitude obstacles and provides strategies by chapter on how you can make certain that they are not showstoppers in your life. These five obstacles are:
1) Discouragement
While we all experience set backs in life, if you view them as temporary and handle them in the right way, you can bounce back from just about anything. Taking the right perspective, being around the right people and silencing the negative self talk are just a few examples of how you can move beyond discouragement and get back on track.
2) Change
Everyone reacts differently to change. Some people are open to going with the flow while others put of a wall of resistance to any change.
Those who fall into the latter category may resonate with Mark Twain’s quote “The only person who likes change is a wet baby!”
Chapter six in the book guides you through how to assess any change that you may be facing and explore what your barriers may be if you are having difficulty in embracing it.
3) Problems
Problems are everywhere and everyone has them. It’s your perspective on the problem, not the problem itself that usually determines your success or failure in dealing with it. If you look at problems as being temporary in nature, a normal part of life that brings healthy challenges, you are far more likely to weather the storm than someone who takes the glass is half empty view. Those who take this approach are more likely to feel bitter, always asking themselves why their life is always plagued with problems. The book provides a formula for dealing with problems you may encounter.
4) Fear
Fear is part of human nature and in today’s world we are constantly being bombarded with tragic news that can play into our fear if we allow it. Fear can have a powerful effect on you and it can often morph into something bigger than it is. One example used in the book is that while some people have a fear of flying, the odds are that you are more likely to die from choking on a piece of food than to be killed in a commercial airline crash. Fear can weaken you and hold you back from pursuing things in life that you want to.
5) Failure
I think it’s well put in the book that there are 3 types of people in the world, the wills, the won’ts and the can’ts. A positive attitude can help in keeping you out of the 2nd and 3rd category as we all know that if you go into every situation expecting failure, it has a tendency to become a self-fulfilling prophecy.
By sharing a few key points of the book I wanted to give you a feel of just how being a difference maker can make a difference in your life and it’s my hope that you will want to help others discover the difference maker in their lives.
After sustaining a traumatic brain injury in 2001 I will admit my attitude went down the toilet for quite a while when I found myself on the road less travelled and it wasn’t by my choice. The rehabilitation and all the internal healing that had to happen wasn’t easy and it tested me in ways I never could have imagined.
In the middle of every difficulty lies opportunity – Albert Einstein
While there were many parts of my journey that were out of my control, I came to realize an attitude adjustment was something that was within my control. Changing my view on my new reality and accepting it for what it was really allowed me to come out of the slump, to live more in the moment and celebrate my successes along the way. It is very freeing to not feel chained by any of the five obstacles or to ever be tempted to cross that line.
I am a Difference Maker and I wouldn’t want it any other way!
By changing your attitude, you can change your life!
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