COMMUNICATING ATTITUDE

Everyone has a ‘guiding attitude’, which is a way of looking at life that drives your behavior and determines your way of thinking and feeling. Whether your general attitude is positive, negative or ambivalent; your evaluation of people, objects, events and activities impacts on other people’s attitudes towards you. As a result, your attitude determines how successful you are in both your professional and personal lives.

According to the twentieth-century Swiss psychologist, Carl Jung, your personality is set at birth. Your attitudes, on the other hand, are the results of direct encounters or observations and can change depending on your experiences. So although attitudes can have a powerful influence on your behaviour, they aren't set in stone, and certain influences that cause you to have one attitude may, at another time, bring about a change in your outlook. For example, to resolve conflicting inner attitudes about a political issue, you may choose to adhere to one attitude over another.

As international author and achievement guru Brian Tracy says, ‘You cannot control what happens to you, but you can control your attitude toward what happens to you, and in that, you will be mastering change rather than allowing it to master you.’

The attitude you send out is likely to be the one you get back. Watch the way people behave and speak if you want to spot their attitudes. For example, people who show up at work early with smiles on their faces and a readiness to volunteer demonstrate a positive attitude. On the other hand, those who drag themselves into the office late and groan about their workload are communicating a negative attitude.

You may also note that attitudes are infectious. Spend time with someone who’s upbeat and you find yourself viewing the world in a positive light. Hang out with people who are down in the dumps and chances are you’re going to end up there with them.