Brad McCullouch

POSITIVE MENTAL ATTITUDE GUIDE Brad McCullouch

This will be the first in a series of posts I’m writing to highlight many of the things I am learning through my personal attitude training.  I may have recently related that I read a book entitled the Power of Habit.  It’s a great read and I would highly recommend it.

If you boil it down to the lowest common denominator  you can understand the interplay between habit and attitude.  If you are successful with this, things really can come together for you.  Many people have the mentality that when X happens I WILL respond with negativity.  We’ve talked about the toilet of despair in previous posts.  This is how our minds start sinking deeper and deeper into negativity if left unattended.

When you read the Power of Habit you will soon learn that it’s not enough merely stop a bad habit.  In fact, it’s really hard to just stop a habit.  You have to change the habit.  I must have the mental attitude that I will ALWAYS get ravenously hungry right before I go to sleep.  Just trying to fight the fridge will never win.  The chocolate milk and pizza will beat me every time.  I must have a new habit.   I get up and floss my teeth for about 2 minutes and then go to bed.  Or I use Listerine- the kind that really burns, not this namby pamby new stuff.

So what happens when your own negative thinking has become a habit and taken control of life.  Anything can set your mind racing down the track of negativity and bad attitude avenue.  My suggestion is the first thing you say is, “I am whipped.  I cannot, of my own accord, change my thinking.”  Then you turn to God, or Buddha, or the “God of Your Understanding” as AA says it- or how about Jesus Christ.  Boy that’s a novel concept huh?

Anyway you turn to God and admit your helplessness and ask for divine intervention.  Then you walk out in faith and put some meat on those bones.  You know the same thought will come into your mind given a certain circumstance.  You also know that this thought will lead to a negative reaction which will lead to a cascade of negativity.

What if, with God’s help, when that circumstance that starts the snowball from hell thinking in your mind, – YOU ALL THE SUDDEN ALTER YOUR THINKING?   What if, after that first negative thought, you replaced it with a positive thought?   In my own experience I have used scripture memorization.  I force myself to recall, verbatim, scripture verses in a particular order whenever my mind starts racing.  So instead of racing down, my attitude starts getting better.

In fact, the circumstance that could have derailed my day (the guy cutting me off on the interstate) has caused me to have a great day because I’ve just spent the last 10 minutes programming positives into my mind.  It’s all about the interplay between habit and attitude.

I will continue to unpack this in the coming weeks.  Man, I’m glad tomorrow is Monday!

Brad McCullouch Jackson MS

http://bradmccullouch