Attittude or Aptitude

Zig Ziglar once said it is not your aptitude but your attitude that determines you altitude. For those who know me know that I make my living in the construction industry, and we are going through a major correction in the building industry at this time. For that matter we are also going through a very trying economic time with gas prices at record highs, food prices rising daily, and if you listen to the press every one is on the verge of losing their homes to foreclosure (this is not true while the rate of foreclosure is at a record high it is still a minority of homeowners facing foreclosure).

I received an e-mail from the executive vice president for the company I work for with an article by Bill Lee entitled The only disability in Life (and business) is a bad attitude. In my day to day interaction with builders of all walks I have noticed that the contractors who talk all doom and gloom and do all the complaining are the ones who are not busy, their negative attitude builds upon itself and does not allow them to raise t the surface. The contractors who are upbeat and positive, have been able to build that attitude into a successful business altitude where even in this down time they are still booked out 2 to 3 years. You can soar like an eagle or you can hunker down in the mire and quack like a duck.

Do not blame anyone but yourself for your failures. The other guy did nothing to make you lose, the government is not to blame, it is up to you. A little phrase I learned at a sales meeting is "IF IT IS TO BE IT IS UP TO ME". Most of the people around me laughed at the phrase and commented about how hokie it was. I realized how true it was. I looked back at my own failures and realized it was all my fault for my my failures

Refuse to use a loser's language. Those who talk like a loser become losers. Those who are winners never talk like losers. Tiger Woods one of Golfs best players ever, even when he loses never talks negatively. He continually has an upbeat outlook and places the blame on himself, and this leads us to the third point.

Continue to believe in yourself. Tiger always believes in himself, and you have to also. Ask yourself who is more enjoyable to be around the positive upbeat person who always sees the glass as half full, or the person who sees the glass as half empty and never sees the bright side of anything.