Never Wake Up on the Wrong Side of the Bed

Yesterday morning I experienced something I wish no-one ever had to experience. Most people describe it as “waking up on the wrong side of the bed.”  For lack of a better word I was feeling “grumpy”. Rather than let that rule my day like I may have done in the past, I decided I would take actions to improve my attitude.
 

“Attitudes are a secret power working 24 hours a day, for good or bad.”

— Author Unknown

I’ve learned that it does me absolutely no good to dwell in negativity. I can choose to be unhappy….or….I can choose to be happy. Who doesn’t want to be happy? Why then do so many people choose to focus on the negative in life? I wish I had that answer. Sometimes I feel like it is human nature (the natural man) that gravitates towards negativity.

“A happy person is not a person in a certain set of circumstances,

but rather a person with a certain set of attitudes.”

- Hugh Downs

Knowing that our attitude is what will really make us happy as well as work for our own good we should take a moment to figure out what we can do to have a good attitude versus a negative one.

I did a bit of research in scholarly journals and found two interesting thoughts. First, Kalevi Korpela noted that people in a “In comparison with low negative mood  scorers, high negative mood   scorers were significantly more often alone in their favorite places or only with passers-by.” I can attest that when you live a life alone it can put you into a negative mood. Find ways to fill your life with people. Don’t just fill it with anybody; make sure you fill it with positive people. If you spend all your time with negative people, their negative attitudes will soak into your soul and you’ll quickly find you have a negative mood.
 

The second talks about meditation and the impacts that it can have on health and negative moods. James Lane, Jon Seskevich, and Carl Peiper state that “a simple meditation technique can improve   negative mood   and perceived stress in healthy adults, which could yield long-term health benefits.”   We are so busy in life that we often don’t even take a few minutes to help ourselves out. We just let the stress, frustration, or negativity with is from moment to moment. Sometimes it’s good to take a few minutes to relax and refocus our energies into something positive.

Let’s be honest, I don’t know much about meditation. It’s something I need to take up because it’s easy to see the differences that it could make in my life. A quick search online shows many different sites with advice on how to meditate. Click here for a link that I found that gives tips for beginners or go out and find something for yourself! Other things that I’ve found help improve a rough mood is to get physical activity! Even just walking around the office for a few minutes can make all the difference. Talking to someone that means the world to you can also help! I’m sure there are other things too. I’d love to hear what you do to help overcome those grumpy mornings and salvage an otherwise difficult day.

Keep your head up. Remember how many people care for you! Take a few minutes to meditate, and find a way to spend your time with positive people that mean the most to you. Let’s share what works or what you think might help so we can all benefit from it!