Make This One Yours!

Can you remember the last time you had a bad day? Do you remember how you felt when you got up that morning? Were you eager to meet the day or eager for it to just be over? I bet I already know the answer! I have a co-worker that comes to work and the first thing he says is “I’m having a bad day already”. My response is usually the same,” You’ve only been awake for a couple of hours, how bad could it be”! I know a lot can happen in a couple of hours, but my point is that he hasn’t gotten far enough into the day to know if it is bad yet. But guess what, when he says that, he almost always has a terrible day!

If you’re like most people, you let the circumstances of the day dictate whether or not you have a “good” day or not. But believe it or not, your attitude going into the day will determine how you view those circumstances. Thing that annoy, distract, and set you back are going to happen, but why does that make it bad? That’s just part of the challenge of the day.

The best way that I have found to make my day good is to get in the right frame of mind to start with. That doesn’t mean that I won’t have a hard day, but it does mean that I will have a victorious day without all the mental anguish and physical fatigue at the end of it. After all, why would you want to feel bad all day and make more mistakes? A negative attitude will sap your energy, both mental and physical, which causes more errors in judgment. This type of mindset will not only perpetuate the “I’m having a bad day” feeling, but will carry over to make you feel like life in general is dragging you down.

You may be thinking that this is all good in theory, and you can’t just make yourself change the way you feel just by snapping your fingers. I agree, so here are some tips to help!

• Have a little faith. I like to read something that reminds me of God’s promises. Like a devotional or some of the verses in the Bible that remind me that I don’t have to face the day alone. Verses like Philippians 4:13; I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me. (Paraphrased) or the verse from Psalms that says “this is the day the Lord has made, I will rejoice and be glad in it. Remember that God wants you to be successful, so say a prayer on your way to wherever you are going to ask for some divine help in the circumstances of the day.
• Reinforce your thoughts through self talk. Don’t tell yourself that you are going to have a bad day before it even gets started; tell yourself it is going to be a great day. Remember, your attitude going into any situation will determine how you come out of the situation. So be positive! It will make a difference!
• Remember that your thoughts lead your actions. If you want positive results you will have to first think positive. You can’t plant corn and expect to get peas. If you want to get something good you have to expect something good so that you will take actions that lead the way you truly want to go. So when your attitude starts to slip, back up and reaffirm your thoughts by reminding yourself to be positive.
• Keep the proper perspective. No matter how hectic things get, no matter how much trouble you get into, no matter how demanding your day is, it will be over before you know it. Then you can reassess the situation and be better prepared next time. Failure is a part of success. Failure is the feedback that gets you to success.
• Get Healthy. By getting fit and eating right you don’t feel as run down. Do you just feel worn out as soon as you get out of bed? Maybe you need to reevaluate your exercise and diet programs.

May you have great success and make every day your day!n