Interesting question in my mailbox last week: “Jonathan, you talk a lot about your success formula, i.e. Attitude + Skills + Process + Knowledge = Success, which of those areas do you most enjoy working in with your clients?”

I replied that they are all critical to an individual’s success and you cannot eliminate any of them. But I have stated on numerous occasions that “Attitude” is fundemental to anyon’e success, because if you have the right attitude you can achieve almost anything. I say almost anything, because when I was teaching my daughter this many years ago, she immediately responded “Not anything Dad, a mouse couldn’t pogo over the moon, could it?” Ah, the inquisitive young mind!

Equally, the wrong attitude or what I refer to as the negative mind, does most certainly prevent success.

“Experience informs us that the first offence of weak minds is to recriminate”  Samuel Taylor Coleridge
  
 Negative people typically suffer from what I call the three “C’s” and are usually found to be:

Criticising, Condemning or Complaining.
 
Here are some tips to help you overcome negativity and to recognise it in others.
 
Develop and build your own understanding of what is really negative. Do remember that constructive criticism is not negative.
 
Check your conversation with others, are you being negative? – Check your thoughts and thinking process – remember that if you are thinking negatively the only person you will harm is yourself. Remove those thoughts as you would a faulty slide from a projector, discard them, you have the capacity to do that and your mind will respond if you are strong enough and willing enough to discard a negative thought.
 
Build a bullet proof screen around you, so that negative comments or behaviour from other people will penetrate. You can do this by instantly recognising negative criticism or conversation.

From time to time, check the company you are keeping. If you have been mixing in the wrong environment, talk to people who are positive. Go out and mix with people you know have positive, constructive ideas. Mix with people who are doing better than you.

If another person’s negativity does get through to you, say to yourself “Why did he or she say that”? You must remember that no positive person becomes so unfeeling that they can’t see life from another person’s point of view. It could happen that someone very close to you says something that can be construed as negative; it may be because they are worried, they are concerned or they have fear. By asking yourself “Why did he or she say that?” You will more than likely be able to understand and by reassurance, conversation and looking at the worry from a different point of view, turn the negative into a positive process.
 
Have your own negative repellent. I have my own, which I have used for many years now.Whenever anyone says anything really negative to me, I  just say “fantastic” – no truly negative person enjoy hearing that word; they really run for cover!!
 
In Summary:
 
• Remember, the negative is always stronger than the positive.
 
• Never allow anyone to pollute your thinking
 
• As a professional you must take care of your attitude

“The most evil, dangerous and cancerous complaint that humanity inflicts upon itself is to be negative” Anon

How do you deal with negativity? Do please leave me a comment?

Today’s News: However you want to measure it, it has been a tough year for most front-line sales professionals – probably the toughest ever. Millions of salespeople, all around the world have lost their jobs, and are facing up to a very bleak Christmas.

My good chum Jill Konrath, has just published a super guide – “Get Back To Work Faster” - full details HERE

Last five days of voting over at Top 10 Sales Articles - Jill Harrington is leading, but will the expert panel agree? Have you voted yet?

Tomorrow, I share my thoughts on Baby Boomers, Gen X and Gen Y, after listening to Daniel Waldschmidt’s superb TSE Masterclass last week – do join me

Trackback URI | Comments RSS