Recently I read something. I don’t even remember where, so apologies if you’re reading this and it was your idea. The point was simple yet powerful: “Have a good attitude for no reason.”

It made me pause and reflect. We always have reasons for being in a bad mood, things that frustrate us, disappoint us, or make us sad. As human beings, we’re constantly influenced by what happens around us, in life and at work.

But a good attitude? That has to be a choice. As an internal mechanism to handle the emotional ups and downs of life.

Sometimes I even come to work with a bad attitude with the confirmation that things will go bad. 😄

Then I start to wonder, is it even possible to always have a good attitude ? Maybe not always. But we can try. Here are three things I have decided to practice, just to see if I can have a good attitude for absolutely no reason.

Pause before reacting: Most bad moods begin with a fast reaction. A short pause and a breath could change the tone of a moment. I don’t practice that much and it reflects on my wellbeing. This is going to be really tough for me because I have also realized that in some of my recent conversations, I jump into conclusions so easily.

Find one small thing to appreciate: Not a big gratitude list, just something small, a good coffee, a kind word, or a quiet minute.

I learned a new word the other day “Chokwinok” which is a morning greeting in the shuswap language. I was listening to an interview with the indigenous rights activist Julian Brave Noisecat who was talking about his new book ‘We survived the NIght’

Chokwinok is a morning greeting but does not mean “Good Morning”. It means “You survived the night” which was so important for his ancestors during the mid 19th century when surviving each night for his community was such a huge achievement that this should be celebrated and acknowledged. This was a time when ⅔ of people in his tribe died of smallpox and kids used to be taken away from their families and put in missionary run schools, the horrors of which we all have read.

Even today there are so many people who do not know if they will survive the night and if we see the light of the day tomorrow, if we are alive, I think we should be appreciative of it.

Smile without expecting one back: Not every smile will be returned, and that’s okay. It’s a reminder that I control my energy, not the world around me.

I am good with smiles. But I need to see that I don’t lose that ability. And remind myself that even the good things can turn sour.

Maybe having a good attitude for no reason… is the best reason of all.

What has this got to do with Ginger on a chair… Nothing… just that she sits on my chair when I get up 😊