Have you noticed that we, as humans, tend to go negative? It is called the negativity bias, and it was instilled in us to keep us safe. In ancient days, we had to worry about lions, tigers and bears attacking us but not so much now (although who knows after the last few years). But we are wired this way and must work extra hard to maintain a positive attitude. Nobody really enjoys working with a Negative Nelly, Naysayer Ned or Drama King Dave.
How to Exude Positive Energy
Avoid complaining - I don’t think we are conscious of how much we complain. I did a no complaining challenge once and barely made it through the morning on the first day. Making a conscious effort NOT to complain is important to being a more positive person. A quote that I like from The Energy Bus by Jon Gordon is,
“Be a winner, not a whiner.”
Smile more
This makes you feel better and makes you more approachable and appealing to others.
Be optimistic
Sometimes we tend to look at things with a glass half empty view and assume the worst. Make a conscious effort to see the good in situations and in people.
Focus on productivity and performance
Focus on being productive and performing at your best. Try to let some of the other stuff go! It will serve you well.
Show appreciation to others
Thank others and let them know you appreciate them as often as possible. This will help build relationships and goodwill. A model that I like for this purpose is the PATS model.
P – Tailor appreciation to the other person’s Preferences
A – Make it Authentic
T – Do it in a Timely manner
S – Make it Specific by sharing what they did and the impact it had
Avoid Energy Vampires
Gallup estimates that there are 22 million negative workers in the United States costing $300 billion in productivity a year. That’s a lot of negativity! Avoiding energy vampires can help you to stay more positive. You know who they are at your work and in your life! They are the complainers, the naysayers, and the drama queens/kings. They will suck your energy and leave you feeling more negative and depleted.
So, how can you avoid them if you work closely with them day to day? This can be challenging but you can set some boundaries around the time you spend with them. And you can let them know that you want to focus on solutions, rather than problems when they share their negativity.
Feed your positive dog
In The Energy Bus, Jon Gordon says that there are two dogs inside of us – a positive dog and a negative dog. Clearly, it is best to feed and foster the positive dog. You can feed your positive dog as follows:
Practice gratitude - Counting at least three blessings a day has proven to help people be more positive and even assists in rewiring your brain.
Do a reset or attitude adjustment - If you are having negative feelings about your job, take action to try to reset or adjust your attitude.
Reframe – This involves reframing what you perceive to be a negative situation into something more positive. Perhaps you have COVID and have to quarantine. You could tell yourself, "I wanted to watch all the Harry Potter movies and finish that quilt I started last year."
Celebrate your successes - Rather than celebrating our successes, we often immediately move on to the next thing. Take the time to bask in the glory of your achievements.
Purple Squirrel Development Program
Reach out to leslie@influencehrconsulting.com if you'd like to learn more about the Purple Squirrel Development program to help you - or employees in your organization - reach their potential! This is the 4th behavior/trait.
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