Attitude Adjustment

About a month ago I was allowing myself to feel overwhelmed. The phone rang. It was a real estate agent making cold calls. I was about to tell him that we don't accept solicitations, when his voice inflected in a vaguely familiar way. I said, "Is this Ed?" It was. He's a man I last saw ten years ago. At the time, he was going through some tough times, including a recent cancer diagnosis. In truth, it surprised me even tolearn that he was still alive.

After we talked about the wonderful changes that had gone on for both he and his wife, he asked how things were going for me. I'd just experienced a series of disappointments and I told him about them. I suggested that maybe the path I'd chosen wasn't going to work. He said, "Ten years ago you changed my life, Dave." He reminded me of a series of conversations we'd had, and told me why he'd never been the same afterwards. He told me that if I wanted to break through, I'd better change my "self-talk" because there is no way that others were going to believe in me if I'd quit believing in myself. Attitude is vital for a long list of other reasons, as well.

I apologized for turning his sales call into a therapy session, but thanked him for helping me get my head straight. He said that everything happens fora reason, and told me again that I had played one of the most important roles in his life. What a weighty and meaningful thing for a man who had essentially become a stranger to tell me. The cool thing is, he had just returned the favor. In the month since that conversation I have been very productive, and I've solved many of the problems that faced me on the day Ed called.

Not only is a positive attitude the only way to ultimately attain the success you imagine for yourself, it is what makes the journey worth taking. When all is said and done, it is the journey that is the reward.