Your attitude, not your aptitude, determines your altitude. – Zig Ziglar
I read a story once by Michael Hodgin about two Kentucky racing stable owners who had developed a rivalry.
Each spring they both entered a horse in a local steeplechase. One of them thought that having a professional rider might give his horse an edge in the race, so he hired a hotshot jockey.
Well, the day of the race finally came, and as usual, their horses were leading the race right down to the last fence. But the final fence was too much for both of the horses. Both of them fell, and both riders were thrown. But that didn’t stop the professional jockey. He remounted and easily won the race.
When he got back to the stable, he found the horse owner fuming with rage. The jockey really didn’t understand the owner’s behavior, because he won the race. So the jockey asked, “What’s the matter with you? I won the race, didn’t I?”
The red-faced owner nodded, “Oh yes, you won the race. But you won it on the wrong horse!”
The determination of the jockey is admirable despite the fact that he made that critical mistake.
In leadership, you will be challenged regularly with your attitude. It comes with the territory. Sometimes the attitude challenges that we face are the result of our own poor choices. At other times, our attitude is challenged by outside forces that we have no control over.
In the book, Winning The War in Your Mind, Craig Groescel writes:
“Our lives are always moving in the direction of our strongest thoughts. What we think shapes who we are.”
And this is precisely why our attitudes matter. Our thoughts and attitudes are moving us in a certain direction. The question is: Are you headed in the right direction?
Poor attitude choices can be a detriment to your leadership. Your attitude is basically the thermostat by which your team members adjust. Click To TweetWhen you are upbeat and positive, that tends to be the attitude that others embrace. The same holds true if it’s negative. So, as a leader, what posture should you take with your attitude? Here are a few simple approaches worth consideration.
Guard your thoughts
This first piece of advice is all about your discipline as a leader. It’s a profoundly simple piece of advice. And it’s a profoundly difficult discipline to master. But much is riding on the outcome.
I would like for you to think of guarding your thoughts not from a defensive posture, which we’ve all been accustomed to, but from a proactive posture.
When it comes to guarding our thoughts, what does a proactive posture look like? Here are a few examples:
- Practice gratitude and random acts of kindness
- Prayer or meditation
- Volunteer/ serve others
- Exercise/walks
When your thoughts and actions are others-centered and when you are intentional about what you choose to watch and listen to, then you are in a proactive way guarding your thoughts. You have less time to be self-absorbed and more time to focus on others.
Guard your company
We don’t always control what happens to us, but we do control how we will respond. This is crucial to understand.
When you are proactive about guarding your mind in the ways that I have already outlined, the next thing you need to do is guard your company. Here’s a truth you must embrace: Not everyone belongs in your circle.
As a leader, you will have many interactions with people within your organization and without. These are generally tied to your specific duties as a leader.
But when it comes to your inner circle- the people closest to you by choice- you must guard your company. To be clear, I am not advocating being a snob. I am, however, saying that in order to protect and guard your attitude, you can’t allow others with poor attitudes in your inner circle who could potentially drag you down. Your winning attitude is too valuable and must be protected.
Final Thoughts
Possessing a winning attitude takes work, discipline, and determination. It is incumbent upon you to be proactive and wise in your choices. A winning attitude is attainable but you must guard your thoughts and guard your company in order to maintain it.
©2023 Doug Dickerson
