Learn how having a good attitude can help you get ahead.
You probably don’t need another motivational slogan to tell you the importance of a positive attitude. Your high school is likely wallpapered with posters of inspiring landscapes and encouraging words like “Your attitude determines your direction” or “Stay positive. Attitude is everything.”
After a while, the messages on those posters just fade into the background. However, research studies show that attitudes do impact outcomes, for children and teens in school as well as for adults in work environments.
Keep these ideas in mind to keep a better attitude:
Better Attitude, Better Results
A positive attitude is not the same thing as wishful thinking. For example, telling yourself that you are going to ace a test even though you missed a bunch of classes and did not make up the work….Well, that is wishful thinking, and acing the test is unlikely.
However, a positive attitude can support your learning and help you remember the concepts and skills you studied in class. Staying positive can boost your confidence and increase your performance in your classes.
One study found that optimists, people with positive attitudes, performed 37 percent better than pessimists. On the other hand, a negative attitude can actually cause you to fail at your goals because negative thoughts can make tasks seem more difficult than they really are.
Develop a Positive Mindset
Of course, no one is positive all the time. In fact, human brains evolved to look for and focus on negative threats. Awareness of negative possibilities was crucial in prehistoric times when poisonous plants or sabertooth tigers could lead to almost certain death.
Now that most people are relatively safe, focusing on the negative leads to additional negative side effects, like increased stress and anxiety. Everyone has negativity they need to deal with or push through, but trying to focus on the positive is beneficial in school, work, and your day to day life.
Here are some tips for developing your positive attitude, even on bad days.
- Think positive thoughts. Instead of “I can’t,” think “I can try my best.”
- Learn from mistakes and constructive feedback. Instead of focusing on what you got wrong, focus on how you can do better next time.
- Ask for help. You don’t have to tackle every challenge on your own. If you are stuck, ask a friend or teacher to help you work through the obstacle.
Written by Jessica L. Mendes.
