Attitude is Everything-w/Keith Harrell

**🎙️ Podcast Show Notes:

Join me in this week’s Mind Wrench Podcast, as we tackle a truth that’s both simple and game-changing: your attitude sets the course of your life. Most people nod at that idea—but few actually practice it. Between daily fires, customer stress, and repair deadlines, it’s easy to let circumstances run the show. But when you learn to choose your attitude instead of reacting to everything around you, you regain the control that stress usually steals.

Through stories, science, and some real talk from the collision repair world, we break down how small shifts in mindset can totally change your energy, your leadership, and your shop’s culture. 

I’ll share a standout story from the late Keith Harrell drives it home: after sprinting through an airport to catch a delayed flight, he chooses calm over chaos. While another passenger melts down, he reads, eats, calls his grandmother, and boards relaxed. Same flight, same delay—completely different experience. That’s the power of attitude as strategy!

We also explore real tools to train your mindset like a muscle. Quick affirmations like “I choose my response” can interrupt negativity spirals, while micro-rituals—like a walk, water break, or short call with a positive friend—help you reset faster and lead stronger.

Finally, we come back to Charles Swindoll’s timeless reminder: “life is 10% what happens to you and 90% how you react”. In this business, where chaos can hit before the first cup of coffee, that ratio might even be generous. So, ask yourself—what can I do now that helps later? Who can I be proud of being right now? That’s where real power starts.

3️⃣🔑Takeaways:

✅Attitude is a choice, not a reaction—and it’s your greatest tool for influence and calm.

✅Micro-rituals rebuild control fast, turning stressful moments into leadership wins.

✅Your response shapes your results—every day, every customer, every challenge.

If you’re ready to invest in your growth and lead your team by example, visit www.rickselover.com/contact for a free coaching consultation. Because in this industry—and in life—learning how to adjust your attitude IS everything!

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Chapters

• 0:00 Attitude Sets The Tone
• 1:00 Host Welcome And Subscriptions
• 1:42 Quotes And Daily Email Invite
• 2:00 Attitude As Daily Choice
• 3:15 Keith Harrell’s Airport Story
• 7:12 Coaching As A Growth Lever
• 8:12 Proactive Mindset Versus Negativity
• 9:35 Swindoll’s Attitude Affirmation
• 10:43 Closing And Contact Info

Transcript

SPEAKER_01: 0:00

You've probably heard this famous quote multiple times before. Your attitude will determine your altitude, right? Or maybe the more common one by Charles Swindahl that says, Life is 10% what happens and 90% how you react to it. The great news is how you react to what happens in your daily life, whether it's something positive or negative, is 100% up to you.

SPEAKER_00: 0:31

Welcome to the MindFree Podcast.

SPEAKER_01: 0:59

Welcome to the 9 Minutes Podcast. I'm your host Rick Silver. Thanks so much for stopping in. If you're a returning listener and haven't done so already, please take a minute and click the follow or subscribe button and then rate and review the show. When you rate and review the show, the algorithms for Apple, Spotify, Google Podcasts, iHeartRadio, Amazon Music, and all the other platforms will see that it's valuable and show it to more people that have never seen it before. And hopefully it can help them too. I would really, really, really appreciate your help sharing this word with your friends and family as well. And if you're a brand new listener, welcome. I hope you find something of value here that helps you in your personal or professional life as well. Please make sure to click the subscribe or follow button so you never miss another episode. If you've been listening to the show for a while, or been on the receiving end of my daily quote of the day emails, or maybe just catch my posts on Facebook or LinkedIn, you know I'm all about the quotes, right? If you'd like to start receiving my quote of the day emails, there's a link in the show notes to sign up. It's free and you can unsubscribe at any time. If you've ever listened to any of my previous podcast episodes, seen my daily social media posts, or even heard me speak at an event, it should come to you as no surprise when I say your attitude is everything, and it'll absolutely determine the course of your life. You've probably heard this famous quote multiple times before your attitude will determine your altitude, right? Or maybe the more common one by Charles Swindall that says Life is 10% what happens and 90% how you react to it. The great news is how you react to what happens in your daily life, whether it's something positive or negative, is 100% up to you. Do things in life really happen to you or for you? Well, it really depends on how you look at it or your attitude towards it, which is a choice you make every single day. I found this to be true not only in my life, but in the lives of hundreds, if not thousands, of people I've talked to in my career. Your attitude, the attitude you choose to have, can make life either a grand adventure with many good things in store for you, or a miserable existence, with one disappointment after another just waiting for you, or somewhere in between. But it is all up to you. I want to share a great example of this from a recording I heard the other day by former basketball star, motivational speaker, and author of several books, including Attitude is Everything, known as America's Attitude Coach, Keith Harrell. And I just had to share this with all of you. Now, although Keith passed away 15 years ago, his messages and his positivity live on. So here's Keith.

SPEAKER_04: 3:39

I fly an awful lot. How many people fly a lot? And you know today that's a challenge. It's gonna be a challenge when I go to the airport tonight with all the weather change. A couple weeks ago, I'm going to Atlanta airport. I've got a major flight to catch to go to New York. I run up to the ticket counter and I tell the person, hey, I really gotta catch that flight. He goes, sir, you're going out of Concourse C. And if you've ever been to Atlanta, that's about 57 miles from the ticket counter. He looks at me and he goes, Uh, sir, I uh uh uh you only have 15 minutes. I I don't think you're gonna make it. I looked at him, I said, I'm not gonna make it talking to you. Give me my ticket. Damn. I believe in life sometimes the magic of the word triumph is in the first syllable. You gotta try. I snatched that ticket and I just started talking to myself. Come on, you're gonna make it. You just keep on going. You just keep on running. You know you're gonna make it. I just kept talking to myself. I finally got to security, I jumped over it. Just kept on running. You know, Atlanta has that concourse, that train. I didn't even catch the train. I was running faster than the train. Who was that? I finally, I just, I just kept running. I was talking to myself. You gotta try. You gotta try. Come on, kid. Keep going. I finally got the concourse fee. And my voice said, You out of shape. And then my voice said, You better start working out. I finally got to the gate and I had to catch my breath, and I saw the plane was there, and I go, excuse me, man. Oh, boy, did I make it? She looks at me and she goes, sir, we just got word the plane's gonna be two hours delayed. I looked at her and I said, uh, I said, uh, I said, I'm, I'm, I'm proactive. She looked at me and she goes, No, you look dead. Hey, another gentleman ran around up behind me, a top executive, of course, and he looked at her and he said, I have to get on that plane. I'm going to New York for a major meeting. Is it leaving on time? You see, go, sir, we apologize. The plan is physically here, but we have some trouble. We'll be leaving in about two hours. He goes off. What do you mean, two hours? Do you know who you're talking to? I'm a million miler. I'm a flying colonel, I'm a roll medallion. You better get your supervisor out here right now.

SPEAKER_01: 5:44

If you're looking for a competitive edge for your business or a more effective jumpstart to your personal development, I'll make your first step super simple. It is a fact that an incredible number of the most successful business owners, nearly half of the Fortune 500 companies, top-running professional athletes, entertainers, and industry leaders like Microsoft's Bill Gates, former President Bill Clinton, Oprah Winfrey, Richard Branson, Amazon's Jeff Bezos, and Salesforce Mark Benioff, all have one thing in common. They all have at least one coach, and some have several, that they work with on a consistent basis. Someone that helps guide, mentor, and support them, challenge them, help them set and achieve goals that move them forward, and then hold them accountable to follow through, driving personal and professional growth. Working with a coach has many substantial benefits. Just for an example, 80% of coaching clients report improved self-esteem or self-confidence thanks to coaching. 99% of individuals and companies that hire a coach report being very satisfied, and 96% would do it again. If deep down you know it's time to make those improvements in your business, your personal life that you've kicked down the road year after year, if you're tired of knowing there's a better version of you waiting to shine, but unsure of how to bring that version to light. If you're tired of wanting to enjoy a more successful business, but not sure how to start. And if you don't want to go another 12 months without better results, but you don't want to go it alone, then take the first step. It's super simple. Sometimes talking to the right person can make all the difference. Go to www.rixlover.com slash contact, and I'll set you up with a free consultation call with me to see if one-on-one coaching is right for you.

SPEAKER_04: 7:24

Supervisor, a nice woman in a nice red jacket, stepped up and said, Sir, we apologize, but regardless of what you say, the plane's not leaving for three hours, for two hours, two hours later. He goes off for 35 minutes. Guess what time the plane left? Two hours later. You know he made himself famous, though? You know he made himself famous? Everyone knew who he was. Blood pressure went to an all-time high. And nobody wanted to sit next to him. I was proactive. I went down and got something to eat. Grilled chicken, French fries, large coke. And then I went and bought a book, Norman Vincent Peel, Enthusiasm Makes a Difference, read chapter one. Then I did something extremely special. I believe to stay positive today, you have to do the little things for you. I called my grandmother. Collect. You ought to try it sometime, then never say no. You know, it's funny. After I got off the phone from talking to someone who has impacted my attitude my entire life, someone who loves me more than anything in the world, and someone who I love, you know, I had a whole new outlook on life. Playing didn't matter. Going to New York was secondary. I had a whole new outlook on life. If you ever see me in the airport again, I do the little things for me. I love popcorn. If you ever in Atlanta, uh Concourse C, it's gate four, concourse B, B-19, Concourse A, hey,$27,$1.58 a box. So if you can visualize me, I'm eating popcorn, I'm whistling, you know. I walk back over to the gate and uh I go to sit down. It's about 20 minutes before we board. And I look at some of the folks getting ready to board. They look toxic. They look extremely negative, and I say to myself, you don't want to sit next to these people, I'm gonna go over here. I go over to the other group, they look like they wanna be dead. I finally plop down next to a guy and I'm just sitting there. He looks over and he goes, Why are you so happy? I said, I'm proactive. He said, What the heck is proactive? I said, Let me give you three reasons. Either something's wrong with the plane, something's wrong with the pilot, something's wrong with the weather. I'd rather be right here talking to you. I told him I'd rather be here and wish I was up there than to be up there and wish I was here. He looked at me and he goes, Is that proactive? I go, yes, it is. He said, Give me some of that popcorn. You gotta look at your life right now. A lot of people ask me a key question. How do you stay positive? I read a lot of affirmations daily. I think affirmations are really the secret to programming a negative attitude. One of my favorite affirmations is by Chuck Swindall. Imagine if you had the opportunity this morning, as I did, to wake up and to read this entitled Attitude from Chuck Swindall. It goes like this: the longer I live, the more I realize the impact of attitude on life. Attitude to me is more important than facts. It's more important than the past and education and money than circumstances, then failures are successes. It's more important than appearance, giftedness or skill. It will make a break a company, a church, a home. The remarkable thing is we have a choice every day regarding the attitude that we will embrace for that day. We cannot change our past. We cannot change the fact that some people will treat us in a certain way. We cannot change the inevitable. But the one thing we can do is play on the one string we have, and that is attitude. I'm convinced life is 10% what happens to you and 90% how you react. So it is with you as it is with me. We are all in charge of our attitude. Chuck Swindow, he's not here, but let's give Chuck a round of applause. Thanks, Chuck.

SPEAKER_01: 10:43

Well, that's all I had for you today. Thanks again for tuning in. I really appreciate your support, and I hope you have a great week. I can always be reached at www.rixilover.com, where you can find all my social media links, podcast episodes, blog posts, and much more.