The Comeback Chronicles Podcast

Bolt #4: Breaking Free from Bad Attitudes

• Terry L. Fossum

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Attitude is the single most important factor in survival situations and in everyday life success. Your mental approach determines your outcomes far more than education, background, or even physical resources.

• Protecting your attitude like your life depends on it is essential because it truly does
• Attitude reserves function like a gas tank that needs regular filling to keep you going through challenges
• Negative people ("Eeyores") can drain your attitude reserves by consistently finding problems in everything
• Sometimes you must distance yourself from negative people who refuse to stop dragging you down
• Past baggage and resentments weigh you down unnecessarily and prevent forward movement
• Appreciation for what you have creates a foundation for positivity and success
• Surrounding yourself with positive people who build you up is crucial for attitude maintenance
• Laughter, movement, helping others, and taking action toward goals all build attitude reserves
• Embracing your imperfections while continuing to improve is the balanced approach to self-development
• Starting each day with gratitude sets a positive tone that impacts everything else

Head over to terrielfossum.com to pick up your free gifts and learn more about breaking through your comfort zone to reach the pinnacle of success in every area of your life.


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Speaker 1:

If you've been stuck in fear, self-doubt, your past failures and you're ready to break through your comfort zones to finally reach the pinnacle of success in every area of your life, then this podcast is for you. Here's your host, Terry L Fossum.

Speaker 2:

L Fossum Bolt. Number four that we're going to blow is a bad attitude. Now, if you've read any self-improvement books or listened to any recordings at all, you know they all talk about how important it is to have a good attitude. So I'm going to start by taking a bit of a different approach. This is all about breaking the bolts that bind you, that hold you back. So I'm not going to talk about having a good attitude. I'm going to talk about getting rid of the bad attitude, because, let's face it, if you had a perfect attitude, you wouldn't need to be listening to these recordings. So let's get started. I'll begin with words of warning.

Speaker 2:

There are attacks on our attitude continuously throughout our day. Social media, that was supposed to be a great way for us all to be connected, has turned into a hotbed of negativity. The news, which is supposed to be reporting factual happenings, has turned into sensationalism specifically designed to create negative emotions in us. I want to make sure you know that. Let me ask you is it working? Absolutely, it is. As a result of these things and more, it seems like people around us are more negative than ever, doesn't it? And that's saying something. We're being bombarded more than ever in the history of humanity with negative, negative, negative, negative, negative. And, let's face it, it wears us down over time, doesn't it? And that's why this recording is so important. Now, I know, I know you've probably listened to a million things that say have a great attitude, but there's a reason for that. The truth is and please listen very closely, listen very closely you need to protect your attitude, like your life depends on it, because it does Truly. What kind of a life you have completely depends on your attitude. How much success you have, how your relationships are, how much you enjoy every minute of every day or not, depends on your attitude. You need to protect your attitude, like your life depends on it because it does.

Speaker 2:

An avid outdoor adventurer, I've done survival much of my life. I taught wilderness survival marabaj as a youth. I've done jungle survival deep in the Amazon, swimming with the piranhas and the electric eagles and such. I backpacked alone deep into the Arctic Circle as well as Death Valley in the badlads of South Dakota, climbed into the mountains of Rwanda searching for the elusive silverback gorillas. I've ridden camels in the deserts of Egypt, canoeing expeditions into the mountains of Rwanda searching for the elusive silverback gorillas. I've ridden camels in the deserts of Egypt, canoeing expeditions into the Ketako. I've done wilderness adventure travel in different parts of the world. I was even recently on a survival reality show.

Speaker 2:

So I get asked all the time in a survival situation, what is the single most important factor In a survival situation? What's the single most important factor? So let me turn this around to you. What do you think it is? What's the most important factor in all of survival? Well, it's getting food right. I mean, you can't live if you don't eat. Actually, yes, you can. You can live up to 30 days or more without eating.

Speaker 2:

On that survival reality show I was on, the premise of it was there was 10 survival experts and we were all paired with a novice, somebody who hadn't even camped out in their backyard before. And it was pretty hilarious who some of these novices were. Well, one of these novices were Well, one of them was a model and I mean this model was the real deal. Okay, they flew her into Paris and everywhere else. You've probably seen her on TV or print.

Speaker 2:

When I first met her, I figured she wouldn't last two weeks because she basically has zero extra body fat on her body and in survival, fat stores equals energy when you're not eating. I figured she'd lose strength and drop out, but I really didn't know her yet. She had an inner strength that few people in the world have and that kept her going near the end for over a month in the jungle, with extremely little food. See, I lost 25 pounds on the show, if that's any indication of how little we were eating, and I promise you she didn't have 25 pounds to lose A month in. She was way past any fat stores that she had. So her body was eating its own muscle and internal organs, and yet she fought on.

Speaker 2:

Okay, so it's not food, food's not the most important one. Okay, well, it must be water. Well, you're getting closer. As the survival rule of thumb is, you can only go about three days without water Now, depending on a lot of circumstances, of course, but about three days is the rule of thumb. But, believe it or not, that's not the most important thing either. Okay, then it must be shelter. If you're not sheltered from the elements, you can die of exposure in hours or even minutes through heat stroke or hypothermia. But even still, that's not the most important factor.

Speaker 2:

Okay, if those aren't the single most important factor in all of survival. Then what is it? You ready for this one? Here we go, it's attitude, that's it. That is the single most important factor in all of survival attitude. I mean, can you imagine someone trying to survive with a bad attitude? Oh my God, we're lost. We're in the middle of nowhere. We don't have food, we don't have shelter. There's lions and tigers and bears. We're going to get eaten alive, and that's only if the weather doesn't kill us first. My God, I just got a splinter. I'm sure it's going to get an effect. I'm going to die. Tell my wife I love her. Yeah, you're going to die, because the people with you just might well kill you, so they don't have to listen to your whining anymore.

Speaker 2:

Having a bad attitude in a survival situation is probably the most detrimental thing that could possibly happen. If you panic, you die Plain and simple. A good attitude will help keep you from panicking in any situation. A bad attitude you're already gone, and I'm here to tell you that's true in every aspect of life. Every single aspect of your life your financial success, your relationships, your ability to reach your goals, even how you spend your free time is dependent on your attitude. The importance of your background greatly pales in comparison to it. Your education pales in comparison to it. Even your IQ pales in comparison to it. Wait a minute. Am I telling you that attitude is way more important than any of those things? You don't see attitude on a resume, yeah, but you do see it in success rates.

Speaker 2:

You do see it in actual results. That's right. I could take a poor person from a terrible background with no education and no training and help them be extremely successful if they have a good attitude. But you give me a rich, ivy League educated individual with all the connections in the world, but a bad attitude. Probably not a single thing I can do for them except help them with a good attitude. If they're willing to do what it takes to do that, then the sky's the limit, even for them.

Speaker 2:

See, I'm here to tell you that all of the successes that I've had throughout my entire life aren't because I'm necessarily any smarter than anyone or more talented or anything else. It's because I work hard, starting as a kid, to develop a good attitude. If you saw me driving down the road in high school, I might be listening to some very loud heavy metal music, classical music or Zig Ziglar. Yeah, I was kind of a weird kid, but even when I grew up surrounded by gangs and drugs and everything else going on back then, I was learning to develop a good attitude. Hey, I'm the first to admit that on the survival show I was on, there were people there with much better survival skills than me. There were people there who were stronger than me. Every single person on the show was younger than me, but no one no one, had a better attitude than me. And why is this? Because I've worked hard to build it and to guard my attitude all of my life. Now does that mean that it's always been rainbows, bunnies and unicorns? No, listen.

Speaker 2:

People often mistake what having a good attitude actually means. They think it means that you're happy all the time and that you always look on the bright side, no matter what. I'm going to disagree. I'm not sure that's part of it, but it's certainly not all of it. My father was killed when I was in high school. I was devastated. My whole family was devastated. One of my worst memories in my entire life was hearing my oldest brother wailing in anguish in our backyard. My mom and dad were deeply in love. They had the fairytale relationship that you only read about in books. They never had a single fight. And now my mom would have to live the rest of her years without the love of her life. Folks, there's no bright side to this. Mom would have to live the rest of her years without the love of her life. Folks, there's no bright side to this.

Speaker 2:

This is not a time to be happy, but it is the most important time for a good attitude. The attitude in this case is this is horrible, but together we're going to get through this. We will prevail, we will carry on. See, having a good attitude really matters. When the times are tough, it's easy. When the times are good, pretty much everyone can have one when everything's going great. But when the times are horrible I mean really really horrible that's when it's critical. That's when you have to dig down deep into the depths of your soul and go, no matter what I can, and I will carry on. This may sideline me temporarily, but by the grace of God, I will get through this. That's why it's so critical to build and protect your attitude every single day, so you have it not just to excel, but sometimes, even more importantly, to survive.

Speaker 2:

Now, this is a concept that I call attitude reserves. It's the same concept as gas in your gas tank. If your gas tank is full, you can go a long way. If it's empty, you're not going anywhere. If you're driving an electric vehicle, I already get it. Battery same thing. You understand. Obviously, you need to keep adding gas or power so you can keep going because you use it everywhere you go In the same manner. You only have a certain amount of attitude reserves to draw from when you need them. If your reserves get low, your attitude will start to tank.

Speaker 2:

If you've ever said or thought things like, look, I'm just fed up with it all, okay, I'm just tired of it, or I just can't take it anymore, then you are at the end of your attitude reserves. If you've ever been a parent, you've probably thought those things several times. Have you ever noticed that sometimes you just don't deal with people or situations as well as well other times? That's because your attitude reserves were low. That's why it's so critical to build and protect your attitude every single day. You need to take actions that build those reserves and stay away from actions that draw from them. So we're going to talk about both of those things Certainly how to build those reserves, but first of all, how to make sure circumstances and people never draw from them again. Okay, here we go.

Speaker 2:

Let me ask you a question who would you rather hang out with, tigger or Eeyore? I mean, you know what Eeyore's like Probably gonna rain today Again, and Tigger's like hoo-hoo-hoo-hoo, it's a beautiful day. Who would you rather hang out with Tigger? Right? Eeyore's a drag. And let me ask you this who do you think has more fun? Who has more friends? Who is more successful? Who makes more money? Who has better relationships, etc. Etc. Etc. No doubt about it. Tigger's our man. He's always bouncing around with joy. I love his quote. Oh, stop that gloomy rumination. All you need is a little bit of tiggerization. I love that. Come on, it's funny. But we've all known some Eeyores. Right, probably won't reach our quotas this month anyway. Why even try? You know what the secret is Don't be an Eeyore. Whatever you do, don't hang around with them.

Speaker 2:

So how do you recognize the Eeyores in life? One trait is what I call the yeah but syndrome. It's the identifying call of the Eeyores yeah, but yeah. But Now here's what I mean. Okay, you try to look on the bright side and they tear it down with their identifying call. Yeah, but You're like man. Look at that beautiful sunrise. It's a bright, sunshiny day. Yeah, but I'll probably get sunburned. Man, look how fast the traffic is moving. Yeah, but at this speed we'll probably be in an accident. Things are looking great for this quarter. Yeah, but the stock market will probably crash. They're always looking for a reason to talk down about someone or something. It's not that they don't always look at the bright side. They forgot. A bright side even exists. And here's another self-identifying trait of an Eeyore. Now, we talked about it before.

Speaker 2:

Have you ever heard someone say knowing my luck, something bad will happen? That's the call of an Eeyore. We just closed a huge deal. Knowing my luck, the finances will probably fall through. We're going on a beautiful hike in the mountains. Knowing my luck, I'll get eaten by a bear. You just won a million dollars. Knowing my luck, I'll have a heart attack.

Speaker 2:

These people can find a negative for every positive. They can find a cloud for every silver lining. When life gives them lemons, they suddenly decide they're allergic to lemons. What's worse, everyone else should be too. Have you ever run into people like that? They're everywhere.

Speaker 2:

People ask me all the time how I have such a positive attitude. Okay, here we go. It's simple. I choose to. That's simple, I choose to. That's right, I choose to. It is that simple. Now, I'm not saying it's that easy, but it is that simple.

Speaker 2:

Listen, your attitude is 100% up to you and no one else. Well, sometimes people make me angry. No, they don't. They may do bad things, but you choose to get angry. You choose your response to their actions. Well, sometimes circumstances get me down. No, they don't. Circumstances can't control your emotions. Only you can. Yes, bad things happen. I know They've happened to me. Have I been sad? Yes, have I been angry? Yes, have I been angry? Yes, will you too, without question. The only question is how long are we going to stay there? And that is completely in your control. That's your choice. You have to guard your attitude like your life depends on it, because it does and this is critical. Listen you have to stay away from the Eeyores. You have to stay away from the negative people. Now, I realize that can be challenging at times. How do you deal with the negative people in your life? Okay, get this. And this is going to be kind of maybe a little odd for you.

Speaker 2:

I've taught wilderness first aid for years, including how to save a drowning swimmer, and the technique really might surprise. You See, first you see someone struggling, so you swim out to them and they smile, thank you and gently hold on to you while you safely bring them to shore. Right Wrong, they're freaking out, they're panicking, they're tripping out, they start to grab onto you and can push you under the water in that panicked state. That's the way it really goes. That's what really happens.

Speaker 2:

So what do you do? Well, first of all, you talk to them. I need you to calm down. You're going to be all right, I've got you. Look me in the eyes. You're going to be okay. Hopefully that'll work.

Speaker 2:

But sometimes it doesn't. Sometimes they keep freaking out. They don't listen. They keep grabbing on and pushing you down under the water. Talking is not going to work. So what do you do? You cold cock them, that's right. You punch them in the face. You try to knock them out. Seriously, that's what you do. It might hurt them a little bit, but it'll certainly calm them down so you can work with them. But what if that doesn't work? What if they continue trying to pull you down? You give them one last chance. Look, if you don't stop trying to pull me down, I'm going to have to leave you. I'm going to have to swim away. And if that doesn't work, what do you do? You don't actually swim away, do you? I mean, that seems cruel. Yeah, you do. That's exactly what you do. Listen, let's face it. Either way they're going to drown. Either way they're going to drown, but one way they're going to take you down with them.

Speaker 2:

Now, obviously, it's the same thing with the negative people around you, and I've personally had to do this many times myself, even with those who are very close to me. If they're being intensely negative, including putting me down first, I'll talk to them Something like John, why would you say something like that? Oh, I'm just being honest. No, you're being rude and I'm going to ask you not to be rude to me. I deserve to be treated better. If it continues, it's time to hit them between the eyes.

Speaker 2:

One of my favorite lines is and this is just my lines you do it. However, it works for you. Here's one of my favorite lines. John, you know there are many things I like about you and I'd like to continue to be around you, but I don't allow people to continuously put me down. I know you think you're joking, but every time you say something like that, it makes me think you actually believe it. Even worse, every time you say something like that, I actually believe it a little bit more myself. Now I've had people come back with me and say sarcastically oh poor Terry, am I hurting your feelings and my answer is to look them straight in the eyes and say with a very firm voice, yes, and I won't allow it.

Speaker 2:

Friends, don't treat each other that way. If you continue to treat me that way, we're no longer friends. Do we have an understanding? Let me ask you something. Who's in charge now? See, they're trying to bully you, and if there's one thing I've learned about bullies, they back down when confronted. They're not strong, they're actually weak, and that's why they try to put up such a strong front. People automatically try to bring others to their own level. Someone who feels badly about themselves tries to bring others down to their level. Someone who feels good about themselves tries to bring others up to their level. So, if it continues, what do I do? You guessed it I walk away. They may drown, but they're not taking me down with them.

Speaker 2:

Always keep in mind that, above all, it's the people you hang around that have the most effect on you. This is important, guys. If you hang around with negative people, you will become one Period. Do you want the people around you to bring you up or tear you down? It's your choice by the type of people you hang around with. People automatically try to bring others to their own level. Now am I saying that you might have to get rid of some of your current friends? Absolutely, you bet I am. Cut them out, have a friendectomy. I know that might sound a bit harsh, but it's critical. Remember you need to protect your attitude, like your life depends on it, because it does. Every single aspect of your life depends on it. So if you have a drowning swimmer that won't listen to you even when you hit them between the eyes metaphorically, then you must swim away. Don't let them take you down with them. So that's the negative people in your life.

Speaker 2:

What about the negative memories? So let me ask you have you ever seen people trying to run through an airport? They're trying to get to their gate on time, carrying all those big bags, breathing hard, sweating, struggling, and all that baggage is just weighing them down, making that trip as hard as physically possible. And we may wonder man, why did they pack so much crap? How did they even try to run with all that weight holding them down? They will never make it there with all that baggage. It ain't going to happen. And yet that's what many of us are doing every single day, isn't it?

Speaker 2:

There's baggage in your own past that you're still carrying with you. It could be bad relationships or bad experiences or who knows what. There are things that happened years ago and you're still carrying them with you. It could be someone who wronged you years ago that you still have a grudge against. Let me ask you have you ever had an argument with someone and played it over and over and over again in your head? Why Did it make it better? No, it just kept us ticked off longer. Did it make it better? No, it just kept us ticked off longer. It just held us down.

Speaker 2:

Let it go, man. Drop the baggage. Or maybe you feel you've been cheated by life itself. You didn't start with the best circumstances. Maybe you don't feel like you were born with the gifts that others were born with. Let it go, man. Drop the baggage. Maybe something terrible happened to you. I'm sorry, I really am, but now it's baggage. You've got to let it go. Car something terrible happened to you. I'm sorry, I really am, but now it's baggage. You've got to let it go. Carrying that baggage with you just continues the pain. You keep reliving it and reliving it and reliving it, and that continues to wear you down long after it actually happened.

Speaker 2:

Let it go, man. Drop the baggage. There have been many other people that terrible things have happened to. Oprah Winfrey is just one of them. Terrible things, and yet they let it go. It's what you need to do also. You've got to drop the baggage.

Speaker 2:

See, in backpacking we have a phrase for how much gear you carry Ounces equals pounds and pounds equals miles. Let me say that again Ounces equals pounds and pounds equals miles. In other words, all the little things the ounces add up to big things the pounds and carrying those extra pounds means you can't go as far as you'd like to. You can't go as many miles. Ounces equals pounds and pounds equals miles.

Speaker 2:

My wife's purse, my wife's purse, is the same way. At some point, when her shoulder starts hurting, she finally realizes her purse has become heavy as heck. Just carrying its weight is wearing her down. So finally she decides to find out why and starts to unpack all of that baggage. She pours it out and it's amazing what all she's been carrying around for all of these weeks. By the way, I got her approval to tell this story before I told it, so we're good. So first of all, in her purse there are several dollars worth of spare change. I mean you could feed a family of four for a week on just the change alone. And each coin alone does away much, maybe an ounce or two, but if you add a bunch of it together it's pounds, baby. And then there's keys Keys to who knows what, locks that are long forgotten, and each one by itself again doesn't weigh much, but it all adds up and pins. You'd think there was a ballpoint factory. Actually in her purse there's so many pins. It's amazing what ends up in a purse. And all of those ounces add up to pounds that get needlessly carried around, just like all of us in our lives.

Speaker 2:

Listen, you have to unpack your baggage. Think about it. I mean this what baggage have you been carrying with you? What bad relationships or experiences have you been carrying with you? Allowing them to hold you back Again? Carrying it with you does you no good at all. It only allows that person or those circumstances to continue to control you. Don't let them anymore. Don't let those people control you anymore. Don't let those circumstances control you anymore. It's time to let it go. It's time to let it go. It's time to drop the baggage.

Speaker 2:

Okay, now the flip side of the coin. You're getting rid of the bad. Now you have more room for good. You know, again, we read all these things about improving your attitude, improving your attitude, but my belief is that you can only do so much without getting rid of the bad. You've got to get rid of that bad baggage so you have room for the good, otherwise you're going to have that yeah, but thing going on all the time. So we've gotten rid of the bad. Now we have more room for the good. Let's start putting more good in your life. Would you be interested to know the things that I personally do to build up my attitude, enabling me to do everything I've done? Well, hopefully, you said yes, because that's what we're going to do here. Okay, and this is serious, I do these things Absolutely and it really, really helps.

Speaker 2:

Strategy number one you need to appreciate what you've got. You need to appreciate what you've got. You need to appreciate what you've got, and a lot of times we've heard that. Perhaps you've heard that, but yet we don't do it enough, or else we'd all have a lot better attitudes. Quite frankly, let me ask you a question Did you wake up alive today? Did you wake up alive today? What do you mean? Of course you did. It's not guaranteed, is it? Do you realize that some people woke up this morning dead? Okay, they didn't actually wake up I think that's kind of the point, but you woke up alive. That's awesome, congratulations. That's a big deal. It's a huge deal. And did you appreciate it? We need to every single morning. Let me ask you, when you opened your eyes, could you see? You could man. You need to celebrate because there's a lot of people out there who couldn't. There's even people listening to this audio who couldn't. And look, it's not holding them back from pursuing their dreams and their goals. I'm betting nothing will dreams and their goals. I'm betting nothing will. Where were you when you woke up this morning? Where were you? In a bedroom? Wait, hold on. You had a roof over your head, you had walls, you had safety. That's amazing. And before you go, okay, come on, that's ridiculous. Okay, listen, understand, I've been to places where they didn't. You really probably don't realize how fortunate you are. You need to appreciate it, and the list goes on and on of the blessings that you have in your life. Do you have anyone at all in your life who cares about you? Anyone, anyone at all, who cares about you, maybe even a pet. What a blessing. Do you have any money at all At all? What a blessing. Remember, I've been with people who had absolutely nothing, nothing. And you have so much. Maybe you even have a job, a profession or a business Not sure you like your job, guess what. There's people around the world who would do anything to have your job and your home and your life. Millions of people around the globe would trade places with you in a heartbeat. You're so crazy blessed, but you have to realize it. Stop focusing on all the things that you don't have and focus on all the things that you do. That's a big one. Stop focusing on all the things you don't have and focus on all the things that you do. I'm going to let you in on a little secret. This is something that I personally do every single morning. Every single morning, every morning, the first thought, the absolute first thought in my head every single morning, every single morning, every morning, the first thought, the absolute first thought in my head every single morning, is thank you, god, for the gifts you have given me. Please help me use them for your service. Let me say it again for you, this is every single morning. Thank you, god, for the gifts you have given me. Please help me use them in your service. Can you imagine starting every single day that way? Don't imagine Do it. Write that phrase down, if you need to, and start every single day with it. Just see the difference it makes in your life and throughout the day, I'm continuously I mean this saying prayers of thanks for all the good things that happen, even the seemingly small things that happen. I'm saying prayers of thanks for them every day. Living a thankful life fills your heart with joy. Living a thankful life fills your heart with joy. Don't believe in God Okay, that's all right, your gig. Thank whatever deity you believe in, thank the universe, thank Mother Earth. I don't care who or what you thank, just be thankful. Appreciate everything you've got, and it'll make a tremendous difference in your attitude. Strategy number two we talked about not being around negative people. The other side of the coin is be around positive people, people you like, people who like you, the bottom line people who make you feel good and good about yourself. Let me say that again Be around people who make you feel good about yourself. Now, I don't mean people who falsely give you compliments. I mean people who are genuinely appreciative of you for who you are, who build you up instead of tearing you down, people who believe in you and don't spend too much time alone. That's when the negative thoughts start creeping in. Despite what we might think, humans are social creatures. We need socialization, so be around positive people, seek them out and do anything with them. Strategy number three Laugh more. That's right, la. Laugh more. Put more joy in your life. Laughter oxygenates your body. It releases endorphins that make you feel good and immune, boosting chemicals such as interleukins. It's a lot of great stuff scientifically for you. It relieves stress and, look, it's just plain fun. So would it actually help you to reach your goals by taking the time each day to laugh, to actually schedule it in your day? Yeah, believe it or not? Absolutely, now get this. You're probably going to question why I'm saying this when I talk a lot about managing your time appropriately, but get this. Schedule some YouTube time where you watch funny dog or cat videos, if that's what cracks you up. Put time in your schedule to watch comedy routines online or on TV or, even better, in person. Or, my personal favorite, hang out with funny people. Hang out with funny people. This time will serve you well, with better productivity, better health and a more positive attitude to help you conquer the obstacles and move forward and enjoy life, because that's what a lot of it's about, isn't it? Enjoy life. And if you're enjoying your life, and if you're enjoying the things you're doing and the people you're with, you're going to do a lot better with everything you attempt. Strategy number four keep feeding your mind with positive motivation. Keep feeding your mind with positive motivation. Listening to recordings and reading books like this are absolutely critical. Just like you have to feed your body good nutrition, you need to do the same thing with your mind. If you feed your body crap, it deteriorates right. If you feed your mind crap, it does the same. You can poison your body. You can poison your mind and, let's face it, our minds are getting plenty of crap every single day. Now can you listen to things like this recording more than once? Absolutely you need to. There's no way in the world you're going to soak up all of this, much less act on it after listening to it once. Growing up, I had loads of tapes like this in my car, feeding my mind every single day, and you know where I came from, I had these things I was listening to every single day and when I read, it's almost always an inspirational book that helps keep my mind and attitude healthy. It doesn't have to be a self-improvement book, though God knows, I do a lot of those. It can be a story, a true story or fiction that has a good feel to it, that makes you feel good, maybe even makes you laugh. On my website, ultimatedrivingforcecom, I have lots of great information for you, including my own personal email list that you can get on. Make sure and get on that list. Get on that list and follow me on all social media. You'll continue to get lots of positive reinforcement, including some glimpses into my own personal life and what's going on there. So keep feeding your mind with positive motivation. You've got room there. Now Fill it up with good stuff, because there's a lot of other bad stuff that's gonna try to get in there. Strategy number five get up off your butt. That's right, get up off your butt. Our bodies weren't made for this sedentary lifestyle that most of us are leading. They were made to move around. Getting the blood flowing. Your muscles moving your limbs, moving around all have amazing health benefits and we all know that your health affects every aspect of your life, but it's more than that. If we get up off of our butts, we get out there and do things. We see new things, we try new things, we have more and different experiences, we get more out of life, our minds and our bodies get stimulated, and both of those have a tremendous positive effect on our attitudes. Bottom line get out of the house, stop watching so much TV or just looking at things online for too long, etc. Etc. Etc. Look, there's a lot of beauty out there and adventure and hardship and excitement and a lot of life out there. Get out there and enjoy it. Strategy number six this is an important one Help others. Help others. How would you like to have a more positive attitude pretty much immediately? Would that be good? Would that be helpful? You bet it would and you can do it. And here's how Get out there and help people. It really is as simple as that. It really is. Go find someone that's not as well off as you are and there's a lot of them, I promise you and help them in some way. Volunteer. Go to a homeless shelter, a retirement home, an animal shelter, a special needs center, a teen center. Whatever it is that moves you, whatever it is that excites you, that you're passionate about, whatever rolls your socks up and down, there's so many people out there that need your help. Go fight for some cause that's important to you. Nothing is better to get your mind off feeling sorry for yourself and on to helping others. You can't help someone else without it helping you dramatically. So go out there and help people. Make a difference in the world, and it'll make a difference in yours. Strategy number seven is take action toward a goal that's right. Take action towards a goal that's right. Take action towards a goal Action. There's nothing more effective at building your attitude than taking action. Action towards a goal, no matter how small or large that goal is. That's something around the house that you've noticed. It's been bothering you, but you haven't fixed it yet. Try doing it and see how it makes you feel that place. You've been thinking about going that friend. You've been thinking about calling that goal you've always thought about but haven't done anything at all yet. You just haven't gotten around to yet. Do some part of it, any part of it. The feeling of accomplishment not only helps your attitude but leads to more. I did that. I guess I could do this too, and often that sense of accomplishment leads to more. I did that. I guess I could do this too, and often that sense of accomplishment leads to more involved tasks, which leads you to accomplish more. Remember, you crawled before you walked and you walked before you ran, and before all of that, you picked yourself up off the floor. So, if needs be, pick yourself up off the floor and start to crawl. Then build your strength and confidence and start to walk. Then it's time to run. And the final strategy, strategy number eight embrace yourself. That's right. Embrace yourself. Now get this. I've heard many times God made you perfect, just the way you are. Have you heard that? Guess what? No, he didn't. I'm sorry to burst your bubble, but we're not perfect. Okay, you're not perfect. I am not perfect. We're flawed by nature, and that's okay. According to my belief, there's only been one perfect person on this earth, and I'm not him. What I am going to tell you, though, is to embrace your imperfections. None of us are perfect. Awesome. Don't try to be, just try to be yourself. Try to be the best version of yourself you can possibly be, but be yourself, and this is extremely important. Do your best and forgive yourself for the rest. Let me say that again Do your best and forgive yourself for the rest. You're going to screw up. You're going to do dumb things, no matter how many books you read or audios you listen to, seminars you go to. Things aren't always going to go well, and that's okay as long as you try it as hard as you can and you did it with the best of intentions. That's all God or anyone can ask of you, and that's all you should ask of yourself, can ask of you, and that's all you should ask of yourself. Now, that's not to say that you shouldn't try to improve those aspects of yourself that you feel need improving. Of course you should. That's why you're listening to this audio. But remember, we are all a work in progress, every one of us. I'm a work in progress and you are too. Embrace yourself as a beautiful and progress and you are too. Embrace yourself as a beautiful, imperfect being who is working hard toward whatever goals are in your heart and in your head. So, to wrap this up appreciate what you've got. It's a lot. Stay away from negative people and be around positive people, people who lift you up. Laugh more, get up off your butt and experience more of this amazing world. Help others and help yourself while you're doing it. Take action towards a goal, no matter how large or small it is, and embrace yourself as the amazing work in progress that you are, and protect your attitude, like your life depends on it, because it does you do that, you'll absolutely blow this bolt.

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So that's it for today's episode of the Comeback Chronicles. Head on over to Apple Podcasts or wherever you listen, and subscribe to the show. If you're ready to get over your fears, self-doubts and past failures and break through your comfort zone to reach the pinnacle of success in every area of your life, head over to terrielfawesomecom to pick up your free gifts and so much more. We'll see you next week on the Comeback Chronicles podcast.