HUNT: It is never too late to change the ending
Have you had one of those days? You know the ones. You wake up late. You stub your toe as you hurry to get dressed, and then on the way to work, you are stopped at every red light. You realize you forgot your notes at home for the presentation you must give at work. One thing after another seems to be going wrong. You are in a bad mood and want to begin the day over again. Or rush through it and get it over with. It is a no-good rotten terrible day!
It is easy to become the victim and believe that the day is out to get you, everyone is against you, and the world is a terrible place. You are just an innocent bystander in this calamity of a day because you think, "Everything always happens to me!" Then one day turns into two and then a week goes by, and you are in total victim mode and slowly you believe your world is falling apart. And then it does.
When a day begins like this, it is human nature to lock in on all the bad things that are going wrong and how nothing ever goes right. Reticular thinking takes over. Our brain begins noticing and directing our attention toward what matters most to it. In this state of expecting everything bad to happen, what matters most to our brain is bad things happening. So, our life is going to give us more bad things.
Let's look at reality. There are many days when one or two unfortunate things happen. That does not mean we should just check the day off as a bad day. We have more control over how our day turns out than you might think.
What if we took control of our thinking pattern and allowed reticular thinking to work in a positive way? If we stop at the first or second inconvenient experience and begin looking for the good in the day, we can control what our brain is noticing.
Maybe you overslept and stubbed your toe, but the coffee is hot and tastes great! On the drive to work when you are stopped at red lights, notice the sunrise or the beautiful blue sky. Be grateful for the car you are driving. When you arrive at work smile at everyone you see – they will smile back. Be grateful for your job.
With every interaction and experience, continue looking for the good in the day. It won't take long for you to forget about how the day began. Your mind is too busy concentrating on seeing the good in your day. Your brain is clicking through the day frame by frame, moment by moment, interaction by interaction searching for happy situations.
You begin to think, "Everything good always happens to me!" Then one day turns into two and then a week goes by, and you are in total control of your life. Slowly you believe your world is an amazing place. And it is!
When you are having one of those days where everything seems to be going wrong... remember, it is never too late to change the ending of your day. Until the day is over there is always time to create a good memory and forget the bad. There is always time to change the pattern. There is always time for everything good to happen to you!
Pennie's Life Lesson: There is always time to change the ending of a bad day. Until the day is over there is always time to make it a good day.
Pennie Hunt is from Rapid City. She is the author of the books, "Love Your Life- ips to Create Joy and Happiness, "Love Your Life- ips to Journey Through Grief and Loss," and "Love Your Life- NO MATTER WHAT -76 Tips to Live Life With Love and Gratitude." She is a professional speaker and member of the National Speakers Association. Find her "Corner of Spirit & Brave" at www.PennieHunt.com Email:
