What Am I Thinking??

A former co-worker once complimented me on my attitude. She said I was different from the other people at work; I was so positive. After thanking her, I told her I didn't watch the news (people will tell you bad news whether you ask or not) and I read lots of self-development, self-improvement books. She asked for a list of the books I had read. I started going through my library to make the list and, to my surprise, I had read a lot of self-improvement books.

You see, it wasn't that I was not a reader. After college, I read plenty of romance novels (you know, the ones with a picture of a woman with big hair and the silhouette of a shirtless buff man in the background on the cover). But I had started a business in 1999 and my business partners, my mentors, encouraged me to read books that would improve me as a person. Books that would change my thinking for the better. And since I wanted to be successful like them and I read the books they read. However, before my co-worker said something,

I didn't realize the books had affected me.

I remember when my office (when I had a job!) got a new supervisor. At her first staff meeting, she made it abundantly clear that leave from work would be granted "by the book" only which meant if a request for leave was not made 24 hours in advance, it would not granted. Period. Well one day while I was at work, it began to snow and the snow began to accumulate. Not good. People in the Washington, D.C. area, and I can say this because I am a native Washingtonian, do not know how to drive in the snow! It can be dangerous to drive. My cousin calls me and tells me to leave work immediately because the roads are treacherous and people are having car accidents. I hung up the phone, filled out a leave slip and started to my supervisor's office. Well, my co-workers began snickering and saying she was not going to let me go home. I went into her office, handed her my leave slip and firmly said, "I have to leave now. My cousin called and said the roads are treacherous. I live in Maryland and I drove to work. I am leaving now. I will be in tomorrow if the weather permits." She said okay and took the slip. I left the office as my co-workers stood around with their mouths hanging open.

Today, I KNOW what I read effects my thinking which effects my attitude. What are you reading? Glad you asked! Click on Books I Have Read in the right margin to see a starter list. Understand, the list is not complete; it's just a "little some'um some'um" so you can see what effects my daily thinking. I also read SUCCESS magazine cover to cover each month. (http://www.successmagazine.com/)

There is a saying, "garbage in. garbage out" or as it it said in the Bible, "For as he thinks in his heart, so is he." Proverbs 23:7 (NKJV). I know no one controls what I think except me. I work very hard everyday to keep garbage, negative and self-defeating information, out of my thinking. It is not always easy, but when I do.....I hear the birds sing outside my window, I smell the flowers as I walk by, and I see greens and blues in nature. I see possibilities. I keep moving forward. And I enjoy life.

Question to ponder:  What are YOU thinking?