Post by Betty on Jun 26, 2006 15:05:51 GMT -5
LET IT REALLY SINK IN - THEN CHOOSE.
John is the kind of guy you love to hate. He is
always in a good mood and always has something
positive to say. When someone would ask him how he
was doing, he would reply, "If I were any better,
I would be twins!"
He was a natural motivator.
If an employee was having a bad day, John was
there telling the employee how to look on the
positive side of the situation.
Seeing this style really made me curious, so one
day I went up and asked him, "I don't get it!
You can't be a positive person all of the time.
How do you do it?"
He replied, "Each morning I wake up and say to
myself, you have two choices today. You can choose
to be in a good mood or ... you can choose to be
in a bad mood.
I choose to be in a good mood."
Each time something bad happens, I can choose to
be a victim or...I can choose to learn from it. I
choose to learn from it.
Every time someone comes to me complaining, I can
choose to accept their complaining or... I can
point out the positive side of life. I choose the
positive side of life.
"Yeah, right, it's not that easy," I protested.
"Yes, it is," he said. "Life is all about
choices. When you cut away all the junk, every situation
is a choice. You choose how you react to
situations. You choose how people affect your mood.
You choose to be in a good mood or bad mood. The
bottom line: It's your choice how you live your
life."
I reflected on what he said. Soon hereafter, I
left the Tower Industry to start my own business.
We lost touch, but I often thought about him when
I made a choice about life instead of reacting to
it.
Several years later, I heard that he was involved
in a serious accident, falling some 60 feet from
a communications tower.
After 18 hours of surgery and weeks of intensive
care, he was released from the hospital with rods
placed in his back.
I saw him about six months after the accident.
When I asked him how he was, he replied, "If I
were any better, I'd be twins...Wanna see my
scars?"
I declined to see his wounds, but I did ask him
what had gone through his mind as the accident
took place.
"The first thing that went through my mind was
the well-being of my soon-to-be born daughter," he
replied. "Then, as I lay on the ground, I
remembered that I had two choices: I could choose to
live or...I could choose to die. I chose to live."
"Weren't you scared? Did you lose consciousness?"
I asked.
He continued, "..the paramedics were great.
They kept telling me I was going to be fine. But
when they wheeled me into the ER and I saw the
expressions on the faces of the doctors and nurses,
I got really scared. In their eyes, I read 'he's
a dead man'. I knew I needed to take action."
"What did you do?" I asked.
"Well, there was a big burly nurse shouting
questions at me," said John. "She asked if I was
allergic to anything. 'Yes, I replied.' The doctors
and nurses stopped working as they waited for my
reply. I took a deep breath and yelled, 'Gravity'."
Over their laughter, I told them, "I am choosing
to live. Operate on me as if I am alive, not
dead."
He lived, thanks to the skill of his doctors, but
also because of his amazing attitude... I learned
from him that every day we have the choice to
live fully.
Attitude, after all, is everything.
Therefore do not worry about tomorrow, for
tomorrow will worry about itself. Each day has enough
trouble of its own." Matthew 6:34.
After all today is the tomorrow you worried about
yesterday.
John is the kind of guy you love to hate. He is
always in a good mood and always has something
positive to say. When someone would ask him how he
was doing, he would reply, "If I were any better,
I would be twins!"
He was a natural motivator.
If an employee was having a bad day, John was
there telling the employee how to look on the
positive side of the situation.
Seeing this style really made me curious, so one
day I went up and asked him, "I don't get it!
You can't be a positive person all of the time.
How do you do it?"
He replied, "Each morning I wake up and say to
myself, you have two choices today. You can choose
to be in a good mood or ... you can choose to be
in a bad mood.
I choose to be in a good mood."
Each time something bad happens, I can choose to
be a victim or...I can choose to learn from it. I
choose to learn from it.
Every time someone comes to me complaining, I can
choose to accept their complaining or... I can
point out the positive side of life. I choose the
positive side of life.
"Yeah, right, it's not that easy," I protested.
"Yes, it is," he said. "Life is all about
choices. When you cut away all the junk, every situation
is a choice. You choose how you react to
situations. You choose how people affect your mood.
You choose to be in a good mood or bad mood. The
bottom line: It's your choice how you live your
life."
I reflected on what he said. Soon hereafter, I
left the Tower Industry to start my own business.
We lost touch, but I often thought about him when
I made a choice about life instead of reacting to
it.
Several years later, I heard that he was involved
in a serious accident, falling some 60 feet from
a communications tower.
After 18 hours of surgery and weeks of intensive
care, he was released from the hospital with rods
placed in his back.
I saw him about six months after the accident.
When I asked him how he was, he replied, "If I
were any better, I'd be twins...Wanna see my
scars?"
I declined to see his wounds, but I did ask him
what had gone through his mind as the accident
took place.
"The first thing that went through my mind was
the well-being of my soon-to-be born daughter," he
replied. "Then, as I lay on the ground, I
remembered that I had two choices: I could choose to
live or...I could choose to die. I chose to live."
"Weren't you scared? Did you lose consciousness?"
I asked.
He continued, "..the paramedics were great.
They kept telling me I was going to be fine. But
when they wheeled me into the ER and I saw the
expressions on the faces of the doctors and nurses,
I got really scared. In their eyes, I read 'he's
a dead man'. I knew I needed to take action."
"What did you do?" I asked.
"Well, there was a big burly nurse shouting
questions at me," said John. "She asked if I was
allergic to anything. 'Yes, I replied.' The doctors
and nurses stopped working as they waited for my
reply. I took a deep breath and yelled, 'Gravity'."
Over their laughter, I told them, "I am choosing
to live. Operate on me as if I am alive, not
dead."
He lived, thanks to the skill of his doctors, but
also because of his amazing attitude... I learned
from him that every day we have the choice to
live fully.
Attitude, after all, is everything.
Therefore do not worry about tomorrow, for
tomorrow will worry about itself. Each day has enough
trouble of its own." Matthew 6:34.
After all today is the tomorrow you worried about
yesterday.
