I’ll tell you where it doesn’t come from; within. There are a lot of wonderful quotes and beautiful haiku’s out there about having a positive mental attitude. The problem is that most people feel good when they hear these quotes, feel inspired and believe them as truth. At the end of the day, consistency is what promotes or breaks a positive mental attitude. If the inspiration is short lived, so will the positive attitude.
Being positive is really not a completely conscious choice. Most people pride themselves for being positive. I, myself use to pride myself for being a really positive person, until I started being not so positive. A little research into human behavior did a lot for me when I was down.
They say “times change, people change”. I agree with that, but there’s something missing. “Times change, environments change, people change”. As time goes by, the world around us changes and we respond to it. The response, no matter how conscious it is, really isn’t a choice. Subconsciously, we all seek comfort in efficiency. So when times change, we do in order to stay relevant and keep life smooth for us.
What does this have to do with a positive mental attitude? Well if the environment changes over time, so will people. If that change is negative, people will tend to have a weak mental attitude. Most people who struggle and become do so because how bad they don’t want to be where they are. Usually, that’s a negative place. They have to succeed because the discomfort was so strong that it forced behavioral change. After the success, now you have positive people.
The positive mental attitude didn’t come first. It didn’t come from within. It spawned from an environmental stimulus that was a positive reinforcement. Thinking positive doesn’t work and it never has. It only gives short bursts of false dopamine until your actions fall short. Then you’ll fall right back into your rut.
People have to focus more on their environment, rather than their attitude. Once life around you becomes better, you start to feel better and be positive. Think about it, poor people are usually more stressed out than rich people. It’s because they are in a worse situation.
Situations create attitude, not your mind or spirit or whatever crap these kumbaya quotes fill people’s heads with.
Nice post. I absolutely agree with your claim. If the conditions that people live under aren’t changed than people will continue to steel or commit crimes, feel negative about their lives, and see the world as an unjust system that only benefits a few. Environment is everything when it comes to changing the attitudes of people.