Occasionally I need an attitude adjustment. OK, I will be honest…I need an attitude adjustment quite often. There are several strategies I employ to get my attitude back in line where it should be. A round of golf never hurts anything. Sometimes I enjoy playing alone, so I can just take in the beauty of nature as I chase the little white ball. A phone conversation with a close friend moves me in the right direction as well. When I spend part of a shift with one of the police officers or troopers, I generally come home with the realization that my problems are not all that bad. A day off with a good book or a building project always helps the attitude. But there is another strategy that I think has a longer and more profound effect.

This past weekend I realized that my typical attitude adjustment techniques were not going to cut it. I pulled out the big guns. I have forced myself to write down 5 things I am thankful for about my job every single day this week. I in turn wrote a separate list of 5 things I am thankful for in regard to my family and still another list of 5 points of gratitude regarding the community where I live. I practiced this discipline in my hand written journal each day this week. Does it sound like a difficult task?

When your attitude has gone south, it actually sounds like an impossible undertaking. But I found on a few of the days I had more than 5 things in a particular category to list. They had to wait until the next day! I also forced myself to be specific and make sure that each thing included on the list was meaningful and not trite. As the days ticked by, I also practiced another discipline.

After composed the daily lists, I went back and read over all of the entries from the previous days. I think that may have been the most meaningful aspect of the entire journey. It is amazing how quickly we forget. I was saying “oh wow” to myself even over pieces of the lists that were written just a couple of days ago. This approach to adjusting my attitude can be declared a success. At least I think that is the case…Only time will tell if it can make a substantial difference.  I am very hopeful. I find that I am less inclined to be negative, and that of course is a good thing. I have heard the old Hank William’s Junior song entitled: Attitude Adjustment. I do believe my approach is probably much better! I would urge my friends to try it for a week and see what the consequences are!  I am ready to try it for a second week! We shall see what happens.