Attitudes are skills
One of my favourite writers, Seth Godin recently released a list — “Notes to myself”, with 65 points of wisdom.
This stood out for me:
Attitudes are skills
We often think of attitudes as innate and immutable. It might seem that how we look at something is fixed and passive.
But what if like Godin, we see attitudes as skills?
If you put in the time, effort and energy into cultivating a skill, you gain a new arrow in your quiver. As you continue working on that skill, you are more easily able to use it. This can apply to attitudes as well.
Say by nature you lean towards a pessimistic perspective. If attitudes are indeed skills, then adopting a more optimistic perspective can be a matter of practice. In fact, I've found this to be true for myself. By engaging in positive practices like keeping a gratitude journal for over 3.5 years, I find myself more able to find opportunities within challenges. My ability to bounce back from setbacks has also improved.
Had you asked me a few years ago whether I thought this would be possible, my answer would have been a flat 'No'. But the evidence, at least in my lived experience, tells me that shaping and reshaping our attitudes is possible.
Of course, there are other mindset shifts that I'd benefit from. I'll get to that one at a time.
What attitude would become easier for you to adopt when you treat it like a skill?