Accentuate the positive
Even if you love what you do, revving up after the weekend (holidays) takes a little more effort.
How do you get, stay and maintain a positive outlook and motivation when you’re just not “feeling it”?
We call it the Positivity Diet. It’s free. You don’t have to count calories. And it works.
Some of the go-to practices include positive affirmations, gratitude, and positive self-talk —
However, today I want to share the lazy way to infuse positive motivation in (myself and my) yourself and your team: with an inspiring story.
Here’s one of my favorites:
During a visit to the NASA space center in 1962, President John F. Kennedy noticed a janitor carrying a broom. He interrupted his tour, walked over to the man and said, "Hi, I'm Jack Kennedy. What are you doing?"
"Well, Mr. President," the janitor responded, "I'm helping put a man on the moon."
--bizjournals.com 12/23/2014
So what is it about the simple exchange that spikes our feel-good brain chemicals?
Perhaps it was the janitor’s feeling of connection to a bigger vision, and his own sense of having a greater purpose. He wasn’t just sweeping the floor; he was committing to excellence in every push of the broom, every task at every moment of his day—knowing that every other member of the NASA team was just as focused on the value of his or her contribution. He understood that the whole was greater than the sum of its parts.
We often forget the importance of each of our roles in the larger good of an organization. Whether each action is noticed by another isn’t important; what’s important is knowing that WE notice our own commitment to bringing excellence, honor and integrity to what we do.
This is a quote attributed to Martin Luther King Jr., "If a man is called to be a street sweeper, he should sweep streets even as Michelangelo painted, or Beethoven composed music, or Shakespeare wrote poetry. He should sweep streets so well that all the hosts of heaven and earth will pause to say, 'Here lived a great street sweeper who did his job well.’ "
Reading bits of inspiration like this seem to remind us that what we do, does matters, that each of us matters---we take a deep breath, stand up straighter, and carry a renewed sense of I want to be more like him or her or them--into each new day.