The 3-Month Attitude Challenge
How it changed my life
Not too long ago had an a much-needed attitude adjustment. I was in yet another corporate restructure, I had another new manager and a new team. I knew these guys because I was still in the same general department, only now our one big IT department was broken up into smaller segments and we each had our own piece of the IT pie. I was bitter and my attitude sucked. I hadn’t gotten a raise in over 4 years and I felt like I was dealing with clueless management. Not to mention previous decisions made by upper management for the past several years had taken their toll. More on that here.
“Complaining does not work as a strategy. We all have finite time and energy. Any time we spend whining is unlikely to help us achieve our goals. And it won’t make us happier.” ~ Randy Pausch
One day, a coworker of mine asked me if I had a minute. He pulled me off into one of the unused conference rooms and asked me if I could do a little experiment. He didn’t ask me to change my attitude, he just simply suggested that I be less vocal. Basically, if I had a gripe, keep it to myself. If I couldn’t keep it to myself, don’t spout off, take a moment, weigh the pros and cons of my argument, write it down and submit it to our boss. He said that through his discussion with our current manager, the only thing holding me back was my attitude. My work was fine. It was my disposition that was the problem. It didn’t matter that I was asking legitimate questions, it was the way I was asking them. It was also my reaction if I didn’t like the answers. My friend told me to try this for 3 months and “see what happens”.
I agreed.
In that three months, I made a very focused effort not to shoot my mouth off in meetings or anywhere else for that matter. I greeted everyone who came to my desk, without submitting a work order, with a helpful attitude, while politely reminding them of our process to submit orders. I began to let things go that I couldn’t control. In three months I went from the guy who did good work, but with a bad attitude, to a guy who did good work and “was a pleasure to work with.” I received kudos left and right. As time went on, my concerns were taken more seriously.
I started to see results. Positive results.
Because of that change in attitude, I have received two substantial raises in the past year. My position has been reevaluated so that it is properly labeled and management is making valid efforts to increase my pay so that I am at the current market value for my position. I am taken more seriously and my opinions and suggestions carry weight. I have learned to let go of those things I have no control over and be active in making the changes I can control. As an added bonus, my personal life has a whole lot less stress. I’m no longer bringing home the stress I would build up while at work.
“Nothing can stop the man with the right mental attitude from achieving his goal; nothing on earth can help the man with the wrong mental attitude”.
— Thomas Jefferson
