Monday Musing: Perspective

I’ve always sort of sympathized for Mondays. Many people (myself included) tend to give Mondays a bad rap, and a Monday coming off of a holiday weekend gets it even worse. It’s always tough to jump back in to the daily grind after a few days off. So, I wanted to take today to provide a little motivation for a change in perspective. I think it’s important to start the week in a positive direction, and that positive start is fueled by our own point of view.

Raise your hand if you’ve ever encountered a problem or situation that you let affect you more than it should have. (You’re all raising your hand right?) In public relations, overcoming problems is my job. However, that doesn’t make me an expert at fixing and moving on from my own issues. This is a task I strive to do better in every day, and lucky for me, life tends to throw enough curve balls that I get to practice from time to time. 

 
The dictionary defines perspective as "the capacity to view things in their true relation or relative importance." Whenever I struggle with an issue, my Mom likes to remind me that 85 percent of the setback is my attitude. Sometimes the best way to overcome a problem is a simple change in perspective.

The ability to live with a positive perspective makes you your own best friend. You become your support system, help yourself get through difficult times, encourage yourself to do the things you want to do and remind yourself of your successes. Adversity is an unavoidable part of life. The trick is to embrace these challenges as opportunities. Seek out the positive and motivate yourself to learn from whatever hurdles life asks you to overcome.

One of my favorite stories is the one with the professor who does a demonstration to his class using a mayonnaise jar, golf balls, pebbles, sand and two beers. His display reminds the students to put the most important things in life first. The reason being, that putting the smaller things first doesn’t leave any room for the bigger, more important things in life. This story reminds me to alter my perspective to invest in the things that are most important in leading a fuller life. For example, finding a job after my internship is important; however I should not allow my job search cause me neglect important time with my friends and family. 

One of my favorite views of the city of Birmingham

There will always be more challenges. These hurdles are there for a reason, and are our chance to show how badly we want something. These walls will only stop the ones that don’t want to reach their goals bad enough, but don’t let those walls overshadow what matters most.

Over the long weekend, Julie and I received news that a close college friend was in a serious car accident and sustained injuries that leave him in critical condition. This weekend we were reminded that tomorrow is never promised. Many of the challenges we face are trivial in comparison to the big picture. Make the most of each day so as to live the fullest life you could imagine.

Monday’s are only as gloomy as you let them be.