I’m still amazed at the leaders that I come across that don’t understand that their demeanor – their day to day attitude, has serious impact on the organization. I’m not asking executives to bury their heads in the sand or to deny the realities of the times.  I’m saying that in difficult times professionals need to be able to look to a leader who has his/her feet on the ground and an attitude that today is going to be a better day than yesterday.  This attitude needs to permeate his/her entire being. It needs to be woven like the fabric of their clothes into their personalities and leadership styles.

I remember setting in my economics class many years ago and Dr. Poindexter telling me that my generation would be the first Americans that would not be able to afford their own homes.  Mortgage rates were running between 16 – 21% during my collegiate days.   Making the time right for an actor to take the stage of the highest office in the land with a simple question, “Are you better off than you were four years ago?” and a promise that you would be during the next for years if you elected him.

I’m not here to debate why or how things improved during the Reagan years.  I just remember the feeling of confidence that we all got from the way he carried himself and the attitude that he projected.  By the way, I did buy my first house in 1984. It was an FHA ARM at a little over 7% with a 2% max annual limit increase and a 6% life of the loan increase.  I currently live in my fourth primary residence and I don’t plan on it being my last.

The displaying of positive attitudes by a leadership team sows seeds of innovation in your professionals and helps create a sense of purpose and loyalty in the workforce.  In my opinion no one has said it better than Chuck Swindoll:

“The longer I live, the more I realize the impact of attitude on life. Attitude, to me, is more important than facts. It is more important than the past, the education, the money, than circumstances, than failure, than successes, than what other people think or say or do. It is more important than appearance, giftedness or skill. It will make or break a company… a church… a home. The remarkable thing is we have a choice everyday regarding the attitude we will embrace for that day. We cannot change our past… we cannot change the fact that people will act in a certain way. We cannot change the inevitable. The only thing we can do is play on the one string we have, and that is our attitude. I am convinced that life is 10% what happens to me and 90% of how I react to it. And so it is with you… we are in charge of our Attitudes.”

So what’s your take? Do you still believe it’s not that big of a deal to show negative emotions, to say or write negative things in front of the workforce or team? I hope not.

by:  Terry L. Massey

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