Peace, Man

This picture reminded me of a story my old boss told us all one time at one of our Sales Rallies. The entire company was there, dressed in semi-formal attire, and we all sat riveted as this man spoke. He had a gift for public speaking and motivating people. Here is what he told us.

One morning you wake up and you are grouchy. You stayed up too late the night before. You spill coffee on your suit and have to change. You are going to be late to a big meeting. Your husband ticks you off as you are heading out the door. You get into your car and start your long commute. At one point, you are peeved. You are following a van with a bumper sticker that says "Expect Whirled Peas" or some other peace seeking advice that is driving ten miles below the speed limit. As you pull up to a stop light, you finally to get a chance to pass on the left. As you pull up beside the driver's side of the van, you see the driver is a hippie fellow. He turns to look at you, and for some reason, it irks you. You scowl and he flips you the bird.

Now imagine an alternate scenario. You are well rested and, the planets must be in alignment, because your husband was an angel and got up early to take out the trash and make the coffee so you wouldn't have to get up until a half hour later. You have a big meeting this morning, but you are ready. You spent the evening preparing and you went to bed early. As you are relaxing in the shower, you look forward to donning your new suit. You are going to be a power player today. You kiss your husband and head out the door. There isn't much traffic and you have plenty of time. At one point, you are following a van with a bumper sticker that says "Expect Whirled Peas" or some other peace seeking advice that is driving ten miles below the speed limit. You smile and think about how nice the concept of peace is. You want to hug the driver of the van for advertising such a worthy cause. As you pull up to a stop light, you finally to get a chance to pass on the left. As you pull up beside the driver's side of the van, you see the driver is a hippie fellow. He turns to look at you, you smile and wave. He flips you the bird. You chuckle and think about how ironic it is that a man spreading peace, just got peeved with you for no reason. He must have had a bad morning.

The moral of this story is that attitude is everything. Your attitude colors how you see the world. It changes your ability to succeed. It changes how you interact with others at work.

He who has so little knowledge of human nature as to seek happiness by changing anything but his own disposition will waste his life in fruitless efforts.
~Samuel Johnson