A Shift in Thinking

The neighbor’s young rooster began his croaky serenade to the sun. I could tell he was young and just learning how to use his newly discovered skill. He had a long way to go, as far as rooster crows were concerned! The sound was almost painful to hear.

The big amber ball he was calling to hadn’t made its way to the horizon yet, but I could see its distant illumination was already changing the hue of the morning sky.

I lay in bed, grumbling in my head about the annoyance of the rooster’s disturbing sound interrupting a peaceful morning. But then I thought about my own journey of learning to play an instrument. When I first picked up a flute, placed it to my lips with an awkward hold of the long cold metal tube, I felt nervous about what sound it would make. I knew it would not be beautiful or melodic in any way, but that didn’t stop me.

I rested the mouthpiece on my chin and pursed my lips to blow across the opening. Of course, the resulting sound was nothing but air passing through a metal tube, not musical at all!

After several failed attempts, I wanted to give up and play the triangle! At least I already knew I could keep a beat.

But my music teacher patiently coached me into better techniques that led to actual “flute sounds”! This small achievement gave me confidence and the determination to keep practicing so as to genuinely PLAY.

My practice paid off and it turns out I am a pretty good flautist! First chair all through school and honor bands as well. But success didn't come without a love for music and the effort to hone those skills!

So that morning, as the adolescent rooster continued to break the morning silence with his cracking, broken voice, I decided not to begrudge him. He was, after all, only practicing his natural instinct. One day he would become fabulous at his crow, which he was curiously designed to do. By changing my outlook from seeing him as a nuisance that was disturbing my slumber, to considering myself privileged to experience his development into what he was created to do, I have been able to remove those feelings of frustration. 

Is there something going on in your life that is causing you stress, pain or frustration? Can that be viewed differently in order to minimize the negative impact on your mental state?

We all face challenges that threaten to compromise our thinking, our plans, our goals.

Shifting one's thinking to evaluate a situation with a different perspective goes a long way to benefit mental health, in turn, helping cultivate contentment and happiness. It's not an easy task for some, while others seem to find the silver linings effortlessly. Which are you?

If you're typically in the group that feels disgruntled, frustrated or disappointed more often than not, I challenge you to try viewing things from different angles. Find the silver lining that will shift your thinking to turn a negative into a positive. Your mind and heart will thank you! So will those around you, when they see you become happier and more enjoyable to be around.

We all want happiness and success, don't we? How that looks for you will be a unique picture. Just keep in mind that you're the artist! What will you bring to the foreground of your picture? What aspects will you highlight and spend more time on the details with? What do you want observers to notice first? Focusing on the answers to those questions, as if you are painting a masterpiece, will help you put those thoughts at the forefront of your life and the "niggly negatives" will become hidden in the background or painted over with beautiful colors and images.

Try it for a week, see what happens! Feel free to comment here with your results. Or if you have a tactic you use to help you stay positive, please share it so we can all benefit.

Your Wordy Little Birdie,

Nix