If someone asked you to name one hundred things in the room that were red, you might start noticing all the little bits of red around you: a lanyard for a convention badge, a DVD box, red binding for a book, the label on a bottle of Tylenol, or the lettering on a textbook. But if you hadn’t been asked to, would you have looked for them, or even noticed them at all? Chances are, you wouldn’t have.

By changing your focus, you can do a lot to alter your perception of what is happening around you. Having a good day – and being happy! – aren’t just about having good relationships with the people around you or successfully finishing a project at work, but also about the attitude that you carry with you. Seeing the silver linings in your day is something that serves you: like a filter, you’re opening yourself up to seeing more of the goodness and positivity that fills your life.

Several weeks ago, I was asked to temporarily move to the graveyard shift at work due to lack of coverage – a change that later became permanent. Though there are some obvious downsides to working odd hours, I determined instead to look for the silver linings: taking yoga classes during the day, being able to fit swimming at the gym into my daily routine, and presenting myself as a positive and hard-working individual in my professional sphere. (Plus, I avoid the commuter traffic, and I can actually make it to the bank on a weekday!)

There will be bad days and changes in your life that are maddening, frustrating, and don’t seem much like anything except the worst possible outcome; but, can changing the lens that you look at your life with help you to see the good in what seems to be a bad situation?

Much Love and Respect,
Yvonne Law