How Negative Leaders Become Positive Thinkers
You may think being ungrateful makes you look powerful. Nothings good enough for you. But the companions of ungratefulness are disappointment, frustration, stress, and negativity.
Ungratefulness says things aren’t good enough. When nothing’s good enough, effort is futile.
The tragedy of ungratefulness is gratitude is free.
How negative leaders become positive thinkers:
Expressing gratitude changes you.
At the beginning you think gratitude is about events, circumstances, and people. You come to see gratitude is about you. Would you like to shift from negative to positive?
The intention and practice of frequently saying thank you draws negative leaders into positive thinking. You can’t resist. Expressing gratitude forces you to think about things that are right in the world.
But what if you don’t feel thankful? Think of gratitude as a practice not a feeling. Don’t lie. Just find something worthy of praise. If there’s nothing praiseworthy in your organization, close the doors and go home.
Special application:
Do you have negative people on your team? Hold them accountable to say thank you at least once an hour. Expect it. Track it. Craft gratitude language. Evaluate progress. Discuss results.
7 surprising benefits of gratitude:
#1. Gratitude opens your heart. Expressing gratitude shifts your focus from receiving to giving. The ungrateful are closed, stingy, and self-protective.
The strength to open your heart comes from the courage to show gratitude.
#2. Gratitude creates positive environments. Ingratitude propagates unhappiness.
Happy people work harder than unhappy.
#3. Gratitude bolsters leadership presence. Weak leaders are frantic and frustrated. Strong leaders are optimistic and appreciative.
#4. Gratitude makes you attractive. Ungratefulness is ugly.
#5. Gratitude makes you approachable.
#6. Gratitude increases grit. Ungrateful people stand aloof and don’t commit.
#7. Gratitude makes you feel good. Don’t make good feelings your goal. Make your goal adding value. But, experience shows that expressing gratitude feels good.
What attitudes prevent leaders from expressing gratitude?
How might leaders practice gratitude?
Thanks for the reminder. It is so true, and so hard for me to keep practicing.
Thanks tchistorygal. I hear you on the challenge.
I upped my “gratitude game” about 3 months ago. It’s not natural for me. But the usefulness of expressing gratitude continues to impress me. Best for the journey.
Same to you, Dan. 🙂
Dear Dan,
I am appreciating you for your thoughts on such a vast subject of leadership.
I would love to understand who is responsible for sowing such seeds in mind of people and result into killing spirit of organization’s. More precisely I would like to mention that this is 1. Question on behaviour 2. Behaviour in cross cultural environment. 3. Depand on their past practices. 4 . more on their practiced habits. 5. Such mal habits leads to poor character and lastly behavioural changes which are character and long practiced based habits takes place.
Dan you are looking and talking about changes from negative to positive. Reminding you behavior based changes or alteration on character based behaviour takes time for actual realisation not at a nominal cost.
When such kind of guys or executive leadership is available then behavioural coaches plays a very important role.
Presently in all leadership models 30 percent positively negative leadership in organization’s is In function and affecting morale of people badly and such kinds reducing life of middle management and affecting productivity.
Post is correct but behavioural aspects needs to mentioned .
vinay
So much good stuff here but some reason this line stuck in my mind “If there’s nothing praiseworthy in your organization, close the doors and go home.”
I too have started a personal gratitude habit, ending my day as often as possible with writing down 3 things I’m grateful. Even just meditatively asking yourself “who or what are you most grateful for” with no goal of a finite answer has been proven to help shift the mind into a more consistently state of gratitude.
Very excellent article! Gratitude makes all the difference in the world. I made sure I always thanked people and whenever there was a message from a customer thanking us, I would always post the message so that everyone knew there hard work was appreciated.