First, choose HOPE. Then spread it.

First, choose HOPE.  Then spread it.

H – Heart…we all have a heart.  We all have feelings.  We all care.  Some of us care too much, some not enough…yet isn’t it safe to say that we all care?  The only question is - to what extent.  Wouldn’t it be great if other people truly cared about us?  So why not go OneMoreStep, lead the way, and open our hearts to truly care for others.  Soon they will feel the love, and they just might spread it.

O – Open to Opportunities…sometimes things go as planned, other times things just don’t go our way – Sometimes:  We don’t get the job. We don’t get the raise.  We don’t close the sale.  He or she is “just not that into us”.  Sure…that didn’t work out.  That didn’t go as planned…but sometimes if we look up, we’ll notice another opportunity right around the corner…perhaps at our fingertips.  We’ll see it, go for it, and probably even crush it…if we’re open to it.  If we’re open to new opportunities, those around us will soon see that perhaps they should be open to new things as well.  Being open to new things just may become a trend…it just may spread.

P – PMA…Positive Mental Attitude…Silver linings, moral victories, Hakuna Matata Moments (when we learn from mistakes), for every bad thing can’t we usually find a good thing – in any situation?  Our jobs get extremely annoying, but my old friend, Mary Poppins, gives great advice on this topic – for every job that must be done, there is an element of fun.  What if we looked for the fun part in every annoying job or situation?  Better yet, what if we WERE the fun in every annoying situation?  If we choose to PMA the days, with positivity vs. negativity, soon people around us will feel encouraged instead of defeated…and once they feel the positivity, they’ll spread it.

E – Energy…we all have energy.  The only questions then are 1) How much energy do we have, and 2) How do we choose to use it?  The encouraging thing about both of these questions is that we are in control of both.  I love the line from the 1994 Danny DeVito movie, Renaissance Man - “The choices we make dictate the lives we lead.”  When we choose to eat right, sleep well, and exercise, we will have more energy.  Awesome start.  Then when we choose to put our energy to good use, in productive ways…good things happen at work, cool things happen in life…and my favorite part about energy is that it’s contagious.  When we 1) have and 2) use our energy to make a positive impact at work and in life, our neighbors, teammates, classmates, friends, family, coworkers, peers, and leaders…will magically do the same.  Energy creates more energy…it spreads.

Hope is such a fascinating thing.  With it, we feel amazing…yet without it we’re miserable.

What a great OneMoreStep…actually two, to first choose HOPE, then spread it.

"I still believe in a place called Hope." – William Jefferson Clinton

Have a great day.

Taylor