Random Observations on Life

Random Observations on Life

Over time, owners do resemble their dogs!


This is a blog about a dog. Well not really. This is the more about the ramblings of the dog's dutiful owner, Blue's Dad. Although Blue might be the backdrop of this whole experiment, there's no telling where this trail will lead me. I apologize ahead of time for the randomness of my observations. I've always tended to color outside the lines.

Thursday, June 19, 2008

Looking for the Positive

Several times in my life, I have been made aware of how much of a difference we can make in someone's life by giving a compliment. A couple of years ago, I decided I was going to find someone each day to give a genuine compliment to. I determined it had to be sincere or people would see right through it. This only lasted a month or so, but I learned that by focusing on someone to compliment, I tended to overlook the negatives in everyday life.

A little while later, while going through the Denver airport (which at the time I was flying in/out of about once every two months), I stopped at the Mcdonalds to get a drink.

The young African American girl behind the counter looked at me, paused for a minute and said, "I remember you! You came through hear a couple of months ago and said you like my hair!"

Now, I didn't remember specifically saying something about her hair, but it was certainly believable, since her elaborately styled hair certainly caused envy to my bald head. Even though I didn't remember saying something, it had created a memorable moment in her life and made her feel good.

Try it! It's not hard. Try it for a week and see how many good things you can find to point out. Looking for the positive may not be as easy as pointing out the negative, but it sure leaves a better taste in your mouth.

3 comments:

Phae-Jae said...

You and Connie Lou always leave me smiling...inside and out.

There how was that??

Lloyd said...

I have always thought of you as a very postive guy---keep it up.
The Elk Ridge old lady.

mindyluwho said...

I love your idea here. I read in a book once about a similar idea wherein you are to go 24 hours without thinking any critical thoughts about anyone, including yourself. If you did think a critical thought then you had to start the 24 hours over, however if you stopped yourself in midthought and turned it around to something positive you didn't have to start over. I tried it...it took me 3 days to do it! However, during that time I only had 3-4 critical thoughts. It was an eye opening experience. I was happier and everyone around me was happier during that time.