I have been a writer and a writing instructor for a long time. And over time, I’ve come to realize that writers (and maybe even all people) can be broken down into three kinds:
- Can Do People (These folks just do it)
- Can’t Do It Yet, But I’m Working On It, People (Even if they are a little frustrated at times)
- Can’t Do It, Won’t Do It, I’m Frustrated About It (And they like to blame others)
I coach writers in groups called Dream Teams and these teams tend to attract the first two kinds of people—the Can-Do People and the Can’t Do It Yet, But I’m Working On It People.
These are the kinds of folks anyone would appreciate having around. They really own it and don’t make excuses or project their responsibilities onto others in their pursuit of what they want and need.
For me, positive attitudes are like healthy people and negative attitudes are like people with viruses.
I try to remind myself that a negative person has a virus and not throw the person out with the black cloud.
But when I feel negativity coming at me again and again, I definitely take a step back.
Negativity is contagious. Just like a virus. And we all need to be reminded sometimes that others can be impacted by the kind of energy we put out into the world.
For my own sake, and the sake of my family and business, I try to steer clear of consistently negative people and I gravitate towards people who are consistently positive and pro-active…without being over the top.
Groundedness is a really important quality that I value in myself and others.
It’s taken years of practice but I am still sometimes tempted to jump in and try and help a person who consistently broadcasts unhappiness or helplessness.
But these days, I can pretty much let them be and choose to hang with the positive, proactive folks, instead.
And this one choice has an incredibly positive impact on my day-to-day life.
How about you?
Can do, can’t do, or somewhere in between?
