Southwestern Advantage Blog

What value have you been placing on negative thoughts? What great thing has ever been accomplished by someone who believed it couldn't be done? How much mental energy do you waste on anger, resentment, or envy? What value will these thoughts ever add to your own life or the life of another? 

 We are creatures of emotion. Learning to control our emotions is a life-long practice. Negative thoughts will always come to mind. When we choose to allow those negative thoughts to remain in our minds, and to influence our words and actions, we selfishly turn our focus toward ourselves instead of toward the betterment of others.  What is gained by letting someone or something get you down?  Is the satisfaction of harboring dark emotions worth the happiness and meaning that it robs from your life?  We cannot control what life brings our way, but we  can control how we respond. We can always control our actions and attitude. Negatives will always be easy to find, bu...

When I was studying astronomy in college, I found myself very intrigued (and still do) by the subject of black holes -- massive stars that have experienced a supernova an imploded upon themselves. What remains is a gravitational force so powerful that not even light is able to escape it. I'm sure that at some point you've been around a griping, whiny person who has devolved into an emotional black hole. Their negativity is so overt that they not only affect themselves but seem to sap your energy and attitude as well. Some people brighten rooms upon entering while this type of person brightens the room by leaving it.  In a blog I read by Geoffrey James, he offers some suggestions on how to improve your own attitude and increase your ability to influence others in a positive and helpful way. Here are some of his suggestions: Stop using negative phrases such as "It's impossible," or "This won't work," because they program your mind for more...