How to Get Rid of a Bad Attitude

A bad attitude is a frustrating thing to have because it sullies positive events and makes negative ones seem worse. If you have a bad attitude, you tend to frame things in unhealthy ways, focusing on what is wrong with the world and your life rather than what is right about it. So, if you want to improve your life, you first need to improve your attitude. This is often the only thing you have control over, so you need to focus on it before you focus on anything else.

Instructions

• 1

  Think about your thoughts. Thinking tends to be a natural, intuitive process; but if you are consistently thinking negative thoughts, you need to directly address the issue. So, every now and then, you should think about what kind of thoughts you've been thinking. Were they positive or were they negative?

• 2

  Re-frame your negative thoughts. You obviously won't be able to do this for every thought because some things are just negative. For example, "My mother passed away unexpectedly" is a negative thought that doesn't really have much potential for a positive spin. However, "I spilled my coffee, and the day has barely begun" can be re-framed as "now I have an excuse to buy a coffee on my way to work." Focus on these little things to change your attitude as a whole.

• 3

  Give yourself positive affirmations, either on paper, in your head or in front of a mirror. You should spend a small part of each day telling yourself nice things about yourself. This reminds you that you're a good person who deserves to have good things happen to you.

• 4

  Practice these every day. Positive attitudes don't come around overnight, so you should be aware of this. Rather, they come in fits and starts, so stick with it until you wake up and realize your bad attitude is gone for good.