Michael is the kind of guy you love to hate. He is always in a good mood and always has something positive to say. When someone would ask him how he was doing, he would reply, "If I were any better, I＇d be twins!" He was a natural motivator.
If an employee was having a bad day, Michael was there telling the employee how to look on the positive side of the situation. Seeing this style really made me curious, so one day I went up to Michael and asked him, "I don＇ t get it. You can＇ t be positive all the time. How do you do it?"
Michael replied, each morning I wake up and say to myself ＇Mike, you have two choices today. You can choose to be in a good mood or you can choose to be in a bad mood.＇ I choose to be in a good mood. Each time something bad happens, I can choose to be a victim or choose to learn from it. I choose to learn from it. Every time someone comes to me complaining I can choose to accept their complaining or I can point out the positive side of life. I choose the positive side of life."
"Yeah, right. It isn＇t that easy." I protested.
"Yes it is, " Michael said. "Life is all about choices. When you cut away all the junk, every situation is a choice. You choose how you react to situations. You choose how people will affect your mood. You choose to be in a good mood or bad mood. The bottom line is: It＇s your choice how you live life. " I reflected on what Michael said.
Soon thereafter, I left the big enterprise that I had worked in for years to start my own business. We lost touch, but I often though about him when I made a choice about life instead of reacting to it. Several years later, I heard Michael was involved in a serious accident, falling off 60 feet from a communications tower.
After l8 hours of surgery, and weeks of intensive care, Michael was released from the hospital with rods placed in his back. I saw Michael about six months after the accident. When I asked him how he was, he replied, "If I were any better, I＇d be twins. Wanna see my scars?" I declined to see his wounds, but did ask him what had gone through his mind as the accident took place.
"The first thing that went through my mind was the well being of my soon-to-born daughter," Michael replied. "Then, as I lay on the ground, remembered I had two choices: I could choose to live or I could choose to die. I chose to live." "Weren＇t you scared? Did you lose consciousness?" I asked. Michael continued, "... the paramedics were great. They kept telling me I was going to be fine. But when they wheeled me into the operation room and I saw the expressions on the faces of the doctors and nurses, I got really scared. In their eyes, l read ＇He＇s a dead man.＇ I knew I needed to take action." "What did you do?" I asked. "Well, there was a big burly nurse shouting questions at me" said Michael. "She asked me if I was allergic to anything. ＇Yes,＇ I said. The doctors and nurses stopped working as they waited for my reply. I took a deep breath and yelled", ＇Gravity＇" Over their laughter, I told them, ＇I＇m choosing to live. Operate on me as if I am alive, not dead＇."
Michael lived, thanks to the skill of his doctors, but also because of his amazing attitude.
I 1eamed from him that every day we have a choice to live fully. Attitude is everything.
麥可總是樂呵呵的，你總能聽到他說些積極上進的話。他似乎生來就積極進取。他這樣告訴他的員工：“每天早晨醒來，我對自己說，麥可，今天你有兩種選擇，選擇心情愉快，選擇心情惡劣，我選擇心情愉快；有不愉快的事情發生，選擇成為一個犧牲品，或是選擇從中吸取教訓，我選擇吸取教訓。”
麥可從60英尺的大樓上摔下，卻活了下來，當有人問及他當時的想法，他是這樣回答的：“我告訴我的手術醫生，‘我選擇活著，我願意做任何手術。’”
選擇接受生活的積極面也許是人生中最為明智的選擇，其實，每個人都有機會充實、健康的活著，關鍵取決於你的人生態度。