This is my response to the next question in my private conversation with Kelly McCausey (click here if you are new).

Kelly asked…. “How important do you think a Positive Attitude is to being successful in business? And how have you cultivated a positive outlook for yourself? ”

First things, first, your TV list resembles mine a lot. Wish we lived closer. We could hang out and have TV night.

As for your question, whoa, baby! I guess you’re getting me back for sending you all those hard questions.

Let’s see. A positive attitude is not only essential in business, but it’s a life saver. As we both know, every single person who starts a business will hit major hurdles that feel like mountains. We ALL have major setbacks. Whether it’s someone stealing your content, credit card charge backs and dealing with fraud, your hard drive crashing, refund requests, crabby customers, hosting fiascos, getting websites hacked, or having your website disappear from google during your busiest season.

My God, reading that list makes me want to crawl back into bed! I swear, it is, at times, easy to want to give up and just get a job. (I’ve threatened it many times over the last six years I’ve been working online, myself.)

For that reason, I think every work at home mom needs to work on being positive on a daily basis (me included). I’m not preaching from a pulpit. I’m sitting in the pews here.

The ways I’ve cultivated a positive attitude are to remind myself on a daily basis that I am not the only one who is suffering from these afflictions, to stay connected with my other wahm friends, and to count my blessings. It sounds hokey, but it’s what is working for me. Sometimes I just need a good cry, though. (Don’t we all?)

1. Reminding myself that it’s not just me.
This one is huge for me. If I though that I was the ONLY person having these issues, it would make it much harder for me to keep my chin up. But, I know it’s just all part of a growing business and that each issue must be dealt with.

2. Connecting with Other WAHMs.
This is where MomMasterminds was a lifesaver for me, Kelly. A complete and total lifesaver.

3. Counting my Blessings.
This is just a simple thing that I feel more people need to take time to do on a daily basis. If I didn’t make an effort to sit and think about what is going GOOD in my life every day, it gets way too easy to count all the little issues that spring up that basically stink. So, this does give me the perspective that I need to realize that, although the bad things stand out more, they are nowhere near as plentiful as the good things in my day.

How about you, Kelly? I’ll toss this question back atcha with a little add on. What do you do to stay positive? I know your faith is a huge part of your life, and you talked about that a bit in one other question. So, tell me how that helps you in your business.

Looking forward to chatting soon.

Nicole

(Keep an eye on Kelly’s blog for her reply.)