Most people associate attitude with being either positive or negative. Let's describe positive as having an "outlook of possibility" and negative as having an "outlook of limitation." The American Heritage Dictionary defines attitude as "a state of mind or feeling with regard to some matter." What are some of the "matters" to which you can associate an attitude? Here are a few: the company for whom you work; the product or service you sell; the marketplace in which you sell your product or service; and, of course, yourself.

Your state of mind or feeling can be one that leads to an outlook of possibility. For instance, "We are the industry leaders." Or, it can be an outlook of limitation as in, "We are destined to be second-best." You can see all of the reasons and ways to make something happen, or you can see all the reasons and obstacles that prevent it from happening.

Here is the most powerful part of the concept: you can choose which outlook you will have! The choice you make has a greater impact on your ability to reach your goals than almost any other element. You can choose to focus on possibilities or you can focus on limitations (many of which are self-imposed).

When given a task to accomplish or a goal to achieve, you have some notion of how attainable that goal is. You might say, "Piece of cake," or "No way; it can't be done." The outlook you choose is usually the result of your previous experience or a perception based on your observation of someone else's experience. Previous experience, however, may no longer be relevant.

People are typically more aware of information that is consistent with their outlook than they are of information that is inconsistent with it. Due to this selective awareness, they begin to believe that the world is a place that is consistent with their outlook.

If your outlook is one of limitation, the beliefs you develop will also be limiting ones. For instance, a belief that the marketplace is saturated would support your limiting outlook that your new quota is unattainable.

Once you have formed some beliefs, you make judgments about how to act. You might think, "Why bust my backside over some quota I'll never hit anyway? And, if I somehow get lucky and hit the number, they'll just raise it on me again. I'll be shooting myself in the foot." You have made judgments about what actions are appropriate - what to do and what not to do. It follows, that your actions are consistent with those judgments.

The actions you take are influenced by the judgments you make, which are based on beliefs that support your original outlook. It stands to reason that the result of those actions will likely serve to reinforce your original outlook - a self-fulfilling prophecy. If you think you can, you can. If you think you can't, then you can't. Outlook equals outcome.

We all have choices - will it be an outlook of possibilities or one of limitations?

Someone once said, "If you continue doing what you're doing, you'll continue getting what you're getting." Are you satisfied with what you are getting? If not, choose another outlook.

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