Getting Up Is A Choice

By Zig Ziglar

Virtually all of us have experienced the phenomenon of watching a movie and laughing and, on occasion, even crying.  The tears and laughter were not brought about because somebody put something in the theater seats, but rather by something shown on the screen which entered your mind, affected your emotions and produced the tears or laughter.

The exciting thing is that there is something you can do about your emotions, whether you are “up” or “down,” and the choice is yours.  Most people who are “up” don’t want to do anything to get “down,” but, surprisingly enough, according to a study done at Ohio State University, everyone who is “down,” does not necessarily want to get “up.”  Maybe there is some truth in the old saw that “misery loves company,” or that some people enjoy having “pity parties.”  At least they seem unwilling to take positive actions to cure the “doom and gloom” feeling which they have.

The question is, why would some people elect not to change their gloomy state of mind?  A follow-up study revealed the answer to that question.  It has to do with self-esteem.  Those who felt good about themselves even when they were in a foul mood felt they deserved to feel better and took positive action to accomplish that objective.  Those with poor self-esteem had a tendency to maintain that foul mood by pursuing their negative thinking, which produced the feeling.

One fast cure for overcoming gloomy feelings is offered by the Menninger Clinic in Topeka, Kansas.  Many years ago, Dr. Karl Menninger stated that when we are down, if we will seek out someone else who has a problem and get involved in helping them solve theirs, we quickly forget our own.  So the solution is simple.  When you’re in a blue mood, help someone else solve their problem.  Both of you will feel better, which means I can see both of you AT THE TOP!