PMA Beats PMS - Maintain a Healthy, Positive Mental Attitude, for Success!

[DooDiligence]

This is my 1st essay assignment for ENC1101C, which I'll be turning in today.

(I hope you find it useful.)

 

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I strive to be relentlessly upbeat, which keeps me motivated, and makes it easier to be compassionate towards other individuals. Success naturally follows.

 

A good way to stay positive is to start the day right by using an opportunity clock instead of an alarm clock. An alarm clock wakes you up with a loud, obnoxious sound that’s sure to make you angry first thing in the morning. On the other hand, an opportunity clock starts your day with an upbeat song, or you may prefer to be awakened by the sounds of the ocean. Whatever your choice is, be sure that it’s something that makes you smile. Waking up happy sets a proper tone for the entire day. By the way, my current choice is “Lovely Day” by Bill Withers.

 

We all know that it’s not possible to be positive & upbeat all the time; however, it is possible to change the way we view negative occurrences in our lives, by inverting them. For example: “I dropped an egg on the floor as I was making breakfast this morning, which provided an opportunity for my dog to develop a shinier coat, and I do like my dog to shine.” Next time you feel negative about something, try & think “what is the opposite, or inverse, of this?” Feel free to be silly about it.

 

The real key to being able to “flip” a negative emotion into a positive one, is to look at things with equanimity, instead of with apathy or disdain. Try to accept a negative situation by saying, “it just is; so what can I do about it?” Removing emotion, and thinking more objectively about things, facilitates our ability to see possibilities instead of just roadblocks, and helps us to develop an understanding of, and have compassion for, the people we interact with, many of whom may be in a position to help us achieve our goals.

 

I’m a compassionate individual, & I believe that caring about the success of others, is in my best interest as well as theirs. Here’s a great quote by Zig Zigler “If you can help enough other people get what they want, you will get what you want.”

 

Zig Ziglar is a popular motivational speaker, and he said a lot of smart things, including the following, “folks, if you see a turtle on a fencepost, you can pert near guarantee that he or she did not get up there, by him or her self,” which simply means, that we all need the help of others, in order to get where we’re going.

 

My maternal grandfather was a super positive influence in my life, and I dedicate a big portion of my success to him and his attitude of compassion, acceptance & grace. I can barely remember him ever being mad about anything, and he always seemed to be able to find the best in people, which naturally drew success into his life, & the lives of his family and friends.

 

Staying positive keeps me motivated, and being compassionate towards the people I meet, facilitates the attraction of mutually beneficial relationships, which we all need in order to live effective & prosperous lives.

 

Of this, I am positive. UB2…

[Cardboard]

Sounds awesome for someone who sends private messages to others, who he doesn't agree with, and calls them "douche bag" and the like.

 

Cardboard

[DooDiligence]

Sounds awesome for someone who sends private messages to others, who he doesn't agree with, and calls them "douche bag" and the like.

 

Cardboard

 

I totally accept the fact that you are a douchebag & there’s nothing I can do to change that.

 

Please feel free to post ALL of the PM’s I’ve ever sent you, since you make it sound like there are so many.

[RichardGibbons]

Sounds awesome for someone who sends private messages to others, who he doesn't agree with, and calls them "douche bag" and the like.

 

Don't worry about it, Cardboard.  I'm pretty sure that everyone who's read your messages understands what's going on here.

[constructive]

I think your reference to PMS in the title is inappropriate. Bringing up PMS for no reason perpetuates the sexist view that women are irrational or negative. Think about your writing from your audience's perspective, not just your perspective.

 

Good luck with your class.

[DooDiligence]

I think your reference to PMS in the title is inappropriate. Bringing up PMS for no reason perpetuates the sexist view that women are irrational or negative. Think about your writing from your audience's perspective, not just your perspective.

 

Good luck with your class.

 

Your constructive criticism is welcome & I believe you are right.

 

I was playing with the letters to try & make a humorous start to the essay, without thinking that it might alienate a lot of readers.

[compounding]

Don't know if you wanted feedback on the essay since you posted it with the purpose of being useful to others, but I'll take a shot anyway. Feel free to ignore my post if you are not interested.

 

A great deal of what you are describing in the essay are your specific personality traits, and practical psychological tricks you use to be a productive/useful person. I commend you for thinking about these things and trying to increase your utility to other people, but to assume that it has instant value to other people with different personalities I think is a bit ... naive.

 

People that are introverted, high in neuroticism or low in agreeableness (basically everyone on this forum) won't find your practical advice, or general philosophy very useful, since it is created to solve problems specific to your personality, which seems to be on the opposite side of the spectrum. You will understand why these things differ if you learn more about personality psychology.

 

The wikipedia entry about the Big Five aspect scale serves as a decent intro if you want to learn more about personality traits:

 

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Big_Five_personality_traits

[DooDiligence]

Don't know if you wanted feedback on the essay since you posted it with the purpose of being useful to others, but I'll take a shot anyway. Feel free to ignore my post if you are not interested.

 

A great deal of what you are describing in the essay are your specific personality traits, and practical psychological tricks you use to be a productive/useful person. I commend you for thinking about these things and trying to increase your utility to other people, but to assume that it has instant value to other people with different personalities I think is a bit ... naive.

 

People that are introverted, high in neuroticism or low in agreeableness (basically everyone on this forum) won't find your practical advice, or general philosophy very useful, since it is created to solve problems specific to your personality, which seems to be on the opposite side of the spectrum. You will understand why these things differ if you learn more about personality psychology.

 

The wikipedia entry about the Big Five aspect scale serves as a decent intro if you want to learn more about personality traits:

 

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Big_Five_personality_traits

 

You are spot on!

 

I was thinking that this would be helpful for others, and was assuming that others meant everybody.

 

In my defense, as to how it was written, the assignment was to complete a 500 to 700 word essay using 3 adjectives to describe ourselves (I may very well be positively delusional.) We were expected to use the SEE-R model, and to write with correct punctuation (once again, delusional.)

 

BTW, you are very good at this, and I will read the Wiki article this afternoon (after classes, it's music day!)

 

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I must; however, disagree that most of the people on COBF are disagreeable.

 

I find that the majority of individuals here are amenable to changing their thinking when evidence is presented (or at least, they're willing to disagree in a cordial fashion,) and the discussions are, for the most part, agreeable.

 

(I think that I may be addicted to commas?)

 

Unreasonableness usually comes, consistently, from the same corners...

[compounding]

Don't know if you wanted feedback on the essay since you posted it with the purpose of being useful to others, but I'll take a shot anyway. Feel free to ignore my post if you are not interested.

 

A great deal of what you are describing in the essay are your specific personality traits, and practical psychological tricks you use to be a productive/useful person. I commend you for thinking about these things and trying to increase your utility to other people, but to assume that it has instant value to other people with different personalities I think is a bit ... naive.

 

People that are introverted, high in neuroticism or low in agreeableness (basically everyone on this forum) won't find your practical advice, or general philosophy very useful, since it is created to solve problems specific to your personality, which seems to be on the opposite side of the spectrum. You will understand why these things differ if you learn more about personality psychology.

 

The wikipedia entry about the Big Five aspect scale serves as a decent intro if you want to learn more about personality traits:

 

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Big_Five_personality_traits

 

You are spot on!

 

I was thinking that this would be helpful for others, and was assuming that others meant everybody.

 

In my defense, as to how it was written, the assignment was to complete a 500 to 700 word essay using 3 adjectives to describe ourselves (I may very well be positively delusional.) We were expected to use the SEE-R model, and to write with correct punctuation (once again, delusional.)

 

BTW, you are very good at this, and I will read the Wiki article this afternoon (after classes, it's music day!)

 

---

 

I must; however, disagree that most of the people on COBF are disagreeable.

 

I find that the majority of individuals here are amenable to changing their thinking when evidence is presented (or at least, they're willing to disagree in a cordial fashion,) and the discussions are, for the most part, agreeable.

 

(I think that I may be addicted to commas?)

 

Unreasonableness usually comes, consistently, from the same corners...

 

I don't really think you need to defend anything in the essay, and I don't think you are delusional, it's just that the effect it will have on improving others may be limited. It still can be a very beneficial exercise for you. Regarding being positively delusional I think it is natural to choose aspects of your personality that will be regarded as more positive, when asked to write something like this. Also, my experience is that university in general is biased towards preparing students to be able to signal their virtues rather than more soul-searching introspectiveness, even though the latter might be more useful for developing character.

 

My point about COBF being generally disagreeable isn't directly tied to the ability of people to change their minds, I think disagreeable people can change their minds too. My case would rather be made by pointing to things like negotiating skills, the contrarian nature a lot of investors strive for/naturally have, the tendency to be skeptical/cynical of things, and just the fact that investing as a discipline just isn't much of a team sport. With that said, I would still expect to find a bunch of agreeable people here, just that if you compare the COBF population to a random sampling, the COBF would on average be more disagreeable than the random group, in my estimation. The distribution curve is slightly more disagreeable, if you will.

 

Thanks for the compliment, I'm glad you got something out of my post.

 

[DooDiligence]

Don't know if you wanted feedback on the essay since you posted it with the purpose of being useful to others, but I'll take a shot anyway. Feel free to ignore my post if you are not interested.

 

A great deal of what you are describing in the essay are your specific personality traits, and practical psychological tricks you use to be a productive/useful person. I commend you for thinking about these things and trying to increase your utility to other people, but to assume that it has instant value to other people with different personalities I think is a bit ... naive.

 

People that are introverted, high in neuroticism or low in agreeableness (basically everyone on this forum) won't find your practical advice, or general philosophy very useful, since it is created to solve problems specific to your personality, which seems to be on the opposite side of the spectrum. You will understand why these things differ if you learn more about personality psychology.

 

The wikipedia entry about the Big Five aspect scale serves as a decent intro if you want to learn more about personality traits:

 

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Big_Five_personality_traits

 

You are spot on!

 

I was thinking that this would be helpful for others, and was assuming that others meant everybody.

 

In my defense, as to how it was written, the assignment was to complete a 500 to 700 word essay using 3 adjectives to describe ourselves (I may very well be positively delusional.) We were expected to use the SEE-R model, and to write with correct punctuation (once again, delusional.)

 

BTW, you are very good at this, and I will read the Wiki article this afternoon (after classes, it's music day!)

 

---

 

I must; however, disagree that most of the people on COBF are disagreeable.

 

I find that the majority of individuals here are amenable to changing their thinking when evidence is presented (or at least, they're willing to disagree in a cordial fashion,) and the discussions are, for the most part, agreeable.

 

(I think that I may be addicted to commas?)

 

Unreasonableness usually comes, consistently, from the same corners...

 

I don't really think you need to defend anything in the essay, and I don't think you are delusional, it's just that the effect it will have on improving others may be limited. It still can be a very beneficial exercise for you. Regarding being positively delusional I think it is natural to choose aspects of your personality that will be regarded as more positive, when asked to write something like this. Also, my experience is that university in general is biased towards preparing students to be able to signal their virtues rather than more soul-searching introspectiveness, even though the latter might be more useful for developing character.

 

My point about COBF being generally disagreeable isn't directly tied to the ability of people to change their minds, I think disagreeable people can change their minds too. My case would rather be made by pointing to things like negotiating skills, the contrarian nature a lot of investors strive for/naturally have, the tendency to be skeptical/cynical of things, and just the fact that investing as a discipline just isn't much of a team sport. With that said, I would still expect to find a bunch of agreeable people here, just that if you compare the COBF population to a random sampling, the COBF would on average be more disagreeable than the random group, in my estimation. The distribution curve is slightly more disagreeable, if you will.

 

Thanks for the compliment, I'm glad you got something out of my post.

 

I suspect that you are a Buddha

[rukawa]

I've never understood the modern fetish for positive emotions. We are the products of thousands of years of evolution. If negative emotions were not important they would have been bred out of us a long time ago. Almost every single important step in my life was proceeded by a lot of depressive and negative thinking. And many of the greatest people were enormously negative...Lincoln, Churchill, a tonne of artists and writers.

 

When I watch Vikings I love the character Ivar the Boneless. And almost all the emotions driving the character are negative...anger, jealously, bitterness and feeling of inferiority. Its a brilliant show.

 

[Cigarbutt]

"I've never understood the modern fetish for positive emotions. We are the products of thousands of years of evolution. If negative emotions were not important they would have been bred out of us a long time ago. Almost every single important step in my life was proceeded by a lot of depressive and negative thinking. And many of the greatest people were enormously negative...Lincoln, Churchill, a tonne of artists and writers."

 

This may relate to investing and to the ability (sometimes innate) to show contrarianism.

You make want to reflect on the interaction of mood and attitude, or vice-versa.

You may also enjoy reading about William James, the philosopher and mathematician. Here's a quote, when he discusses the inadequacy of healthy-mindedness:

"...because the evil facts which it refuses positively to account for are a genuine portion of reality; and they may after all be the best key to life's significance, and possibly the only openers of our eyes to the deepest level of truth."

 

BTW, I have read a lot about Lincoln and Churchill and don't quite agree with your "negative" conclusion. I would submit that they were often inhabited by bouts of melancholy and each suffered their share of sad events and failures but Lincoln worked very hard at forging a positive attitude in the worst of times and Churchill is the one who said the following: "A pessimist sees the difficulty in every opportunity; an optimist sees the opportunity in every difficulty" and "Attitude is a little thing that makes a big difference". If you want to "enjoy" reading about another Ivar but real, go for Goethe, the writer (Faust), statesman and scientist. You won't be disappointed.

 

Disclosure: optimist but complacency and oblivion can ruin your day. :)

 

[DooDiligence]

I've never understood the modern fetish for positive emotions. We are the products of thousands of years of evolution. If negative emotions were not important they would have been bred out of us a long time ago. Almost every single important step in my life was proceeded by a lot of depressive and negative thinking. And many of the greatest people were enormously negative...Lincoln, Churchill, a tonne of artists and writers.

 

When I watch Vikings I love the character Ivar the Boneless. And almost all the emotions driving the character are negative...anger, jealously, bitterness and feeling of inferiority. Its a brilliant show.

 

 

On a more positive note; have you read Bernard Cornwell's "Saxon Chronicles"?

(It's a rousing tale of motivational murder & mayhem.)

 

Uhtred is my favorite character because he's a stone cold killer who brooks no BS from those who's goal is misinformation & abuse.

Also, the whole time Alfred keeps screwing him over, Uhtred remains positive that one day he will regain Bebbanburg.

 

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Uhtred_of_Bebbanburg

 

BTW, Cornwell paints a vivid picture of Ivar.

 

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New title & slight re-write, inspired by the words of compounding (and the fact that the professor keeps extending the due date & adding more requirements to the essay.)

 

Jeff Ferris

ENC1101C

Professor Neuman

January 27, 2018

 

A Body in Motion

Maintain a Healthy, Positive Mental Attitude, for Success!

 

I strive to be relentlessly upbeat, which keeps me motivated, and makes it easier to be compassionate towards other individuals. Success naturally follows.

 

A good way to stay positive is to start the day right by using an opportunity clock instead of an alarm clock. An alarm clock wakes you up with a loud, obnoxious sound that’s sure to make you angry, first thing in the morning. On the other hand, an opportunity clock starts your day with an upbeat song, or you may prefer to be awakened by the sounds of the ocean. Whatever your choice is, be sure it’s something that makes you smile. Waking up happy sets a proper tone for the entire day. By the way, my current choice is “Lovely Day” by Bill Withers.

 

We all know that it’s not possible to be positive & upbeat all the time; however, it is possible to change the way we view negative occurrences in our lives, by inverting them. For example: “I dropped an egg on the floor as I was making breakfast this morning, which provided an opportunity for my dog to develop a shinier coat, and I do like my dog to shine.” Next time you feel negative about something, try & think “what is the opposite, or inverse, of this?” Feel free to be silly about it.

 

The real key to being able to “flip” a negative emotion into a positive one, is to look at things with equanimity, instead of with apathy or disdain. Try to accept a negative situation by saying, “it just is; so what can I do about it?” Removing emotion, and thinking more objectively about things, facilitates our ability to see possibilities instead of just roadblocks, and helps us to develop an understanding of, and have compassion for, the people we interact with, many of whom may be in a position to help us achieve our goals.

 

Goals motivate us. Without goals, we’re just rudderless dreamers, floating on a sea of boredom & slack.

 

A body in motion is evidence of a motivated individual, and all my life, I’ve been motivated to reach one goal after another; in fact, without goals, I may never have stumbled my way into any kind of success.

 

My success has; however, been plagued with failures. I dropped out of high school, and my parents told me that the minimum requirement for residence in their home, was a high school diploma, or enrollment in, and attendance at, an educational institution of my choice. Since I was comfortable in my parents home, and didn’t want to further aggravate my failure, I signed up for the Pensacola Junior College adult education program and graduated with a high school diploma. Next, I went on to the Alabama Aviation Technical College and earned an airframe & powerplant mechanics license.

 

As it turns out, I’m a horrible mechanic, as a result of which, I decided that the aviation community would be better off if I wasn’t working on airplanes. Fortunately, one of my mother’s friends offered me a job as a deckhand on an offshore supply vessel, and this job led to my goal of becoming a licensed master mariner.

 

I started working as a deckhand in 1983 and achieved a micro-goal in 1990, when I obtained a 500 ton mates license. In 1993, I passed the U.S. Coast Guard exam and was issued a 1600 ton oceans masters license, which allowed me to set and attain many other personal and financial goals.

Along the way, I had a lot of help from boat captains, mates, engineers, and fellow deck workers, and I believe that all these people were motivated to help me because, in my quest to get ahead, I was always willing to lend a hand and help them towards the furtherance of their goals. People are more inclined to help you, when you’re being helpful.

 

I’m a compassionate individual, & I naturally believe that caring about the success of others, is in my best interest as well as theirs. Here’s a great quote by Zig Zigler “If you can help enough other people get what they want, you will get what you want.”

 

Zig Ziglar is a popular motivational speaker, and he’s said a lot of smart things, including the following, “folks, if you see a turtle on a fencepost, you can pert near guarantee that he or she did not get up there, by him or her self,” which simply means, that we all need the help of others, in order to get where we’re going.

 

My maternal grandfather was a super positive influence in my life, and I dedicate a big portion of my success to him and his attitude of compassion, acceptance & grace. I can barely remember him ever being mad about anything, and he always seemed to be able to find the best in people, which naturally drew success into his life, & the lives of his family and friends.

 

Staying positive keeps me motivated, and being compassionate towards the people I meet, facilitates the attraction of mutually beneficial relationships, which we all need in order to live effective & prosperous lives.

 

Of these things, I am positive. UB2…