It’s a Mean World; What Can You do?

Politics . . . mass shootings . . . property taxes . . . even our Colts . . . there just doesn’t seem to be a lot to be cheerful over.

Cheer up Buckwheat! Need a dose of positivity? Oh sure, I can already feel some of you already rolling your eyes. Stop it. Right now! That won’t get us anywhere. We control this. Each and every one of us.

Think about it like this. How many of you would say divorce is a negative thing?

Think it over. I’ll wait.

Statistics show most of us do. Most of us look at the big break-up and think how sad. We feel sorry for one or both. We hang our head and slowly shake-

Not so fast my friends!

There are a whole lot of folks out there who would quickly tell you divorce was the best thing that ever happened to them.

It. All. Depends. On. Your. Perspective.

And for purposes of today’s ramblings, we (at least an awful lot of us) need to get an adjustment on said perspective.

If you are one of the folks who just look down on yourself, who think you aren’t all you could be, quit it. Listen, you are a child of God and the Big Guy doesn’t make mistakes. Maybe you’re fat or bald or have an irritable bowl, heck, I don’t know. Maybe you have a bunch of things. It’s OK, that’s what you have been given to deal with – so deal with it you must. Don’t let it get you down or slow you down. Brave faces, best foot forward and step up. You are who you are.

For most of us, we let things go negative that should not. Tell you what, for a few days don’t gripe about the old ball and chain. What did Mom tell you, if you can’t say something nice . . . Just don’t be one of those schmucks who gripes about the better half.

Ditto work. No griping about the job. Do it with a smile, or be quiet. Again, be above others who do nothing but bitch, gripe and moan. Be the better person.

Ditto . . . everything. Education, family, background . . . Just try it. If you can’t rave about something, fine. But don’t rail on it either. And if you are having trouble buying this, think about it this way. First, most people don’t care to hear you gripe. Second – and worse – some folks are downright happy you are miserable. Don’t give them the satisfaction.

Look forward, not back. Be positive. Not negative. There are just too many grumps in our world today. Way too many mean people. You don’t have to don rose-colored glasses, just try not to look for the bad. Go out of your way to look for the good.

I’ll leave you with this. When I interview folks for a job, at some point I usually ask two questions. The first is the typical interview question – where do you want to be in five years. The second is the one that determines whether or not they are going to get an offer. What are you doing today to make that happen?

That’s the question for all of us. What are we going to do? There’s a lot of hate and mean in this world. Be better.

Two cents, which is about how much Timmons said his columns are worth, appears periodically in The Times. Timmons is the chief executive officer of Sagamore News Media, the company that owns The Noblesville Times. He is also a proud Noblesville High School graduate and can be contacted at [email protected].