Be Proactive

How often do we come home after a long day of working and feel exhausted? Maybe the day began badly and just spiraled out of control from there. It was one thing after another and soon we felt irritable, frustrated, and just plain in a bad mood. That bad mood then spilled over into our personal life at home, affecting our families and others around us.

The key to preventing this kind of scenario can be summed up in one simple word: choice. We have the freedom to choose how we will respond in any given situation. We can take the time to pause and think about our response. We can be proactive instead of reactive.

When we are reactive, we blame; we make excuses; we are the victim.

When we are proactive, we choose; we are in control; we are positive.

Being proactive is about changing your attitude, your language, and your focus. When you focus on what you can control, you have more chance of success and less chance of frustration taking over. As you become
more and more proactive, the scope of things you are able to influence or control will increase.

As team members, family members and friends, we need to encourage one another to focus on the positive, to build others up when they are being reactive, and to focus on the things that are in our power to control. Then we will begin to see that at the end of the day, we have more energy to spend on renewal. We will begin each day with more vigor and enthusiasm. And we will be more productive, successful, and effective in fulfilling our mission: educating kids.

As Willie Nelson once said, “Once you replace negative thoughts with positive ones, you’ll start having positive results.”

- Karen