BootsnAll Travel Community

How can I shake it?

My attitude is so bad right now (At work). In large part because I am not happy AT ALL, feel stuck, want to get out... but that all takes time, and there are things to do in the meantime.

I have tried to just shake it off, but everything irritates me, and I am just not interested in what I'm being given. How do I shake this baaaadddd attitude!?

Oooh...sorry, can't help you! But I empathize.

Everything has been fine for awhile as far as my attitude goes, but my supervisor goes in spurts, and she's currently in her micromanager-extraordinaire phase, which does NOT sit well with me (or my other teammates), and in fact I've been having some serious anxiety attacks today. I don't want to go into the details of it here, but it's not pretty, and the whole thing demonstrates to me that politics (and funding - although they're connected) are huge, and it doesn't matter my competancy or desire to do more high-level things; the business needs me to do the grunt work and phone crap that I hate. Blah. I am keeping my eyes open for other opportunities though (although there's a hiring freeze across the board, so blah...)

Anyhow, Annie, I think the bad attitude will spring up every now and then if you're in a job that is less than ideal (like many of us are in) -- but I've found (and I'm sure you know) it's not a permanent thing -- it'll pass, and you'll be more mellow about the situation sooner than later. The bad-attitude-days just serve as reminders that we need to keep up with broader goals/visions, and seeking something else when the time is right. To answer your question on 'how to shake it'...I don't know if it's healthy to shake it. There's a reason for having the bad attitude, and it can be challenging or easy to figure out the reason behind the bad attitude, but then the next step is to try to solve for it. Now it's no good to wallow in the bad attitude for a long time, but most people don't do that anyway. Bad attitude can be a good way to propel one into action...

I think you know all of this already! But I thought I'd post anyway since your post hit the boards on the first bad attitude day I've had in a while!

Can you get away for 5-10 minutes or so? Take a break, walk outside, go to the bathroom, etc. Try this and you’ll feel better.

First off. Stop trying to fight the bad attitude. What’s happening is a struggle between your conscious self and your subconscious mind. By fighting, you’re engaging your mind in a wrestling match of sorts that you have little hope of winning. It’s sort of like those chinese finger traps. The harder you struggle, the more you’re stuck. Think about it: Not only do you have a bad attitude, but now you’re also upset that you have a bad attitude! Rinse and repeat.

What you need to do is “notice” your bad attitude. Sit down, close your eyes and simply observe what it feels like to have a bad attitude. Don’t judge it. It’s neither good nor bad; it just simply is. Pretend you’re a scientist with a big white coat and a clipboard observing something completely separate from you. What is it like in your head? Is your mind jumping up and down in a fit of frustration. That’s okay. Remember, it’s neither good nor bad. It just is. Observe that jumping up and down.

What are you feeling in your chest, your stomach, your toes, etc.? And at some point, your mind will jump in and tell you to ignore this nonsense. That’s okay. Observe that feeling. Tell yourself that you don’t have time to fight the bad attitude. Let your mind have its tantrum; you’ll be waiting “over there” watching. Your mind is tricky. It will do everything it can to get you back in the wrestling match again. That’s okay. Observe that happening.

You should find that by doing this your subconscious has much less power over you than you thought.

Well...since this bad attitude has lasted weeks, I don't think it is going to go away. And I wish I could NOT fight it, but seeing as it has be biting the head off people I really should not, well, I need to fight it.

I also know what else needs to be done, and I am working on it, but it takes time. In the meantime, I am already checking out and I cannot do that. bad bad. Doesn't help that my colleagues are feeling the same, and we just feed off each other's rants.

must. start. dancing.

Well, I've been there. It sucks, and without knowing the details, I don't know what I can say. Hell, even if I knew the details, I wouldn't have any input. That's the thing about these things - often, it's only you alone who can figure it out, so that can sometimes make it tougher. Anyhow, hang in there!

At least if your colleagues feel the same way, you've got sort of a support network going on, even if it kind of pokes at the scab...but maybe all of you will get to the point where you can laugh about it. Sometimes my coworkers and I can laugh about all of it, and it really can work wonders.