I’d like to be here right about now…
Photo credit: Grace Waldron
Lately I’ve noticed how much the weather seems to affect my mindset. It’s been a long, rough winter here in the Northeast and we’ve experienced an extended period of very cold, wet weather that has brought many of our moods down. Yes, we shovel ourselves out and fight through the elements, but most of us still long for relief in the form of sunshine and blue skies.
Like the weather, the people we interact with on a daily basis can have a similar impact on our moods. There are people – rare, but they do exist – who are like sunny days, always in a good mood no matter what’s going on that day and always greeting you with a smile. Some people we encounter are the “dark clouds,” continually finding ways to bring us down with their negative outlook on life. They’ll take everything they can from you, without giving anything back.
Then there are the “snowy” types. The snow looks all pretty and gentle when it’s falling, but then it piles up in a huge load and you have to bust your back shoveling it. Just when it starts to melt and you think you’re in the clear, the temps get cold again and it freezes into a treacherous layer of ice. Don’t we all know some people like that?
Finally there are the “hurricanes,” who thrive on how much stress and drama they can bring into people’s lives.
You get the point – this metaphor could go on for a while – but it gives us a sample of the personalities most of us deal with on a regular basis. Our lives are stressful enough. Wouldn’t it be great to have a weatherman who could warn us about these bad weather personalities?
The truth is we all have it within ourselves to act as our own weathermen. If we have the strength and courage to act on eliminating these people from our lives, we can change our personal climates. The more we can eliminate them and add more of the sunny day people, the closer we can get to blue skies.
Have a great weekend,
Ro