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Let’s Talk Trash! JAN/FEB 2018
©2018 The Keenan Group, Inc
When I was in middle school I realized I wasn’t like all the other kids. It was about fifth or sixth grade when I found out that I didn’t
Behavior vs attitude Picture Two Scenarios. The first takes place at an airport...
by Kylie, CCCHS Student
really think or act like my peers. And then when they found out that I wasn’t like them it rolled straight into bullying. I would say one of the biggest reason why I was bullied was some girls wanted me to be like them, you know, follow in the herd. One year it got so bad I had to talk to guidance counselors almost weekly. But then when I moved to the high school, I was so overwhelmed and excited because my mom had always told me that it was a different environment. I was so excited, in the middle of my semester last year, Mrs. Audra Fowler, the dean of students, came to me and asked if I wanted to join any clubs. So I just dove in! Last year I was in 5 or 6 different clubs! But the two that really stuck was Let’s Talk Trash!-news , and SADD . Now I know a lot of y’all are thinking, “What is SADD?” SADD stands for Students Against Destructive Decisions and what the goal is to try to get our younger generations aware of the cons if tobacco, alcohol, and other things that can be harmful to you and the people around you. Then the school told the group about a camp to help learn how to deal with certain situations when you find anyone under the influence or struggling with influence and a lot more stuff. When I got back from camp, my phone rang by an unknown number and I answered it. It was a really sweet lady who invited me to a coalition meeting. I asked so many questions. “What is this coalition? Why do you want me there, I’m just a high school student?” The coalition is a group of concerned citizens about youth and young adults who are involved with drugs or alcohol. After a couple of meetings, I was asked to be the representative for teens and the high school in the meetings. It was then that I realized why I was so different from all the teens. It was because I have a old soul and have a more mature mind. I love all my peers, but I really found my calling, and that I work best with adults. So if you feel like you just don’t fit in just remember, it is best if you try to do new things! It may be something you didn’t know you were good at or didn’t know you would like. It could possibly be an eye opening experience.
There’s a man pushing an elderly lady in a wheelchair up a ramp vigorously to help her get to her baggage so she can catch her next plane. He looks exhausted. After all, this is hour number eight of his work shift and this is an extra shift he picked up to help a co-worker and earn some extra money for the holidays. Someone in passing says to him “Hope you have a Happy Holidays. You look tired.” His response (with an exhausted smile on his face): “I can’t complain Sir. I woke up this morning and the sun is shining.” The second also takes place at an airport. This time, it’s on the plane. There’s a flight attendant walking up and down the aisle without a smile. Several thank him for his service and he says nothing and continues to take their trash. On the way out of the plane, one passenger stops to intentionally look at the flight attendant and say “Happy Holidays Sir” , but the attendant responds with “keep the line moving Sir”. Clearly, there was a drastic difference in the attitudes and behaviors of these two men. Attitude is more complex than it may seem. Most believe they just wake up with a particular attitude but it’s not that simple. Attitude is highly structured and made up of 3 separate components known as the “ABC’s of Attitude”: 1) Affective, which describes the feelings and emotions about a particular thing; 2) Behavioral, which describes the intentions and actions about that particular thing; 3) Cognitive, which describes the beliefs and thoughts about that particular thing. (A) Both gentlemen seemed to have different attitudes as it pertained to their work. The first seemed to have joy about his work.
He had intentions to do his job well in spite of being tired or overworked. Perhaps this was because he knows it will be worth it in the long run or perhaps there was a time when he went thru the holiday season without a job and so he feels grateful to be working. The other, perhaps, felt annoyed to be working maybe because he was supposed to have the day off or maybe it’s because he doesn’t have a family at home with whom he can enjoy the holidays. There are several things that could account for the differences in these two men, some of which, will never be known to those who observed them that day. From the perspective of this Professional Counselor, it’s important to always remember that people have silent struggles that affect their attitudes and ultimately their behaviors and chances are, it has nothing to do with those it’s affecting. Even still, it’s equally important to take an inventory of your attitude as it’s more likely to influence your behavior especially if you’re not aware of it. Think of the last time you said “okay or yes ma’am” to your mother only to be told “watch your attitude”. You may have thought you were being respectful by saying “okay or yes ma’am”; however, she felt you were being disrespectful because of your tone or the attitude with which you said it. Maybe your beliefs were that she wasn’t being fair? Maybe you felt annoyed and so you set out to do only the bare minimum of what she was asking? The ABC’s of your attitude had a direct effect on your behavior. The good news is now that you know this, you can pause and challenge your own attitude first, which allows you to change it BEFORE it effects your behavior! (A) https://www.simplypsychology.org/attitudes.html
By Valarie Harris - Licensed Professional Counselor (LPC) and a Mental Health Service Provider (MHSP) in the state of Tennessee and owner of Harris Professional Counseling Services, PLLC.
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