Our business lives are filled with challenges and roadblocks.  This is not always a bad thing.  Challenges give us opportunities to be brave, to confront our fears, to rise above the fray, and most importantly, to grow as professionals.

One area that can get us all in trouble, however, is the issue of having a bad mood.  Bad temperament is something that will nag at us.  Bad moods can be the “monkey on our back.”  We don’t feel great.  We didn’t get enough sleep.  We got in a fight with our significant other.  We hit traffic at the worst time.  We didn’t get complimented on our new haircut.  We made the mistake of stepping on the scale this morning.  We hit three brand new golf balls into the lake.  Ill humor can pop up anywhere, and sadly we use the doldrums as an excuse to be gloomy, doomy, pout-abouts.  Whaaaa.

The trick is to say “No” to this inferior frame of mind.  The trick is to NOT play with the monkey.  Oh, the monkey wants to play all right.  The monkey is throwing poo out in front of us all day.  The monkey pulls our hair, pinches our ears and bites at anything that moves.  Worst of all,  the monkey wants to play with other monkeys, which means that you are going to attract other people with poor dispositions.

Don’t play with the monkey!  It’s a choice that you make, that you control.  Choose to look through life with a shiny lens and let the monkeys stay in the trees.