One day, I was taking a low-cost carrier flight from Manchester to Paris. The aircraft was old, cramped, and grubby. When we deplaned, everyone piled onto a bus that drove us a long, long way to the gate. The little voice in my head was grumbling about the unpleasantness of it all.
Next to me, a boy – probably about seven or eight years old – was sitting on his mother’s knee. Actually, hovering. He barely sat. He bobbed up and down excitedly, pointing out things through the window.
“Ooh, look at that over there!” “Wow! Mummy, can you see that?” Then he chatted animatedly about what was the same as at home and “what they do different in France.” It was his first trip outside the United Kingdom, and he was thrilled to be in this new and exotic land.
Well, I’m impressed so far!
After a few minutes, he settled momentarily on his mother’s knee and announced, “Well, I’m impressed so far!” I thought this was fabulous. He hadn’t even reached the gate and was already bubbling with excitement about his surroundings. He and I had experienced the same plane journey and bus ride, yet our reactions were so different.
This brief encounter reminded me that we choose our mental attitude. And our mental attitude affects how we communicate with ourselves and others. I’m generally a positive person, yet I’d succumbed to mental grumbling. What good does that do me or anyone else? Much better to be curious about my surroundings or to put my mind to something useful, such as pondering how to solve a problem, planning, or simply letting my mind rest. But not mental grumbling.
I’ve shared this story with friends, family, and workshop participants, and now “Well, I’m impressed so far!” has become a bit of a catchphrase and a reminder that we can always choose how we communicate with ourselves and others.
What’s your mental attitude right now? How do you choose to communicate today?