By Elizabeth Herman┃Posted: April 28, 2019

Have you ever felt so fed up with your job that you were ready to walk away? Most of us have. But we can choose how to react, either positively or negatively, when we’re overwhelmed with workplace problems. We can overcome the tendency of the mind to attach itself to negativity.

In this new installment of Art of Living’s Monday Motivation series, Ajey Vij, a corporate trainer, offers a new way to deal with insurmountable difficulties at work, by focusing on becoming part of solutions to problems, rather than letting the problems push you away.

In this brief video, he asks, “What gets in the way of effectively contributing at our workplace?” He then explains the tendency of our mind to cling to the negative.

One example of this tendency tells the story of passing a female acquaintance in the hallway, and giving many effusive compliments to her, but then adding one negative thing. Going forward, the receiver of this feedback then naturally associates you with the one seemingly overwhelming criticism you gave, rather than focusing on all of your encouraging, positive input.

He also tells the story of going to his own boss ready to quit because of all the problems he encounters in the organization. Politics, staff, vendors, and management are some of these challenges. In a very nice way, his boss helps a lot by validating his employee’s viewpoint, and showing appreciation for Ajey’s real concerns about the health of the company. The boss admits that the workplace is full of problems, but explains that addressing the problems is the purpose of the job.

In conclusion, Ajey realizes the truth of his boss’s advice, and asserts, “Leadership is our ability to always be part of the solution and not become part of the problem.” He advises his viewers, “Train yourself to focus on the positive, and don’t allow the mind to cling to things which are negative.”

Here is the video:

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By Elizabeth Herman - PhD in English, with concentrations in Rhetoric and Composition, and Literature, she offers writing support to clients, teaches locally, lives in Boone, NC, and volunteers for a better world.