Cultivating a Positive Attitude at Work: How and Why

The importance and benefits of having a positive attitude at work can’t be overstated. Why? Because it’s a win for everyone:

• It reduces your stress, makes work more enjoyable, and helps you achieve more. 
• For your co-workers, your positivity can influence them and make their day better. 
• Customers will be happier to deal with a pleasant technician, and may react better to bad news.
• And for your employer, all those benefits add up to a person they can’t afford to lose.

There’s no downside to cultivating a positive attitude at work, and there’s a great deal to gain. But it’s not simply a matter of deciding to think positively… changing your ingrained habits does take effort. Here’s some advice that can help you make progress.

5 tips for cultivating a positive attitude at work

1. Turn around negative thinking (a.k.a. “fake it til you make it”)

It’s pretty common for people to respond to situations with negative thoughts and self-blame. 

“Why didn’t I check the GPS for traffic before I left for my appointment? Now I’ll be late and the customer will be mad. Why am I such an idiot???”

Sound familiar? Remember that everyone forgets things and makes mistakes. Try to catch yourself when you’re having negative thoughts like this, and be more realistic.

“Well, yes, I should have checked the traffic. But traffic isn’t my fault. Let me call the customer and explain why I’m delayed. When I get there I’ll take it up to them by being extra friendly and helpful.”

When you intentionally shift your thinking repeatedly, over time you’ll naturally start to think more positively about yourself and the situations you find yourself in every day. Positivity even helps you come up with more creative solutions to problems.

2. Work on gratitude

Focusing on what’s good in your day and in your life can help to dispel negative thoughts and help you have a more positive attitude at work. 

Having a daily gratitude practice can really help. Start by writing down 5 things you are grateful for, in both your work and personal life. Then every day, read your list and add something new.

Be sure to include both big, important things (like your friends, family, and your job) and small, seemingly insignificant things that can greatly impact your day (the excellent sandwich you had for lunch). 

Also make it a point to include things you have control over (like the great job you did handling an important work assignment) as well as positive things that are outside of your control (the beautiful weather).

When you read your list and add to it every day, you reinforce your own positive feelings and realize how much you have going for you. That helps keep your reactions to less-positive events in perspective.

3. Manage anxiety

Anxiety is becoming an epidemic these days, and it can really interfere with your happiness and your job performance, too. Anxiety is about what we fear, and fear drives negative thinking. And those negative thoughts impede your confidence and ability to succeed at work.

When you feel anxious, you’ll find that you are worrying about events in the future and imagining the worst. Instead, when you catch yourself doing that, try imagining the best-case scenario. You can reduce anxiety when you realize that what you’re dreading isn’t the only option, and probably not the most-likely option.

You can also help to combat anxiety with other practices like meditation and mindfulness, spending more time outdoors (especially in the sunlight at this time of year), or by working with a therapist or coach to learn more anxiety-busting techniques.

4. Be kind to yourself

Chances are, you treat others with kindness and respect (at least most of the time!). You give people the benefit of the doubt. You congratulate them on their successes, and recognize their efforts and good qualities.

You deserve to treat yourself the same way. Take some time to think about your own strengths. Take stock of your good intentions and the time and energy you put into trying to achieve your goals. And recognize the things you have achieved, large and small, both at work and in your personal life. 

Treating yourself well builds your confidence and promotes a habit of positive thinking.

5. Seek out ways to help others

As a technician, chances are you already know how good it feels to help others. Serving others helps them and also makes you feel better about yourself, too.

Consider taking on a volunteer role in your community in an area that interests you. For example, deliver meals to the home-bound, coach a little league team, or build a community garden. 

Doing community service also makes it easier to practice gratitude.

More resources to help you succeed in your career

As a service technician, your classroom and on-the-job training helps you learn technical and safety skills. But there’s so much more you need to know to succeed in this business. Check out our articles and videos to learn other essential skills to build your career.

HVACR Career Connect NY was created to promote the exceptional quality-of-life benefits of a career in HVAC and Refrigeration service, and also to provide a clear path for getting started in the profession. In doing so, we serve as a resource for employers in the New York City metro area to find and hire smart and capable new technicians. We also serve as an educational resource to support business growth and to help service technicians succeed in their chosen profession.