Hurricane Force Grumbling: Impeding Joy

When things don't go your way, when things are not done to your liking, it's easy to turn to complaining.  And one complaint leads to the next.

This negative mindset functions much like a tropical depression that gathers energy from warm water, circulating counter-clockwise, gaining speed and tightening into hurricane force.

A complaint here or there may not seem problematic, but gather all those complaints together in a "warm water environment" where other folks are drawn in with their complaints, and pretty soon, the tropical depression of complaints circulates counter to good intention, gaining momentum, building to destructive hurricane force.

Regrettably, this negative cycle happens all too often in our work environments.

I was reminded this morning of the destructiveness of this thought pattern in this excerpt from Sarah Young's Jesus Calling:

"There is one thing, however, that displeases Me: your tendency to complain.  You may talk to Me as much as you like about the difficulty of the path we are following.  I understand better than anyone else the stresses and strains that have afflicted you.  You can ventilate safely to Me, because talking with Me tempers your thoughts and helps you see things from My perspective.

 Complaining to others is another matter altogether.  It opens the door to deadly sins such as self-pity and rage.  Whenever you are tempted to grumble, come to Me and talk it out."

Too often our complaining hinders our ability to experience joy, to be grateful. It's a mindset issue; is your glass half full or half empty? Are you choosing pessimism or optimism?

Complaining focuses our energy on the negative: what's wrong, what we don't like, what aggravates us, what someone else needs to do.

Instead, let's focus our energy on the positive: what's right, what we appreciate, what makes us happy, what we can do to improve a situation.

Complaints are lodged for someone else to make the repairs, to fix the problem, to right the wrong. Legitimate concerns, on the other hand, are followed by or accompanied with potential solutions; this places us in a positive position.

The next time you find your cranky self in complaint mode, try flipping your mindset.

For example, instead of complaining about having to prepare meals, I can choose to find joy in serving my husband and children.  (Yes, I wrote that in my joy journal yesterday! I found joy in the mundane, in something I really don't like doing - cooking & cleaning.  Joy is in the mindset.)

• Instead of complaining about having too many academically deficient students in your class, be grateful that you have the opportunity and the skills to make a life-changing difference for these kids.  
• Instead of complaining about lack of administrative support, be grateful that you've been empowered to handle your discipline and have open communication with parents. 
•  Instead of complaining that you have to cover a colleague's class, be grateful you are available to do so.

In a Nutshell
Complaining impedes joy.  The negative mindset that accompanies complaining leads to hurricane force destruction.  Choose optimism instead.  Look for the good in every situation, and you will find joy as you experience gratitude.

photo source: http://www.livescience.com/56397-photos-hurricane-matthew-how-storm-evolved.html