The narrative piece, How full is your bucket, positive strategies for work and life, written by Tom Rath and his grandfather Donald Clifton, outlines a unique description of the impact of how sharing positive interactions with others (socially, intimately, in the work environment, and strangers) ensures a more fulfilling life. This book brings to light how negativity impacts your own life and the lives of individuals surrounding you. An interesting concept that was studied during the Korean War, the American captives were denies positive social interactions, and were denied support from loved ones (Rath & Clifton, 2009, p. 25). The soldiers were ultimately swayed to have a negative outlook and hopeless existence which unfortunately led to their demise. Negativity spreads to others like wildfire and takes away from your …show more content…
productiveness, work performance, personal relationships (especially marriages) and overall well being. This same impact is true for anyone you are in contact with as well. Clifton also referenced the school aged children, and how negativity hindered their school performance. The study indicated that children who received positive feedback during a series of mathematical testing versus children who were ignored and those who received only feedback on their mistakes performed significantly better on the standardized testing scores. This simplistic theory seems almost too easy and can make one question why this is not implemented. Changing the outlook and focus of an individual from negative to positive is difficult and takes practice. This book focuses on the concepts of an invisible bucket that each individual has. The concept of either “Filling” or “Dipping” is reliant on your individual attitude and thought processes, either positive or negative. Is it said that each individual invisible bucket should be filled with positive emotions, comments, and inspiration which in turn creates a positive environment. The process of “filling” other individual’s buckets by spreading positivity creates a positive momentum and makes more success as well as more fulfilling life and relationships. “Dipping” applies to taking away from others and our self with negativity; regardless of how minute our comments or statements are, they make impact other individuals by hampering their productivity, their ability to concentrate, and or affect their relationships and outlook. Misery loves company, and it is much easier to spread negativity than reverse your own thinking to spread positivity. This book is a great reference for leaders and mangers who want to support a positive work environment and empower their staff to become more productive and connected with each other. The valuable information that is discussed in the book is supported with research. The authors demonstrated how negativity in the workplace generally leads to more negativity and leaders and manager should be helping to inspire their employees to boost morale and increase productivity. Several studies that were done by major corporations, one in study in particular targeted the customer service department at a large telecommunications company. They demonstrated how a positive workplace can stem from recognition and why is it important. “65% of Americans received no recognition in the workplace last year” (Rath p. 75). Although this book is dated from 2004, I am sure the percentages are not far off. Many people are unhappy with their supervisors and employers and many times leads to high turnover rates. According to the US Department of Labor the number one reason people leave their job is because they do not feel appreciated. Appreciation starts within you. Do you exude a positive attitude? Are you often focused on the negative interactions with others? Are you dipping or filling other individual’s buckets? Most importantly, how full is your bucket? These are important questions you should be asking yourself on a daily basis. The healthcare industry overall is a negative environment.
I realize this is a bit strong, however, we live in a time (and a country) that provides “sick care” more often than “health(y) care” and unfortunately there is a stigma attached to medical care and it is a negative. This can be changed, but it Healthcare workers in some regard are providing a service, a service to patients, and a service to help other healthcare workers diagnose and treat their patients. When we are surrounded by a caring and encouraging healthcare team, a trusting relationship can then be built and provide better outcomes. The change needs to start with the individual, and eventually it can be spread to others such as peers and patients and inspire them to continue the cycle of bucket filling. Rath references many situations where customer service representatives are always negative and “scare the customer off for good.” I have seen this happen in my past career and also have witnessed this happen during my time as a nursing student. It is not an uncommon thing to hear how night nursing staff is often unpleasant and the issue is often skirted and
overlooked. Clifton references his battle with a lifelong illness and notes that it did not affect his productivity, and interfere with his positive outlook. There were times that he was frustrated and scared, which is natural, however, more often than not he focused on what he was able to change and treat and not how or why he was battling this illness. I can associate with this book on many different wavelengths. I have been working in healthcare for over ten years, and have been a contributor to the negative atmosphere in some aspect, but I also have been an advocate of positivity. My key is laughter, there is always a time and place for this of course, but I have never encountered a situation where the smile or laughter was not helpful in some way whether it be to lighten the mood, to brighten someone’s day, or just to take their mind off of a stressful situation to regroup their thoughts and feelings. I enjoyed reading this book and would recommend this book to my peers and work associates. I am still skeptical of the simplicity of the concept, but am curious to test the theory in my own life, and what the results of changing my thinking pattern and truly focusing on the positive aspects to see if there will be a notable change that will affect my life. References Rath, T., Clifton, D., (2009). How full is your bucket: Positive strategies for work and life. New York, NY: Gallup Press
In today’s society you either have to work hard to live a good life, or just inherit a lump sum of cash, which is probably never going to happen. So instead a person has to work a usual nine to five just to put food on the table for their families, and in many cases that is not even enough. In the article, “Why We Work” by Andrew Curry, Curry examines the complexities of work and touches on the reasons why many workers feel unsatisfied with their jobs. Barbara Ehrenreich writes an essay called, “Serving in Florida” which is about the overlooked life of being a server and the struggles of working off low minimum wages. Curry’s standpoint on jobs is that workers are not satisfied, the job takes control of their whole life, and workers spend
Award-winning author Mandy Hale once stated, “Without negativity, life would be amazing.” However, this statement does not always prove to be true. Today’s modern community generates a judgement that negative experiences will ruin your life, but studies show that negativity can actually result in positive change. For example, negativity can positively change teenagers actions, introduce teenager’s to more supportive environments, and help fix broken relationships.
A Few Keys to All Success by Jim Muncy, published in 2002 explains that there are 7 universal keys to success that we can relate to everyday life. Discernment, Optimism, Responsibility, Initiative, Perseverance, Purpose, Sacrifice. Each one represents how we grow and teaches us how to have a high quality of life. From reading this book I am confident because I know being normal means being average and what we do can change how we act significantly. Also we can’t let the world hold us back from greatness. There will be negativity, there will be those who lack enthusiasm but you can’t let them interfere in what you have in store. And these keys will help you get to that point in your life. Discernment; Judge the seed by the harvest. The first
This country places great value on achieving the perfect body. Americans strive to achieve thinness, but is that really necessary? In his article written in 1986 entitled “Fat and Happy?,” Hillel Schwartz claims that people who are obese are considered failures in life by fellow Americans. More specifically, he contends that those individuals with a less than perfect physique suffer not only disrespect, but they are also marginalized as a group. Just putting people on a diet to solve a serious weight problem is simply not enough, as they are more than likely to fail. Schwartz wants to convey to his audience that people who are in shape are the ones who make obese people feel horrible about themselves. Schwartz was compelled to write this essay,
Carol finishes her story with a plea for a better communication among the different healthcare providers and the system in general. There is no perfect system, and health care, the system that constantly evolves, deals with life and death, and employs people to fill such diverse niches is probably the most complex of them all, the most difficult to assess, comprehend, and change. As big, complex, and sometimes scary as it seems, it can be changed: talking to a colleague, taking a moment and asking a patient’s opinion. “Be the change you wish to see in the world”, said Gandhi. This is my motto.
Ever hear one say, “Sometimes I’m busy making others happy, that I forget to make sure I’m okay.”? After reading Barbara Ehrenreich’s Bright-Sided I have learned that balancing both positive and negative thinking is the single most important life lesson shown throughout the book. Ehrenreich tells readers that the power of positive thinking Is undermining America and how being too positive and too optimistic, can lead to trouble. One that knows how to balance the amount of positivity and negativity will create a proper outcome for their future.
This shows the significance that health care workers can have on patient care.
If someone thinks negatively towards something the outcome will not be good, and vice versa. Thinking you can achieve the American dream is a major key in doing so, and some Americans are already on the right track. In the U.S., a survey showed that 36 percent of Americans say they have achieved the dream, and another 46 percent believe they are on the path of achieving it. It is not so easy, though, to always look on the bright side. Sometimes it seems as if nothing is going right; that is when negativity occurs. People can argue that mindset has little impact on the outcome, or that it does not matter how positive a person is because some things are just not meant to be. An article, however, proves this wrong. The paper argues how negative emotions prevent humans from flourishing; it also states, “if your ratio of positive to negative emotions is greater than 2.9013 to one, you will flourish both physically and psychologically.” If a person believes in themselves, they are more likely to accomplish their
...rking in the hospitals all across the nation, and employing confident employees to those positions will make a large impact on how well people are treated in medical facilities. Every nurse should follow procedure and focus on the job at hand—healing people.
Donald calls it “Five Strategies for Increasing Positive Emotion,” and gives real life testimonies from tested subjects. For one of the test subject, they started him off with watching every thing he says to someone, and to make an analytical note of himself to see if he was dipping away from someones bucket or adding to it. The test subject told Donald, “It was difficult at first, but after some time, he realized it was working,” this change in behavior had him in a positive mood as if others happiness brought him joy. In chapter six, your personal bucket was the main focus that would allow you to start becoming happier and keeping your happy medium in line with your metaphoric bucket and as some else receives positivity, they can give positivity bad to you that can also make fill your bucket. Donald talks about “making friends,” is what it leads to, when you have a friend we as social creatures get joy from someone else’s presence because that friend brings happiness to your life. So the way your bucket fills up is by spreading positivity and being friendly with
Poor care does not only result in bad press and public perception but also break the trust between the patient and nurse. Utilising the theoretical framework developed by Todres et all (2009) which explores eight central aspects of what it is to be human. Todres et al (2009). This model can be used to improve nursing care. Referring to the term ‘being treated as human beings’ not being treated as a number or object.
Healthcare is viewed in an unrealistic way by most individuals. Many people view a physician as the only means to find a solution to their problem. Nurses are still seen by some as simply “the person who does what the doctor says.” This is frustrating in today’s time when nurses are required to spend years on their education to help care for their patients. In many situations nurses are the only advocate that some patients’ have.
I believe that we should always think of others needs and do no harm to others even if they have harmed you in some way. I treat others the way that I would want them to treat me and I expect that others will treat me the same way. I understand that not everyone feels the same as I do and that I cannot control the way that others decide to treat me. I show compassion for everyone I come in contact with and I treat every patient the same way despite the fact that they may be unruly or even try to hurt me. I have accepted the fact that there are some people out there who will try to hurt me despite the fact that all I want to do is help them. I feel that everyone in the health care profession should feel the same way as I do and try to keep themselves from losing their mercy that they show towards others. After being in the health care field for so long, many people stop caring for others and become detached from the patients. I agree that we cannot take every case personally but we still need to retain our humanity and continue to show compassion to fellow
One of the most important habits is being proactive for. For example, you have to choose if you want to be a proactive person or a reactive person. The book teaches us that “Each day you and I get about 100 chances to choose whether to be proactive or reactive”. Being proactive is you blame your problems on your self not other. You are the one that chooses to do the thing that got you into problems. Being proactive is you’re in charge of your life. The author[Stephen Covey] teaches us that “You are in charge of your own life, nothing else is really possible”. It pays to be proactive you can't be a proactive person in one day or a week, for example, proactive people“Can brush things off without getting offended”. But if it was a reactive person they would get offended that why it takes a lot to
“You make the world a better place by making yourself a better person,” was once said by a man named Scott Sorrell. In today’s modern world and age, everything seems to be progressing and getting larger at a mind blowing rate. This includes people’s attitudes on themselves, on other people, and on the world in general. Many people are insecure and spiteful towards their physique or their overall worth, and bitter and disconnected from other people. Scott Sorrell’s quote is conveying that one can make the world a better place both for themselves and for other people simply by changing their attitude and being positive. I agree with Scott Sorrell’s quote because by choosing to be happy from within, people’s positive attitudes can reach other people and eventually the world, making it a “better place”.