Attitude is very important. It is probably the most important thing you should talk about in every self-help material you come across. Why; because attitude controls your mind that controls everything. That's what makes the difference between a good athlete and a poor one; a successful businessman or failure; great/poor artist/artist. Hamilton, our writer today was no stranger to disability; she was two years old when she contracted a mysterious illness that caused her to stop growing. She was diagnosed with cerebral palsy and was told by a doctor that she had six months to live. Diet and exercise have cured the problem even though Hamilton gained a height of 5 feet [5 m] during his lifetime. He did not let disability paralyze him. In 1981 ’82 and ’83 Scott Hamilton won a gold medal at the World Figure Skating Championships and also won a gold medal at the 1984 Winter Olympics.

But Hamilton is not the only example of men and women overcoming major obstacles in their lives. There is Helen Keller, who is blind and deaf from a very young age; President Abraham Lincoln who grew up to be a poor barefoot young man from Missouri became a self-taught man who later became our 16th president of the United States. The list goes on and on and on and on and on and on and on and on and on and on and on. A bad attitude can put an end to any male or female dream.

What is the secret to success? Art Link's book states: "Things are going very well for people who are doing their best for the way things are going." That’s a magical formula and nothing more or less.

President Franklin D. Roosevelt campaigned in a wheelchair and won the 1933 presidential election. He served 4 unprecedented times from 1933-1945 working as a paralyzed man working through the most difficult times our country has ever seen, including the great disappointment of World War II.

Hamilton is right when he says that disability is the only bad thing. A bad situation can prevent you from getting a job by doing poorly in a job interview, it can end marriages and lead a person to use street drugs or become dependent on chemicals. A tragic situation can keep a battered housewife from living with her abusive husband until he finally beats her to death; it can keep us all bound by our bonds of restraint if we let it. It makes us all make bad decisions in life that lead to nowhere and can make us poor communities. Having a negative attitude has a negative effect on all who choose that path of self-indulgence and self-pity while a bad attitude always leads to the end.

It’s best to do the best you can in your life, whatever cards you were treated to, and then smile on your face and be brave for the day, each new day. Greet me in a good mood and look at the difference you make. Someone once said that life is 10% what happens to you and 90% how you deal with it. That is why a positive attitude is so important. Having a positive attitude empowers you and if you are empowered you can empower others you meet. Today try and put that secret of good character. Yes, of course, sometimes you just have to be more discriminating with the help you render toward other people. Today you are empowered and determined to face your day with a positive attitude!