If I’ve noticed anything about the thousands of companies I’ve been exposed to over the years, it’s that the successful ones have a successful attitude. Their workers provide the source of financial security, pride, and a sense of true service. They view their client or customer interactions as a blessing, not a curse. They’re as concerned with the success of their subordinates as with their personal success. They’re not just about pushing out a product or service — they’re about pushing out the best possible product or service.

Nobody is more responsible for creating this attitude than the CEO or president of the company. Of course, we’re all personally responsible for bringing a proper attitude to work. But we also know that whom we work for makes all the difference in our motivation.

To manufacture a great attitude, follow these recommendations:
Show the attitude that you want to see displayed. For example, you can’t talk about an inclusive environment and then dominate all the strategic planning. You can’t stress having a positive work environment and then only give people attention when they get in the way.

Recognize that the three most important words for leadership are “coax,”“encourage,” and “inspire.” We coax people by making them take a step. The safest and most powerful step is that of education or awareness. For example, what if your workforce has never worked in a gung-ho environment, either during their employment with you or previous employers? One way you can educate them quickly about what a great attitude looks and feels like is by showing them the Fish Philosophy or Southwest Airline videos.

Encourage people by finding the good in them. Zig Ziglar tells a story of his mother observing a job of planting he did as a young man. She told him, “For most boys, that would be a good job. But I don’t believe you’re like most boys. I think you’re capable of doing much better than that.” That’s all she had to say. If you want to encourage people, try to find the good in them. When things don’t go right, make sure to attack the conduct and not the person.

Inspire them with great stories. I ask executives across the country, “If I walked into your office today, what story would it tell me?” We can share stories surrounding the success of our products or services, stories about our fellow employees and their efforts, and stories about how our caring has impacted the communities in which we work and live.

In managing change, recognize you’ll have to deal with three types of people: “Natural resisters,” “sheep,” and the “gung-ho.” Some people are naturally resistant to change. As the book title suggests, they’re in fear of “Moving Their Cheese.” Help these people by addressing their fears directly, whatever they are. After that, it’s their choice to move beyond the fear or not. Those who won’t will find employment elsewhere.

The second type of employees, like sheep, will go along with any program. Unfortunately, most of them won’t put their hearts where their feet go. The goal of leadership is to help create a bigger world for these employees, beyond their self-limiting beliefs. That’s one reason why the power of stories is so great.

The last group of folks will be gung-ho to jump on board. Be inclusive with them and at the same time, make sure they do their jobs.

Finally, a change of attitude is like a change of anything else: You have to want it bad enough. Neuro-linguistic programming (NLP) explains that it’s difficult for us to be motivated by anything other than intense pain because our programming runs too deep. Generally, the pain of the present isn’t great enough or we would have changed already. The way to handle this is to bring the accumulated pain of the future to the present. As a classic example: Few smokers want to light up when they’re in their hospital bed on a respirator, suffering from cancer. If you can help people to understand and be aware of that future pain in the present, they will have the leverage necessary to effectuate change. This holds true whether it is related to attitude, process, or anything else.

Here’s hoping that the CEO or president at your company is in charge of creating a positive mental attitude!