What impact does my mood have on others?

The following story was loosely taken from a talk given by the late Zig Ziglar:

Mr. Jones ran a tight ship as the office manager. A 60-minute lunch meant a 60-minute lunch, and everyone adhered to being back on time. One day time got away from Mr. Jones on his lunch hour, and he arrived back ten minutes late. No one said anything but Mr. Jones was in a sour mood to somehow compensate for his tardiness. 

He vented his anger on his secretary who in turn quickly developed a sour attitude; the entire afternoon was miserable. Quitting time came around and Mr. Jones’ secretary fumed all the way home until she was at a fever pitch. 

When she arrived at her home, she immediately jumped all over her son who had left a mess in the kitchen and had not completed his daily chores. The son was now in a sour mood and stomped all over the house as he reluctantly took care of his daily duties. Frustrated and angry, the boy’s cat made the mistake of walking in his path and the boy hauled off and kicked the cat.

Now wouldn’t have been easier if Mr. Jones had gone from his lunch over to his secretary’s house and kicked the cat himself?

No matter where we are stationed in life, we can always find someone or something that we can “be the boss of”. And the tendency is to take advantage of that position when we need to vent our anger. This is the gist of today’s advice from Solomon – “A poor man who takes advantage of the lowly is like a driving rain which destroys crops.”

What is it that causes us to vent our anger and frustration on people who have nothing to do with why we are feeling the way we do? You may have taken on more responsibility than you have time for, which leads to you being tired and tense, which leads to tossing and turning at night, which leads to being worn out, which leads to a bad attitude, which leads to saying or doing offensive things to innocent people, which leads to cats getting kicked. All because of something you in essence started by making a foolish decision.

The illustration from Solomon is one that shows us something that should be a help but instead brings disaster. Rain should cause the crops to grow and is obviously needed for the crops to grow. But if rain comes too fast and furious it can actually wash the crops away. 

In the same way, the people you are in contact with on a daily and weekly basis are very much needed for you to handle what this world throws at you. We are interdependent upon each other. We need human contact with friends, family, and even co-workers to help us deal with life. But all too often it only takes a moment in time to turn from being a very present help in a time of need to becoming an irritant that adds to the problem.

You have a greater effect on those around you than you probably realize. Your moods rub off on those around you. The expression, “When momma ain’t happy, ain’t nobody happy” is valid and true. People are naturally attracted to positive and happy people, and they are repelled by negative and grouchy people. 

Your attitude will affect the attitudes of those around you, and it is a disaster when you drag others down with you. You are in essence the driving rain that washes all the crops away instead of the warm gentle rain that gives life to the crops.

Keep your mood in check – the cats of the world, along with all of those around you, will thank you.