A friend of mine told me a couple years ago that I needed a personal motto.  If I was going to spend one more minute on this earth, I simply HAD to have a creed by which to live.   And, no, I wasn’t allowed to use anyone else’s … I had to come up with my own original mantra.

It was tough.  I hemmed and hawed because if I was gonna have a slogan, I wanted it to be perfect.  Go big or go home, right?  (And, no, that’s not my motto.)

I finally decided on:  “Avoid negativity at any cost.” It instantly stuck.  Why?  Because I get asked, almost on a daily basis, if I ever have a bad day.   The answer is always a resounding no.  I am perpetually in a good mood, that is, unless, some fool brings me down.

By far, the bane of my existence is people who are toxic.  And they are everywhere.  It’s a rampant epidemic.   If you’re grumpy, irritable or insufferable, I will avoid you like the plague.   Staying true to my personal motto has done wonders for my mental health.

I actually got in to a discussion on an airplane with a random woman who takes an immense amount of pride in her own special slogan.  She even went so far as to have them printed on her business cards.  It read:  “I hit a school bus once.  Not my best day.”  It was brilliantly understated.  So much so that my drink came out my nose.

A lot of my co-workers have their favorite quotes underneath the e-mail signatures.  I have a quote I have posted on my Facebook page, but I don’t think it’s appropriate for work.  If I had a favorite quote … this would definitely be it:

“If there’s anything more important than my ego around, I want it caught and shot now.” — Zaphod Beeblebrox

I’m just jealous I didn’t come up with it first.