This morning I read on one of many weekly newsletters from a fellow writer. As with most newsletters this first few days of the new year the topic was about goals. The thing that stood out the most to me is that we get what we expect. If we expect bad things to happen, money to run out, things to be hard, then guess what? Bad things will happen, your money will run out and things will be hard.

That’s not to say that life will always be a bed of roses. But if disappointments happen they won’t be devastating because so many other good things are occurring. It’s all about how we view and think about things.

Let’s say that for just one day you expect only good things to happen. The rules are no negative thoughts, ideas, or situations are tolerated. If you did this little exercise for just one day you would see how powerful your thoughts and intentions are.

Napoleon Hill in his book, Success Through a Positive Mental Attitude, says that we walk around with a two-sided medallion. One side has the letters NMA and the other side has the letter PMA. NMA is negative mental attitude. It is the consistent negative thoughts and feelings you carry around with you. PMA is positive mental attitude. It is the attitude that is positive in both thought and feelings. The thing about this medallion is that you choose which side you will live by.

When you live by PMA you expect good things to happen. You look for the positive in every situation including your finances, kids, relationships, and work. You will literally get what you are expecting.

In my life I’ve learned to think positively. It was not always easy because I was always surrounded by negative people. They had nothing good to say about their lives or about others. It seemed like trouble was always finding them. But I started reading books like the Science of Getting Rich, Think and Grow Rich, Success Through a Positive Mental Attitude, and other self-development books. The people around me could not teach me the secrets of success so I had to find out for myself.

All of these books taught me that I have to change the way I think. They said that I have to always look for the positive, have a positive mental attitude, and expect good things to happen. I learn that I should set goals, think big, and begin to plan for success. It didn’t matter that I was a single mom. That was and is just a temporary situation that can be made better or worse by my attitude.

Expecting the best out of life and going after it is how we (you and I) will be successful. Our attitude along the way will determine how quickly we get there. The books I read are not just about money and getting financially rich. They are about having the best quality of life possible no matter what the circumstances. Changing the attitude and the mind may take some serious effort but it is well worth it.

So what are you expecting? What side of the medallion are you wearing?

Samantha Gregory

Samantha A. Gregory is an author, consultant, and speaker. She’s a single-mom lifestyle, money, and parenting expert featured in The Washington Post, The New York Times, Essence Magazine, HuffPost, ABC News, and Mint.com.

Samantha founded the award-winning RichSingleMomma.com™, the first online magazine featuring personal finance, parenting, and personal development content and courses for single moms.

She aims to inspire women who are ready to thrive and not just survive in their single motherhood journey. Connect with her on Instagram @richsinglemomma.