The Last Word
By Hunter Kindley | Posted: Wednesday June 21, 2017
The NCEA system is ridiculous. We are taught to chase after credits, but I guess it does keep us motivated.
Police officers are shockingly racist. But I guess in New Zealand it's fine. I hate sitting in traffic. But I guess I’m lucky to have a car. All too often we nit pick every slice of negativity out of the things we are so privileged to have. Negativity is engulfing our mind, our country, and our world.
Monday 6th of March 2017. An inspirational day. The day my perception of the world was altered. Max Chu and I were given the opportunity to meet and speak to the current second best test batsmen in the world, third best T20 batsmen in the world and our New Zealand cricket captain; Kane Williamson. One of my biggest role models. We spoke for a measly twenty minutes that felt like two, everything that came from his mouth sounded like it had been rehearsed and with a swift handshake he left.
As I discovered first-hand these “Famous people” are fascinating humans. To get to the top of their fields they have to be exceptionally skilled, intelligent and most importantly mentally strong. Famous basketballer, Russell Westbrook’s motto is simply, “why not”. The late Steve Jobs’ motto was, “Stay hungry, stay foolish” and ex Blackcaps captain, Brendon McCullum simply says; “If you get asked if a glass of wine is half full or half empty, pick it up and drain it. Problem solved”. An obvious, underlying theme in all three mottos is an overwhelming positivity given off by these men. Success isn’t easy, just like positivity. In fact, the easiest option is to make excuses for why we can’t be successful so that we don’t have to endure failure. Through these excuses, modern generations have single-handedly thought our way into depression, anger, and anxiety. Don’t get me wrong, both optimists and pessimists do contribute to society. The optimists invent the airplane and the pessimists invent the parachute. The trouble is, in New Zealand, parachute makers are far too common.
We are the biggest culprits for negativity out of anyone. We all do it, twisting any complement of positivity that gets thrown at us into a negative. Yes, it is in our nature to be humble but when we are so determined to find flaws in ourselves we are becoming blinded from what is often the truth. New Zealand was voted the world's best country in 2007 and 2008 by Wanderlust magazine. We also enjoy one of the world’s highest life expectancy rates - 82.3 years for females and 78.3 years for males. If that wasn’t enough, there are 2.5 million cars for 4 million people, one of the highest ownership rates in the world.
How is it that we still manage to dwell on the negatives when we live in a country as great as ours? I’m sorry but I don’t have the answer.
You might also be thinking, “You have it all wrong, kiwis define the ‘get stuck in’ persona”. If you really want to hear our professional pessimists in full swing, tune into radio sport on a Sunday morning after (dear I say it) the All Blacks loose. Criminal. There's a reason why tall poppy syndrome is so often talked about here. To catch any other of our national pessimists in action, tune into TV1 or TV3 - 6 pm on weeknights.
We all must find a way to change our mindset, start looking for the good in on our surroundings. Let's take a leaf from some of the most successful human beings and start to radiate positivity. In psychology, the law of attraction is the belief that by focusing on the positive or negative thoughts, a person brings positive or negative experiences into their life. We must start thinking about success to have success. Positive thinking is power. Whether we like it or not, 77% of our self-talk is negative because of way our brain is wired in order for us to improve. This means that we have to challenge ourselves, find your 23% and embrace it. All we need to do is make an effort because at the end of the day optimism is an attitude.
Kane Williamson goes by the motto that; “you deserve nothing” this is his way to keep himself in a neutral frame of mind as success in cricket can often come down to luck. He also said to me, “make sure your highs aren’t too high and your lows don’t get too low” Kane has mastered the ability to keep himself mentally sharp and I think it is the reason why he could be one of New Zealand's best cricketers ever. Four days after I spoke to Kane, on the 10th of March 2017 he scored his sixteenth test century of 130 runs after 380 mins out in the middle. Positivity breeds success.
