I grew up as a huge fan of A.A. Milne’s Winnie the Pooh series. The magical world of Christopher Robbin’s Hundred Acre Wood included a variety of characters with vastly different personalities: Winnie the Pooh, Piglet, Tigger, Eeyore, Owl, Kanga, Rabbit and little Roo. Each character has unique traits, but the two characters with the most opposite personalities are Tigger and Eeyore. In his “Last Lecture,” Randy Pausch, stated that people need to decide early in life, “whether you are a Tigger or an Eeyore.”  

Why these two specific characters?  

It boils down to whether you have a positive (Tigger) or negative (Eeyore) personality. Tigger sees the world as full of opportunities for positive interactions, while Eeyore dreads every interaction. Tigger strikes each day with a bounce and a song – ready to face new adventures no matter what it is or how scary it might be. Eeyore, on the other hand, makes bitter, self-deprecating comments that keep a cloud of doom over every encounter, even with his friends.  

Both of these perceptions of the world are directly caused by their attitudes. Optimism and positivity are mental states that can enable a person to take actions to improve their physical and mental state. Mark Twain once said, “I am an old man and have known a great many troubles, but most of them never happened.” We often create and dwell on more trouble than what actually confronts us, just through the act of envisioning negative scenarios in our heads, just like Eeyore. So, you have to determine, are you a Tigger or an Eeyore?

CHARACTERISTICS OF TIGGER  

• Happy
• Physically active
• Adventurous
• Not afraid of failure
• Inquisitive
• Takes risks
• Doesn’t like to be alone

CHARACTERISTICS OF EEYORE  

• Depressed
• Inactive
• Cautious
• Sees everything as failure
• Uninterested
• Takes no risks
• Likes to be alone

It's not only a matter of your own attitude, but how you affect the attitude of those around you. You can't help but smile and be uplifted by Tiggers, and you can't help but breathe a melancholy sigh around Eeyores. I had the pleasure of working with a real-life Tigger here at Lofton.  His positive outlook and personality were electric. You could FEEL his positive energy! He sadly passed away suddenly in 2007, but his positive personality still lives on. He had such an impact on the people around him, that a Facebook page was created in his honor, Tommy’s Traveling Tigger.  He was a living representation of that Tigger spirit – dancing, laughing, and grinning through the halls of Lofton with that big smile. It’s better to be a Tigger and leave the world around you a little lighter, just like Tommy did. So, it’s time to decide…are you going to be a Tigger or an Eeyore?

About Lofton: Founded in 1979, Lofton Services offers clients the best of all worlds. We provide the responsive, personal service and flexibility of a small local firm while having the technology, resources, and infrastructure to deliver the benefits of the biggest players in our industry. Lofton Staffing can deliver the right people, with the right skills, right when you need them. Contact us today.