Is It My Attitude, Or What?

    Ever hear the expression, "When life gives you lemons, make lemonade?" How would you feel if it read, "If you make lemonade, life will give you a chain of lemonade stands?" 
    Much has been said lately about the influence that attitude can have on one's life circumstances. Entire books have been published on how to change thought processes in a certain way in order to attain riches, possessions, a great job, etc.  There are testimonials citing horrible circumstances that have been reversed by merely "thinking it away into something positive." Many are willing to buy into "The Secret," a book recently written by Rhonda Byrne, which tries to sell its unsuspecting readers the idea that one can accomplish anything by mere positive thinking.  Some, like Oprah Winfrey, have also jumped on this bandwagon, almost to the point of religious devotion.
    The reality is this:  Attitude can either cause or be the result of a positive or negative action.  All by itself, attitude cannot be responsible for success or failure any more than standing in a garage makes one a car, or even a driver for that matter.
    The trials and successes of life are surely affected by attitude. The real "secret" to that effect is not how an attitude affects circumstances, but how attitude affects the way a person deals with those circumstances.