Have you ever heard the saying, "Almost only counts in horseshoes and hand grenades?" In the urban dictionary, variations of this saying can also mean to get ready for battle and have plenty of ammo. Sounds pretty fitting, doesn't it?

We go through our lives making hundreds of choices every day. Choices that define the direction of our lives and in part, the lives of those around us. Some days it's a battle and some days you almost make it through before you collapse.

So many people see the word "almost" as a negative. I personally think it's all about perspective. If you flip the way you think about it, there are lots of times when it's actually a good thing!

Here are just a few real-life examples:

• When the boys almost miss the bus, but they make it at the last second and I don't have to drive them to school

• When I almost lose my cool, but pull it together somehow

• When I almost fall down the stairs, but catch myself just in time

• When I almost run that 5K in less than 35 minutes, but I still finish with my best time ever

• When my god-daughter almost says my name, but her sweet little voice can't quite get it exactly right

• When my son almost starts the apartment on fire, but only burns the dining room table

• When I almost have to miss that important school function, but the late work meeting is canceled at the last minute so I can go

• When my best friend and I almost finish that last bottle of wine, but we get so caught up in each other's company that we don't care

See what I mean? It's all about perspective. We fight our own personal battles every day, and the ammo we arm ourselves with is our attitude and how we react to the things that happen to us. Every situation can be viewed either positively or negatively; it's fully in our control.

So, next time something in your life "almost" happens to you, take a minute to decide whether you are going to view that experience as a positive or a negative.

I guarantee that you'll come out in a better place every single time you choose to view things positively. You'll feel better about yourself, and it will reflect in how you treat others. And the best part of it all is that it's free to change your attitude!

If we all flipped the way we look at things, I think we could "almost" change the world...