A police car came up next to me and the driver shouted, “Sir, would you pull over—about your lights?”

I stopped, got off my bicycle and immediately, two officers were on my left and right sides, making me spread my arms and legs and lean forward on the squad car. “Sir, this is not really about your lights. You fit the description of someone who robbed the Open Pantry convenience store at gun point last night.”

As I was being body-searched for weapons, my mind flashed images of how funny the situation was. I’d seen this stuff on TV. I smiled and stood up when the cops failed to find anything incriminating. Thinking this was the most interesting thing that had happened to me all day…all year…I engaged the police in friendly conversation. They relaxed and helped me fill in the picture.

They thought I looked just like the robber—blue striped shirt, blue jeans, black male, about 6 feet tall and short haircut. I found the process fascinating. “Where were you last night, between 9 and 11 p.m.? Can anyone vouch for you being there? May I see your driver's license? Where are you coming from?”

It was obvious that I wasn’t guilty; and so I had nothing to fear. I asked if I could go now.

“Well sir, given that you fit the description so closely and that it’s almost 11:00 p.m., the law allows us to hold you in jail overnight until offices open tomorrow when we can check this out more completely. But you’ve been so cooperative, that here’s what we’ll do. We’ll radio for another car to come and watch your bike and we’ll take you to the scene of the crime and get this thing figured out tonight.”

“Okay,” I thought, “In this way, I’ll be home in time to catch a good portion of that movie—The President’s Men—that I was planning to watch.”

In front of the Open Pantry, the cops directed me to get out of the car and walk into the store. They lagged behind as I entered the door. I noticed that the woman at the cash register to the left looked at me, then looked behind me and shook her head negatively. As I proceeded into the store, one cop tapped me on the shoulder and said, “It’s okay; let’s go.”

I was back home in time for a good part of my movie, but never watched a moment of it. Why? I was trembling. My stomach vibrated with nervous energy. My mind swirled. You see, it wasn’t until we were pulling into the parking area of the Open Pantry that the gravity of the situation smashed like a rock into my head.

There I was, sitting in the back seat of a police car, surrounded by a steel cage. In a moment, I would walk into a store to be identified by someone. What if he or she didn’t see the robber very well? What if the similarity of our clothing and appearance makes us indistinguishable? What if it’s a white person who already thinks all black men look alike? What if…?

My friend, have you ever been in a situation where you had this ominous sense that your entire life could change in a moment—change for the worse? When you’re not looking for trouble but trouble comes and finds you, what do you do then?

I must confess that I take no credit for the ultimate outcome of that night…only God’s blessings kept me from the nebulous circumstance that could have made that woman shake her head in the wrong direction and possibly doom me to years in prison…it has happened before and will happen again. I thank God. But I must also confess that there was another force at work in the spine-tingling experience that night. If that force were vibrating in the wrong direction, I could have been beaten up, shot, killed or at best, have spent the night in jail.

That force was attitude…my emotional demeanor, countenance and disposition. If I were defensive, negative and insistent on my rights as a citizen, I would certainly have spent the night in jail. If I were feisty, physically resistant or insulting, I could easily have been beaten with many stripes. If I were afraid enough to try and run away, because I believed all policemen are evil, I would most certainly have been shot and maybe killed. This happened to an innocent teenager in Cincinnati not long ago.

Instead, I was congenial, polite and unafraid. In my book, Persuasion Power , I talk about the attitudinal position that robs your customer of the pleasure of saying NO to you. Using the same psychological mechanism, you can rob a potential adversary of the pleasure of hurting you…after all, with the exception of the most neurotic of people, how much pleasure does one get from overpowering the un-resistant?

Now, with that explanation above, you may think I’m trying to impress you with my strategic approach that night…with my keen insight into human thinking and how I was able to engineer the circumstances for my best outcome. No such thing is true. Truth be told—my prevailing mindset was one of naiveté, innocent abandon and simple mindedness. If I had been smart enough in the moment to realize the potential danger and threat of the situation, my words, behavior and attitude might have been affected, leading to a different outcome.

Let’s talk about you. If you ever find yourself in eminent danger in a way that is comparable to my experience here, first of all, pray that God will keep you from the ultimate undesirable outcome. But never forget that God will not do everything for you. A major portion of the outcomes of your life…your results and consequences… is directly dependent on you and the attitudes you exhibit when circumstances are unfavorable.

It is inconsequential whether you are naturally a simple, happy person with a cheerful disposition, or you are very smart and you consciously apply the force of a positive attitude to diffuse tension and fear. By all means, be aware that your attitude determines your altitude and sets the direction of your life. You cannot control the circumstances life presents in your pathway, but as surely as night follows the day, you can control your emotional and physical response to those circumstances. Most often, your response determines if your pathway will be blocked or terminated, or if you can continue in pursuit of happiness.

I invite you to check yourself emotionally. Are you easily scared / fearful? Do you have a strong prejudice and hatred for certain type of people? Are you often defiant and resistant when others wrongly imply that you are to blame? Are you quick to fight for your rights, especially when you know you are innocent? Is it your instinct to run away at the first sign of trouble?

Certainly, there are times when you should run away; certainly, there are times for anger, indignation and extreme force. But I encourage you to choose well. One lesson I get from Newton’s Laws of Motion is that if one pushes hard with all one’s might against an object with no resistance, one will ultimately fall over. This is how a small Judo master brings down a large adversary.

To keep out of trouble and press ahead toward happiness, success or simple wellbeing, you have to depend on God’s help with the situations you don’t control. Still, you can't avoid trouble at all times, but as much as lies in your power, keep your mindset positive, constructive and friendly...your job, not God's. It will steer you away from many dark places, mostly inhabited by the negative, angry and defiant ones. Practice the attitude that robs potential adversaries of the pleasure of pushing you.

Take it from me; this attitude will give you altitude.

Alvin