Gratitude!
Have you ever found it is far too easy to focus on the “one thing?” You know what I mean – the “one thing” that didn’t work out the way you had hoped.
That “one thing” could be a situation that didn’t go your way, a failed relationship, something you didn’t get, a dream that didn’t come true, a disappointment, a goal not met and so on. It may be something within or outside of your control.
Depending on the size, scope and impact of the “one thing,” our minds can be consumed with thoughts of it and what we think about affects how we feel. Our thoughts and emotions can get intertwined and, before you know it, minutes, hours and days are spent thinking about the “one thing.”
This happened to me in 2022; a situation happened that consumed me (yes, I had allowed it to) and I realized I was not going to get what I wanted. That’s just the way life is sometimes. In the midst of it, this thought entered my mind: “Live in gratitude for what you have rather than longing for what you do not have.”
I grabbed a post-it note, wrote that thought down and kept it on my desk at home where I would see it every time I sat down at the computer. This thought stayed with me for months and I tried to focus my mind in that direction.
Through my virtual success mentor, Darren Hardy, I learned to put together brief AM and PM routines to bookend my day and keep me grounded. My AM routine included thinking of five things I was grateful for. It was as simple as being grateful for good weather or deeper such as being thankful for my job and the cherished people in my life.
In 2023, I took this a step further and decided to purposely live from a place of gratitude. While searching on eBay, I found a “Gratitude Journal” that listed five blank lines for each day (for the entire year) where I could write out what I was grateful for. I started on Jan. 1 and kept on going.
What did I discover? Firstly, it takes work to train your brain to consciously think this way each day. It didn’t always come naturally; sometimes I had to deliberately shift my thoughts to something I was thankful for. Secondly, it changed my focus to being more positive and helped me see the glass as “half full,” so to speak. Thirdly, it truly helped me live into my thought from 2022 - “Live in gratitude for what you have rather than longing for what you do not have.”
What are you grateful for and how can you live a life of gratitude?
Recommended Resources
- Purchase a Gratitude Journal (there are many on Amazon) that lasts a year.
- You could also purchase a Page-A-Day calendar with quotes on gratitude (also available on Amazon; search “gratitude calendar”).
Challenge for 2024
- Take five minutes at the end of every day this year to write out what you are grateful for.