2017 has been such an amazing year! This Thanksgiving, I was sitting on my couch with my family, waiting for the turkey to cook, just thinking about the blessings and how amazing this year has been!
I will, later in December, be sharing some amazing moments of 2017, but I wanted to share with you, the power of gratitude in my life and how it has brightened it up, giving it a whole new meaning!
Many years ago, I was watching the Secret, a DVD about the power of the energy that surrounds you and how you can take control of your life.
One of the speakers talked about gratitude, she said something which stuck with me: she was always resenting her spouse and she decided to appreciate him for the good things he did and qualities, not for the things she didn’t like about him and it shifted the course of her relationship 360 degrees! She started to appreciate the little things, and give her spouse attention and said: “the energy flows, where attention goes”; whatever is the focus of attention becomes more prominent. She decided to focus on positive and not only did it save her marriage, but it also ignited their passion.
On that day, I decided to act in gratitude not only towards my husband, but also towards everyone who would come in contact with me; all the opportunities, every single blessing and open door.
You can check it out, click on the picture to read more about it:
John Assaraf, in the same DVD, talked about gratitude and visualizing it before it happened using a vision board! That was an A-HA moment for me! I have done a vision board ever since, here is one of my posts about it: Vision Boards. Here is his book, which helped give me a comprehensive view to understand the process:
Here are my own tips to keep gratitude present in your life:
It starts every morning:
It’s more than a process for me; I wake up in the morning and think about what I’m grateful for; I practice gratitude when I get an email with a new trip or a new job; every little opportunity is like the first! I also try to imagine everything positive that I have and would like to have in my life. For example, I am relocating to a new home with all of my belongings by hiring movers similar to Herbert Furniture Removals (one of my friends took that name, so I remember it). Or, I have a balcony where I can sit and relax in peace.
Writing it all down
I also made a habit to write things down, things I’m grateful for … I don’t write every day, but I work on it as often as I can.
It starts from within
Even when my day is crazy and I don’t write anything down, I carry the gratitude spirit within me. It helps keep me stay grounded, it gives me the fresh perspective that it all starts with a grateful heart.
What I truly believe is that a grateful spirit is the beginning of discovering your life’s purpose, of living the life you’re meant to live!
November always inspires me to be even more grateful for all the blessings I have in my life: my family, my dream job, my community and all the amazing things which are yet to happen!
I admit that it is not always easy to be grateful. Sometimes, when things are tough, our natural response to stressors becomes a lot more negative. This is especially true if you are suffering from low moods or a mental health problem like depression.
But even so, the only thing that can help you at this point in time is your desire to do something extraordinary because positive thoughts will most likely bring good things into your life. For example, if you are planning to study abroad, you should focus on the positive aspects rather than the negative aspects of moving abroad. However, this is not the only thing you must do. To pass the exams, you’d most likely need to enroll in English programs offered by various institutions. Positive thinking, on the other hand, can help you stay in control and avoid freaking out at the end.
However, even in these stressful instances, there are things we can do to help ourselves to stay gracious – for instance, CBD oil and kratom are two natural substances that many sufferers use to help to counteract this negativity. Kratom, in particular, can help to relieve depression and is probably more cost-effective as well as it can be purchased in a powder form.
If you are struggling to be grateful and to keep a positive outlook, you may want to try either of those substances. However, you must always be aware of any kind of negative effects it may have on your future prospects – such as securing a job. Employers often hire services to conduct background checks on their potential or prospective employees that might include drug testing, credit scores, etc. When one does resort to the aforementioned recreational methods to get temporary relief from their anxiety or stress problems, they must also be aware of the fact that this might come up in a drug test. Especially states which has stringent laws in regards to drugs and their usage (drug testing in North Carolina and other states tends to be a part of routine background checks) – people should be wary of their consumption and degree of the same.
However, you may also find talking things through with a therapist (apart from taking up alternative medications like CBD oil) will also help you to overcome your battle and to see things in a more positive and thankful light.
The importance of being grateful for what is yet to come, puts us in a place of humble excitement, in that place in our hearts where you’re already showing appreciation for something which hasn’t happened yet, for what you have, good or bad, little or big. From there, only better things will come.
You will see your life in a whole new light! You will attract happiness and contentment.
Join me and expect that amazing things are about to happen and they will! Trust me!
I love this quote by Wayne Dyer:
Can’t wait to hear what you think! As usual, give us a Trendy Shout!
That’s such an interesting perspective. Expecting miracles is definitely an interesting way to look at life. I think finding balance and being realistic while expecting good things to happen when you put out the effort is a good thing.
Loved your tips on gratitude! It’s so important to start every day being thankful that you awoke and to allow that to continue throughout your day.
I need to start a vision board or a gratitude journal. It’s something I’ve been meaning to do for quite some time and just haven’t yet.
I love this post! I love the secret…and make a vision board a few times a year!
I read a great quote about gratitude saying, “Gratitude makes sense of our past, brings peace for today, and creates a vision for tomorrow.” by Melody Beattie. It’s so important to emphasize the need for gratitude because I think it’s something many people forget about
Sondra xx
prettyfitfoodie.com
There’s a lot to be thankful for. Gratitude has been the theme of my life for a long time
It is important to give thanks daily for both little and big things in our lives.
This is such a beautiful blog! Sometimes we go thru life taking things for granted and we often forget to have gratitude towards things and/or those we cherish. It seems like people forget to show gratitude until the holidays come around.
In truth, 2017 has been a really bad year for me and many around me in my community. That being said, it’s important to have gratitude for the things we do have.
I remember this! I also remember the vision board and am a total believer of mind power. Thank you for the reminder!
Starting with gratitude in the morning. What a great way to set off the day in a positive way! I tried to keep a gratitude journal recently but had a terrible time keeping up. Will def. be giving it another try soon because I realize that the less gracious I am, the less gracious (and just plain terrible) my children become as a result.
Focusing on the positive and being grateful for even the little things can go a long way. I’ll have to watch this video.
Whenever I find myself having a hard time, I pause and notice all the great things of my life and I thank God for it. Sometimes it is easy to get lost in hardship but in reality, there are so much we should be thankful for.
I cannot wait to listen to that speaker! I love listening to these kinds of things – gratitude is SO important to practice, most especially this time of year!
I agree! It has been an amazing year all around! I have never heard of using a using a vision board!
What a great reminder this time of year. I just love the spouse quote!
It is so important that we remember to always be grateful and thankful for what we have! This post is a great reminder.
Each time I hold my daughter in my arms, each time I wake up to her smiles and feel my husband near me, each time I give thanks that I got so lucky!
Gratitude is such an important part of our lives. I always try to be grateful for everything I have. This is such a great reminder for me.
I think gratitude is something that makes you real and humble. A lack of gratitude is the dawn of arrogance.
Being grateful and expressing gratitude is a habit we must teach our kids. They should learn to appreciate their family and friends, the opportunity to have an education, a home, a community. Thank you for this post. For all the blessings we receive everyday, it is just right that we say, “Thank you.”
This book looks so good. I really wish I had more time for reading new material.
This sounds like a great read! Living with gratitude is really important. Such a great reminder especially during this time of year.
This is an awesome reminder. Being thankful for all of our blessing is a must for having a happy life. Thanks for sharing.
I have been working on being grateful and spreading that everywhere I go. I am doing something similar with my husband that the woman you wrote about did with hers. It is working!
Such an inspiring post. I love reading stuff like this. Helps to remember to be positive
I think this is a great post. I love hearing posts about gratitude. I think we should always be grateful for things we have.
I need to start a vision board myself. I have a lot of goals I would love to achieve in 2018.
I think gratitude can really change your attitude towards your entire day. When you recognize and appreciate your blessings, it can make tough days so much easier.
It is so important to have a grateful heart. I try to be grateful for all I have in my life.
This is a beautiful post. I think I really need to start focusing on the positive things I have in my life and forget the things that go wrong! I’m going to try some of your tips
I have to make an updated vision board. I think it is a great way to satay focused on your goals. I will have to try starting a gratitude journal.
Love this! When my husband was laid off in October, I was really down and out about the entire situation. (I still am!) But it’s different. I wake up being thankful for the things that I have. A house, cars, health, etc. It’s really changed my whole outlook on my day to day life.
Being alive is enough to be grateful for. I am always thankful for the sunrise, for I know that with every new day, God has given me another day to make a difference in this world.
I couldn’t agree more about the power of being grateful. The worse the day the more I try to find things to be grateful about. It’s a game changer!
What a wonderful reminder to be grateful! I need to check out the Secret. I remember when it came out and everyone was talking about it. I know appreciating my spouse could probably completely change my marriage too.
I, too, wake up AND end my day with what I am thankful for, it really helps put things in perspective. Thanks for sharing these important tips!
It’s all about your perspective huh. Sometimes the toughest times can be the times you’re closest with your partner if you look at it the right way.
I need to check out that vision board book. I’d love to create my own.
Awesome tips! I try and find at least one thing to be grateful for each day. I also plan to keep a gratitude journal in 2018 so I can easily look back and reflect on my blessings.
Yes it does, start within. Can’t wait to read all about your fabulous year. I know you’ve had one b/c I’ve read of couple of your FB posts. 2018 will be awesome for you and for all of us!!!
Your thoughts really do manifest stuff good or bad into your life. Glad that you shared this, walking in gratitude is a great and positive way to live!
I love the idea of being grateful for the good people do bring to our lives instead of focusing on the bad. What a simple way to change how we view others.
Writing things down definitely helps. I try and meditate at least a few times a week and include what I’m grateful for during my deep time alone thoughts.
I keep a gratitude journal because I found myself getting very negative a couple of years ago. What a difference it makes to focus on the positive. Great tips. Thank you.
Being grateful is so important. Your attitude really affects your life, and a lot of people don’t realize that.
This is so true! When I think about all the things my husband does that irritate me, I am filled with contempt towards him, but when I shift it to all the good things he does for us, we get along so much better!
I believe we need to have gratitude every single day. Even on a bad day there’s something to be thankful for.
Kudos to you for being grateful for all your blessings! I also try to sit and think about what I’m grateful for on a regular basis. It helps to write them down!
I agree. It really helps me to write down the things that I am grateful for.
I need to take a moment each day and express my gratitude for what I have. It would be just as easy as expressing my discouragement of what I don’t have.
Gratitude is so important and can totally change your outlook. I’ve been doing the I Choose Joy journal every day and it’s been truly life changing.
I love that you consciously make gratitude a part of your life. I do too. It’s easy to get caught up in silly stuff but I take a deep breath and remember how blessed I am. Great tips.
It’s so important to have gratitude for all that you have in life. It can easily be gone in an instant!
We have so much to be grateful for. It’s amazing isn’t it Claudia. There’s so much power in thinking whether positive or negative, what we think will be will eventually be. Here’s to more blessings.
Yes, yes, yes, yes! It is a choice every day that we make, some of us consciously, how do we want to view the world, and more specifically, our lives. For me it is a simple half full or half empty cup. The cup doesn’t change, but our attitude and how we deal with life is something we can control. I choose positivity!
I have a friend that keeps a gratitude journal. She says she enjoys writing it down and being able to look back upon things in there.
I try to always show gratitude. I had a friend who would listen to The Secret on audio and it gave me the giggles because I’m not serious enough to listen to it. But I always try to be grateful for what I have, and give back, and I’m teaching my kids to do the same.
I agree with everything here. Focusing on gratitude can change your outlook on everything.
I agree. It always starts within! We should always be grateful on having this precious life of ours.
I love this! I really do believe that we get what we put out into the universe. Whether it’s a mystical force or just a mindset that it puts us in, the right vibes make all the difference.
Having a vision for your future and being grateful for what you have right now are important tools in making your dreams come true. You have to know where you’re going but also appreciate where you are.
Vision boards are amazing tools. I Have been meaning to put one together for a long time actually. I need to get on that.
Thank you for this great reminder! I say thanks the minute I awake and before I sleep at night. There are so many things to be grateful for, not just material things but those that are intangible and priceless.
I”ve heard the audio of the secret when I was riding a van going home from my travel trip. And all I said was Amen! amen. Positivity starts from within and radiates around you and it gives you back that warm feeling.