Getting Grateful
“It is necessary, then, to cultivate the habit of being grateful for every good thing that comes to you, and to give thanks continuously. And because all things have contributed to your advancement, you should include all things in your gratitude.” -Wallace D. Wattles, The Science of Getting Rich or Financial Success Through Creative Thought
“Gratitude unlocks the fullness of life. It turns what we have into enough, and more. It turns denial into acceptance, chaos into order, confusion into clarity…. It turns problems into gifts, failures into success, the unexpected into perfect timing, and mistakes into important events. Gratitude makes sense of our past, brings peace for today and creates a vision for tomorrow.” -Melodie Beattie
Gratitude is an incredibly valuable and powerful emotion to intentionally express because when we are grateful, we attract more to be grateful for.
I mention gratitude at the end of each of my Persuasion Factor calls and my Elite Coaching Club because gratitude should be our constant companion not just a Thanksgiving Day foot note or brief prayer on Sunday. It should permeate all of our interactions.
Experiencing gratitude does not have to be limited to when someone gives you a gift or does you a favor. True gratitude is about looking deeply at our lives and understanding how truly lucky we are to be alive at this moment in time.
Every night and every morning I think of gratitude. I have a huge list, as do all of us, of things I am so truly thankful for: family, colleagues, students, friends, health, financial success, employees. I am thankful when it rains because I know that the Pacific Northwest is lush and green as a result of this rain. I am grateful when it’s sunny, because it really rains a lot here.
I’m grateful for simple things and complicated things. And throughout my day, I stop to consider other people’s situations, whether they be more challenging or easier than mine, and I am grateful for the struggles I’ve had to endure, and grateful for the things I accomplish with ease, both, because these are the things that have made me what I am and brought me to this point in life.
There are going to be times when being grateful isn’t easy — times that are trying or difficult. Maybe your health is bad. Your body isn’t working the way it should. Instead of cursing it for what it can’t do, be grateful for what it can.
There’s an old Irish proverb that says, ‘Count your joys instead of your woes; count your friends instead of your foes.’ This is beautiful. In my opinion, the key is all in what we choose to focus on.
As you begin to take notice of all that is good in your life, this gratitude will turn your life around.
