Be Grateful. No exceptions.

Posted on November 21, 2011

If the only prayer you said in your whole life was, ‘thank you,’ that would suffice.
Meister Eckhart

Thanksgiving is one of my favorite holidays for so many reasons.

For starters, it’s an entire holiday devoted to cooking and eating seasonal delicacies like squash, sweet potatoes, and pie. It’s also one of the few holidays that I get to spend with my entire family: mom, dad, brother, sister-in-law, nephews, aunt, uncle, cousins. It makes my heart happy.

And if that wasn’t amazing enough, this holiday is all about giving thanks and expressing gratitude.

Food. Family. Gratitude.

It really doesn’t get much better than that.

So why not keep it going all year long.

The gratitude parade doesn’t have to be a once-a-year event. It can be an every day thing.

Here are some tips to get you started:

Schedule time in your calendar. The Hubster has a reminder set every Monday at 2pm to take time out of his day and think about what he is grateful for. More times than not, the reminder has caught us both at a time when we needed it the most.
Say thank you. When someone does something nice for you, however small, say thank you. It will brighten their day, and help to make yours that much better.
Do a random act of kindness. Show your gratitude for others by doing something nice without any recognition or need for acknowledgement. It’s liberating. It’s amazing. And it allows you to connect to something bigger than yourself. Need ideas? Check out the Secret Agent L Project.
Find the good in the bad. Nothing is inherently good or bad in this world, it’s our thinking that makes it so. We assign meaning to every single event, thought, and action in our lives. Why not try to find the good in situations that stress you out, make you cry, or even get you shouting a few expletives. Who knows, you might realize that it’s the “bad” situations that have taught you the most, and helped you get to a better place in life.
Start your day off right. Every morning you open your eyes, make a conscious effort to start it off on a positive note. Try to find at least 3 things each morning that you are grateful for. Even if it’s that you are here to witness another morning.
Go to bed happy. Just like starting your day with 3 things that you are grateful for, end your day in the same way. While you’re laying in bed at night, think about the wonderful things that happened to you during the day and make a mental list.
Smile and laugh every day. When we smile, our brains take that as a cue to say we’re happy. Even when we’re faking it. Same with laughing. Do something every day that will make you smile; try laughter yoga, watch a funny YouTube video, or catch a comedy show. Doesn’t matter what you do, so long as you smile.

What’s one thing {big or small} you can do today to start adapting an attitude of gratitude?

[Image Credit: Be Grateful. from SnoShuu]

The Epic E-Book

If you're anything like me, you have big, amazing, ambitious dreams.

In this epic e-book, I'll walk you through the ideas and exercises that have transformed my life - and the lives of my clients - and brought those ambitious dreams into being.

Get in on the fun.

2 Comments Posted in Healthy Living

< Recipe: Kasha Varnishkes Recipe: Flourless Brownies >

Secret Agent L In Pgh

my sweet lady:

first: i’m honored that you channeled your inner SAL for this post. i’m touched. truly. xoxo
second: you make excellent points here. the holidays, for me, are often a time of family stress, but i’m going to try to tweak my attitude a little bit and look at things differently this year.
third: i heart you.

xoxo,
SAL

http://emilylevenson.com/custom-made-blog Emily Levenson

This time of year conjures up so many emotions for people, good and bad. The key is to put more attention to the good parts than the bad.

I need to channel my inner-SAL more. Because, frankly. You’re a good person who does good things for other good people. I want more of that in my life. <3

Newsletter Signup

Want more out of life than feeling overwhelmed, anxious, and stressed out all the time? Are your health, your relationships, and your waistline paying the price?

Loretta LaRoche had it right when she said that life isn’t a stress rehearsal.

Sign up for some weekly inspiration, and I’ll send you five tips to help you stop stressing and start living the life you know you deserve.

And I’ll continue to send you tips to keep your mojo rising, healthy recipes to rejuvenate your menu, and the 411 on upcoming teleclasses and events.

Well. What are you waiting for?!

The Epic E-book!

If you’re anything like me, you have big, amazing, ambitious dreams.

You also have this sense that you are meant to be living a bigger, more powerful, more epic life. A life that is filled with purpose, passion, and panache.

So what’s stopping you from living that life?

Maybe you don’t know how to get from where you are to where you want to be.

Maybe you don’t know what action steps to take.

Maybe you just need a motivational kick in the pants to make the transition.

Enter the epic e-book.

In this epic e-book, I’ll walk you through the ideas and exercises that have transformed my life — and the lives of my clients — and brought those ambitious dreams into being.