“Gratitude will shift you to a higher frequency and you will attract much better things.” – Rhonda Byrne
One of the quickest ways of gaining perspective is to look for the things you DO have and understanding their importance. The practice of daily gratitude will raise your awareness and shift your perspective of ‘lack’ into ‘abundance’. When that shift happens you vibrate higher and open the tap of flow.
It’s very easy to focus on the negative. How many times do you berate yourself instead of praising? How quick are we to complain, rather than say what went right? When was the last time you, phoned a company’s help desk to say what you LOVED about their product, rather than complain?
It’s like we’re hot-wired to point out what goes wrong, rather than celebrate what went right – but if we change our thinking and start to focus on what IS good I bet you’ll start seeing more of it.
Semantics are all well and good, but until we actually implement this into our life (and it needs to be a daily practice) we won’t see the effects this can have. Just like we know that 20 minutes of walking every day is good for our health until we DO it, those benefits won’t help us.
Where to start;
First thing in the morning;
- When the alarm goes off the first few thoughts that you allow will determine your day. This is a prime space to start thinking of what you’re thankful for. Perhaps you had a really good night’s sleep? Had a nice dream? Is the sun shining? Is your bed comfy? Try and find one thing that is a positive – and focus on that. Take 30 seconds to enjoy whatever it is and be thankful for it.
That is gratitude.
Perhaps you had a morning from hell? Your alarm didn’t go off, your kids woke you up three times in the night, or your partner kept you awake with snoring… can you turn any of that into positive feelings? (Think; you have a family, you have a partner, you have a bed). I’m not trying to say that everyone wakes up refreshed and Disney like, with birds singing and coffee made, but how you decide to frame your attitude to what you DO have will then determine your day.
When I was learning to ride a motorcycle one of the exercises was cone work; you had to ride your bike through a set of evenly spaced cones that were set out on the road. To begin with I was rubbish. I kept hitting the cones and I got more and more frustrated. After seeing my struggle and realising my mistake, my instructor stopped me and said, “Don’t focus on the cones, focus on the space between them.” – guess what? It worked. I was so focused on what I didn’t want to hit (the cones) and not on the space between, I kept hitting the cones! A lesson that has stuck with me.
To-do lists;
- If you’re like me you have to-do lists. I’d be lost without mine, as it lets me know what I’ve got on that day. Here is a prime place to jot down what you’re grateful for. Even if it’s that you’ve had a delicious coffee, or perhaps you read a great quote on Insta – start writing these down as these are focusing you on what makes you happy – and when you’re in that frame of abundance, magic things start to happen.
“When I started counting my blessings, my whole life turned around.” – Willie Nelson
Journal;
- Of course, you can use this in your journaling too. I’ve only just started with this practice, (journaling AND a gratitude log) and it takes a bit of getting used too. I’m not perfect – I skip days, but I’ve noticed that since actively noticing the positive things in my life and giving them thought (or writing them down) more and more positive things are appearing in my life. What we focus on, we get.
If we focus on the cones, we’ll miss the spaces.
The sky’s the limit; there is no wrong or right way to be grateful. You can start with just thoughts and paying attention to them and then you can start writing them down. Try post-it notes if you don’t have to-do lists or a journal. Of course, there are specific gratitude journals which you can buy and I’ve looked at quite a few. I’m currently using TheBestSelf 13 week roadmap journal which has a gratitude log at the bottom (both for morning, and evening) and I’m finding some days I can’t quite come up with six things (three for morning, three for evening)… but I’m finding the process fascinating and it’s definitely helping with my mindset.
The secret is to DO.
Like with any good or helpful habit nothing will change if you don’t actively practice it. Start with awareness and build up gradually. You would never begin a fitness regime with running a marathon or deadlifting 300lb’s. (Perhaps you would, but you’d have to be extremely fit in the first place to do so!) Also, don’t beat yourself up if you don’t find this easy to begin with. Just pay attention to your gratitudeometor – notice how you frame your thinking and if it tends to be negative, what can you do to switch it around?
Have a go… see what works and let me know how you get on.
