Day 130 in Gratitude

This post is from Evie Burke, Certified Life Coach. "Find the joy in your life and work one insight at a time." To find out more about Evie and her work, go to  www.oneinsightcloser.com

When I sat down to write this post about my perspective on Gratitude, all the ideas that I had disappeared.  As I thought about what I was going to write I remembered something I read (or heard) last week.  It was a challenge to list 100 things your grateful for.  So, I decided to do it.

I expected to get to about 30 things and then be stuck.  Not that I don't have lots of things to be thankful for, I do, but I wasn't sure about my ability to think of them quickly in one sitting.  I surprised myself by having just over 50 items listed in one sitting.

I also noticed something after that sitting.  I was much calmer and focused then I was before I started.  Before I started I was thinking about the appointments I have today and all the things I want to get done.  My mind was darting around from one thing to the next without stopping at anything long enough to actually make progress.  After I listed out as many things I was grateful for as I could, I noticed that my mind had slowed down and I was actually concentrating on one thing.

Now, part of this is because I sat down and committed myself to one task and once I got into it my mind quieted.  But something about writing down things your grateful for automatically shifts your mood.  When you're focusing on the positive things that are in your life you can't help but feel a little happier.

Keeping a gratitude journal is proven to increase a person's satisfaction with life.  Why? Well, you're more likely to focus on the good things that happen to you or around you when you know you want to write something down in your gratitude journal at the end of the day.  And when you focus on the good things happening around you, you tend to be happier and more satisfied with your life.

If you're going through a difficult time or just aren't as happy as you'd like to be then start keeping a gratitude journal.  If there's one part of your life that you're particularly unhappy with, try writing at least one thing about it each day that you're grateful for.  For example, when I was really unhappy at my old job I started doing this and found that there were a number of things I was grateful for.  Things like a kind word, the suggestion to get out of the office for lunch, or a conversation with a friend. 

Have you ever heard the phrase "Energy flows where attention goes?"  This is another reason that gratitude is so powerful.  When we focus our attention on what we're thankful for, we're flowing our positive energy toward it and will attract more of whatever it is we're thankful for.

I'm going to go and think of some more things and people I'm thankful for.  My goal is to have 100 before I go to bed tonight.

So, what's at the top of your 100 things your grateful for?