Self-Improvement | Gratitude/appreciation | The Self Improvement Blog

Take Time To Smell Roses And Appreciate Life’s Blessings

March 16, 2012 By Admin Leave a Comment

Are you so busy and caught up in your day to day life? So busy in your work, in some worries, in your family and everything that concerns it, and also so occupied with the fear about what tomorrow will bring that you don’t have even a few minutes to stop and smell the roses around you?

Have you ever thought to spend at least one minute of your day to breathe in and appreciate the beauty of life and all its offerings? Why don’t you take the time out and go out to see the wonders of life instead of ending up in the musty, moldy, and dank smell of the harshness that can choke out the life from you?

What beauty am I talking about? I am referring to the blessings that life are offering us-in and around of our lives. And if you are living inside a cell with now windows and everything, it is unfortunate that you are not seeing the amazing work of God through the nature that he has given us. Have you ever stopped and looked at the colors of the trees, the sky, the leaves, or the flowers and then spent a minute embracing and sniffing all of them?

How about the fact that you are also missing the symphony, the never-ending one, of the sounds of nature? Have you tried appreciating and listening to the blowing of the winds, the songs of the birds and even the relaxing sound of silence?

When you are fortunate enough to be living near the sea or the ocean, have you spent an early morning moment and listened to the splashing of the body of water? Do you know that a lot of people will be spending an amount just to get a sound recording of the natural sounds that you may be taking for granted?

And all you have to do is just to stop and spend a few minutes. Nothing more.

We sometimes get so caught up in daily concerns and worries and stress that sometimes life is also giving us that we miss out the chance to enjoy and embrace with open arms the gifts that are just lying around for free. This also made us forget to see the beauty of what we have and then just focus on the thoughts that we don’t have much.

Have you ever thought that the icing of your cake-your children, you family, and your friends-are just there waiting for you to smell the aroma that they are baking inside? This smell is actually emanating from inside that all you have to do is to stop and savor it. Do you cherish the joy that hearing them tell you “I love you” is giving you? And do you ever stop and say “I love you” to them too? You will be amazed to see how happy they will be and how you will be happy, too.

Remember that even though we have those ups and downs in our lives, all the good and the bad times, there is still and will always be a place where we can go and soothe our soul, and at the same calm our storms in our lives. All we have to do is to take the time and utter the words ‘Thank You’ addressed to the world. And it would also do us great things when we can stop for a minute and appreciate the blessings that we are having right now. Take note that these are the essence, the fragrance, of our lives.

Learning to live in your present moment will make you realized how unessential other things-those troubles you think are big. Learn to appreciate and think that we have “this moment” and this is what matters now. Forget the past-it’s all gone-stop relieving it daily. Remember that the future is what we are creating at the present.

Finally, it would do you good when you let your heart open up and your eyes wide awake and your nose breathing in the pleasures and the goodness of life in general. Keep in mind that you are the only one who can make the difference in our lives-it can start by noticing all the good things in it. Acknowledge your given blessings-and most of all always stop and take time to smell roses.

Hal Johnson has been writing articles for nearly 4 years. Come visit his latest website Homeopathic HCG which helps people find information on HCG Weight Loss and deals on all other types of hcg products.

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Gratitude Journal – Thankful For a Healthy Mind & Emotions

March 4, 2012 By Admin Leave a Comment

By Krystal Kuehn -

If we stop to think about it, there are so many things to be grateful for. As I was reflecting on all the good things, people, and blessings I enjoy, I starting compiling a long list. It seemed it would never end. In all actually, it never will end because our blessings are new every morning. In this series, I am going to share different areas of gratitude in my life. I am going to start the first of this Gratitude Journal Series with: I am Thankful for… A Healthy Mind and Emotions.

1. I am thankful to be free from negativity.

A while back I decided that I was going to stay away from as many negative influences as I possibly could. I ended some unhealthy relationships in the process. I realized that being around critical, negative people was not only unpleasant, but it rubbed off on me. Being around more optimistic, hopeful people surrounded me with a positive influence that was energizing and motivating. I can minimize negative influences in my life by making better choices in what I watch and read as well. Good and wholesome, edifying and positive influences help to keep my mind and emotions healthy.

2. I am thankful for peace in my mind and heart.

Fear, worry, anxiety and depression…They all rob me of inner peace. Whenever I get overwhelmed with stress and its negative effects, I immediately take a time out. I know how discouragement can keep us down if we let it. It leads to self-pity and ultimately to defeat and despair. Years of experience have taught me that bad times do not last forever. Things that seem so pressing right now are not as important as I make them to be in the big scheme of things. I remind myself: this too shall pass. I slow myself down. I recall the source of my help and the many times I have overcome in the past. I draw on my inner strengths and trust in God to help me. As busyness and distractions subside, I begin to see things from a more realistic and hopeful perspective. I become free of things that once bound me and shook my confidence, threatened my security, and dimmed my hope. I have new courage to take necessary steps for change. I gain wisdom and learn to accept what is not in my control. Peace returns to my mind and heart.

3. I am thankful that I can learn from my mistakes.

When I make mistakes or say and do things I later regret, I found that I end up with two choices. I can either entertain feelings of guilt, regret, anger, blame, or I can take responsibility, apologize if necessary, and learn from my mistakes and regrets. Beating myself up over something does not really teach me a lesson. It just makes me more upset and frustrated with myself. Realizing this has taught me the importance of forgiving myself and accepting that I am not perfect, no one is. I can extend the same grace to myself as I do to others when they miss it. I do not want to punish them by constantly reminding them of their mistakes. Nor do I want to reject them for their human weaknesses and imperfections. In the same way, I will not punish myself by holding on to guilt, anger, and regret. I believe we can become better if we will learn from our mistakes and regrets, know when to let them go, and come out better as a result.

4. I am thankful that I can appreciate and like who I am.

It is not easy to love others when we do not love ourselves. Once I realized the importance of this simple truth, I decided to stop complaining about the things I did not like about who I am. Instead, I started to change the things I could and accept the things I could not change. As a result, I was more able to appreciate myself and my unique God-given gifts and talents. The more I did this, the more I noticed and received the appreciation and love I got from others. My desire to be my best really began to flourish and bring much joy to me. It was simply accepting and liking myself that enabled me to love and bless others with all that I am.

5. I am thankful that I have control over my thoughts.

I can choose what I want to think about. Negative thoughts cannot stay if I do not allow them to. It seems the more we focus on something that is bothersome to us, the more if affects our mood and overall outlook. For this reason, I do not spend too much time thinking about life’s disappointments and losses. Instead, I think about how to overcome them and I recall past victories. I have control over my thoughts and I can focus on things that build my faith, make me strong and hopeful, and encourage me. Sometimes I need to remind myself that my thought life is in my control. No one can put thoughts in my mind that I have to receive. I can decide what will stay and what will go. Although I may not be able to control how I feel, I can control what I choose to think and dwell upon and what I choose to do.

6. I am thankful that when I forgive, I am free.

There is no prison like that of unforgiveness. It keeps us bound to bitterness, resentment, and unhappiness. It hurts us more than it hurts anyone else. For this reason, forgiving is more a benefit to us than it is to the person(s) who hurt us. I have learned that if my willingness to forgive is contingent on apologies or justice, it may never happen. I have to do it for me. It is not easy. Actually, it can be the most difficult thing we ever do for ourselves. Forgiving is a process. It begins with a decision to release whoever or whatever it is we are holding on to. I do this believing that people reap what they sow. You can’t sow thistles and expect to reap daffodils. When people sow deceit, gossip, greediness, selfishness, and so on, they reap its fruit. When I choose to sow forgiveness, I reap peace and freedom. I am thankful that my mind and emotions can heal when I forgive.

7. I am thankful that I can know and experience love.

I believe God is love and when we receive His amazing love, it works miracles in our lives. I once said: The power of love is amazing and never-ending. It can motivate, energize, inspire, and strengthen. Love can do in a person what nothing else can do. Love has the power to revive and change lives, restore relationships, and bring healing. All else may fail, but love never fails. When you think about it, most of the love we know and experience has to do with relationships. That is why I do a great deal of writing on the topic (see The 10 Keys to Happy and Loving Relationships). Love is the foundation of healthy and successful relationships. Love is what we live for. I am thankful for the experience of giving and receiving love.

8. I am thankful that I can live a lifestyle of true and lasting joy

True and lasting happiness is not something we can pursue as much as it is a lifestyle we live. I have learned that our lives are made up of many habits. Some are good and some are bad. It all shapes who we are and contributes to our well-being and happiness. When we make a deliberate effort to be our best, we find we have to change some things. When I came to this conclusion, I began to replace some old and bad habits with new and healthy ones. I practiced seeing the glass half full rather than half empty. I practiced patience to keep myself from acting on impulse. I allowed myself to make mistakes rather than be driven by perfection. I learned to relax and be at peace rather than become worried and anxious. It takes determination, self-discipline, and lots of practice to break old habits and establish new ones. Changing and improving our lifestyle is actually shaping our character and becoming our best. I want to fulfill my potential and I realize that the only way to do so is to live a lifestyle of health, happiness, and love. I am thankful that this is possible and I have all the tools I need to be all that I am destined to be. (for more info see The 9 Habits of Happy People)

Far from being exhaustive, the above list is just a start to the many reasons I am thankful for a healthy mind and emotions. In making this list, I am reminded of the very active role I need to take in maintaining good mental health. This list also helped me to identify the many things I can do to keep mentally and emotionally healthy.

Just like the physical body, there are times when we may not be feeling very well. When our bodies are sick, they may need some extra rest, healing, medicine, surgery, or some other attention. When our minds and emotions are going through difficulties, some comfort, support, changes in perception, insight, clarification of distorted thinking, forgiveness, boost in our natural feel good chemicals, counseling, love and unconditional acceptance can really do us some good.

I hope this gratitude journal entry has encouraged and inspired you to be thankful for a healthy mind and emotions. What are you most thankful about in your own mental health? I invite you to join me and share your own ideas and experiences to this list.

Krystal Kuehn, MA, LPC, LLP, NCC is a psychotherapist, author, teacher & musician. She is the cofounder of New Day Counseling, a marriage family counseling and child therapy center and BeHappy4Life.com, an award-winning, self-help and inspirational site where you can find hundreds of free resources, insights & inspiration.

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The Power of Appreciation – Change Your Life With This Easy Technique

February 26, 2012 By Admin Leave a Comment

By Wendy Betterini -

Have you ever felt paralyzed by negative feelings before? Perhaps you felt overwhelmed by stress, overcome with anxiety, or filled with frustration about the many things that keep going wrong for you. And the longer you feel that way, it seems like the worse things get in your life, right?

There’s a reason for that, and it’s called the law of attraction. Your thoughts, feelings and beliefs magnetically keep attracting the essence of what you focus on the most. If you’re focused mostly on stressful circumstances, worries and problems, you can’t help but continue that cycle the more you focus on it.

There is an easy way to turn the tide in a more positive direction, however, and it’s so simple once you get the hang of it: start appreciating. Many spiritual teachers encourage a daily focus on gratitude and appreciation, and there is a good reason for that; it makes you feel better, and as you begin to think more positively and feel better, you begin attracting more and more goodness into your life.

There are different ways to start an appreciation practice, but here’s how I usually do it:

1) First thing in the morning, start appreciating.

The moment I wake up, I start focusing on something to appreciate. I appreciate the comfortable bed I’m lying in. I appreciate the soft pillows that support my head, the warm blankets covering me, the purring cat snuggled up next to me, and so on.

As I get up and start my day, I appreciate the hot water flowing from the shower head, the towel that dries me, the warm clothing I put on, my vehicle for taking me where I want to go – on and on, there are a million things to appreciate in life!

2) During moments of frustration, find something to appreciate.

You know those irritating moments during the day where you could easily swing from an okay attitude to a really frustrated, annoyed attitude? Like when you’re in a hurry and there’s a big traffic jam slowing you down. Or when you’re in the store trying to pick up a few things before you head home and there are long, slow moving lines at every register? Those times are perfect for shifting into an appreciative mindset.

Look around you and choose just one thing that you can appreciate. Focus on the reasons why you appreciate it, and within a few moments more opportunities for appreciation should come to you. Keep focusing on those, and within a few minutes you should notice that the situation you are in seems to smooth out – traffic begins moving again, checkout lines move more quickly, annoyances fade away.

That’s the power of appreciation!

Learn more about using the power of appreciation to transform your life: http://www.appreciation101.com

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Healing Starts With Love and Gratitude

February 16, 2012 By Admin Leave a Comment

By Dr. MJ Wegmann -

Few situations urge us to examine our lives more than the possibility of death. We know in the end we all pass away. Everyone wants to go to heaven, but no one wants to go right now. The United States has what is considered the shortest healthy life span, which is life expectancy minus years spent battling a major disease. This is one of the saddest statistics I have ever posted. The fact that millions of people will spend more than 5,10 or 20 years living with a preventable disease.

What is it in our human psychology that prevents us from doing what is necessary even in the event of disease or possible death? I don’t have the answer, but I know one thing that motivates me is my family.

This concept of love and healing comes from Dr. Alan Zimmerman who made the statement “if you truly love yourself, in a healthy non arrogant way, you will never intentionally expose your mind or body to negative things”. Let’s try this on for its mental size. What does he mean by “never intentionally?” this world is dominated by negative media, TV, websites, books.

How do we do this? The root to understanding human motivation turned to action lies in our struggle to be accepted in a negative world. The deepest human craving is to be accepted. The root of why people neglect their bodies, smoke, drink, don’t eat well, don’t exercise and don’t change when facing a major health crisis is because on some level they don’t truly love who they are.

If you find yourself facing any combination of these things, you now have a clear understanding of where to start; with yourself. We all have the power of unconditional love and healing within us, but many people do not let healing enter their lives. We have the power to be grateful and thankful for every breath we take. The key is to understand our time is limited here and each day is one less day we have to make a difference. Sometimes disease is a blessing, it can awaken our love for life and reorganized our priorities, or connect us with the divine.

My wish for you is that you are reading this before a major disease forces you into action.

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Why Are Gratitude and Appreciation So Key in Successfully Using Law of Attraction?

February 5, 2012 By Admin Leave a Comment

By Warren Wojnowski -

If you’ve been a student of law of attraction for any length of time, you no doubt have heard about the importance of gratitude and appreciation in the manifestation process. All of the self help gurus have the same message when it comes to the role appreciation plays in your ability to deliberately use law of attraction and attract more abundance and prosperity into your life. Do you ever wonder if the advice works and if so, why it works?

I’ve spent a fair amount of time reading and experimenting around the topic in order to understand it better. I think I first heard about the power of gratitude from Abraham in one of their audios. The way they explained it, and I’ve come to understand this as truth, gratitude is a powerful way to bridge the vibrational gap between where you are and what you want (or where you would like to be).

As they explain, most of us find it difficult to shift our thoughts to a, say “level 10″ in vibration, if we’re mired in current thinking that is maybe, say a “level 3″. The gap is too wide.

But finding something you are grateful and appreciative for is much easier. So by placing your focus on things you have right now for which you are thankful, you are able to begin bridge the gap and begin to realign your thoughts to a level of vibration that move you closer to where you want to be.

Using this technique, you can shift yourself to, say a “level 6″ or a “7″ relatively quickly.

Both Abraham and Bob Proctor teach that in order for something to manifest, you must be a vibrational match to it. That’s where gratitude becomes such an important part of effectively and deliberately using Law of Attraction. It assists you in aligning our vibration.

And there’s more. There is a growing body of scientific and academic research that backs up the important role gratitude can play in living a happier, healthier life.

Dr. Tal Ben-Shahar is the head of the Positive Psychology program at Harvard University. In his book, Happier: Learn the Secrets to Daily Joy and Lasting Fulfillment, Dr Ben-Shahar says that research studies now suggest the habit of keeping a daily “gratitude journal” can lead to a higher level of emotional and physical well being.

So the evidence is pretty clear that it works. If you pay attention, you will see the evidence in your own life. You can “measure” it by the way you feel. Focusing on the things you are grateful for makes you feel better — your problems start to feel smaller, you gain a sense of relief, and because of the relief you are able to shift your focus onto more things you are grateful for.

You are able to “feel” the power of gratitude at work within yourself and “feel” your vibration rising. And as that happens, you know you now on the path to using law of attraction in a deliberate way that best serves you.

Would you like more information about how to use law of attraction in order to attract more happiness and abundance into your life. Subscribe to my newsletter and you’ll also receive our highly acclaimed 7 Steps to Happiness eCourse for free: Attract More Happiness.

Warren Wojnowski is an avid student of personal growth and self improvement who has operated his own successful home business since 2005. He is a respected writer, teacher and Intrinsic Coach� who is very willing to share what he’s learned (or still learning), what’s working, and what isn’t. Warren says “If you have an aspect of your life in which you feel stuck, whether in your life or your business, I can help you get back on track and start living the life you want”.

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Living Gratitude – 6 Easy Tips On How to Stay Grateful All Year Long

December 4, 2011 By Admin Leave a Comment

By Marie Cornelio -

I wanted to give you tools to help you stay grateful during Thanksgiving and Holiday Season and beyond. Gratitude has so many spiritual, emotional and physical benefits. I would love for you to experience them all. According to Miami University’s Dr. Michael McCullough and University of California – Davis’s Dr. Robert Emmons, being thankful is necessary for a healthy life style. Studies show that being grateful increases your level of happiness by 25 percent.

Being grateful is a choice. It’s about learning from a situation, taking the good out of it to help deal with the challenge. It’s about celebrating ” what is ” in life. It’s about realizing you have more power over your life and thoughts, emotions and energy then you previously imagined. You can stop being a victim of your circumstance and reach out for the joy rising in living. If you can open your heart to the good all around, gratitude can become as much part of your life as breathing.

Here are a few helpful suggestion to help you get started on your gratitude practice.

1) Keep a Daily Gratitude Journal This is probably the most effective strategy for increasing your level of gratitude. Set aside time daily to record several things that you are grateful for. You can write when you get up or at the end of the day. Pick a time that you will consistently have available. The important thing is to establish the daily practice of paying attention to gratitude-inspiring events and to write them down. My forthcoming book Gratitude-The Ultimate 21 Day Gratitude Journey to Happiness will be available shortly to help you keep a gratitude practice.

2) Use Visual Reminders Two obstacles to being grateful are forgetfulness and lack of awareness. You can counter them by giving yourself visual cues that trigger thoughts of gratitude. I like to use Post-It notes listing blessings in many places, including on refrigerator, mirrors and the steering wheel of my car. You can get as creative as you want you can even use your camera to take photos of what your grateful and put them in an album. Another strategy is to set a pager, computer or PDA to signal you at random times during the day and to use the signal to pause and count blessings.

3) Have a Gratitude Partner Social support encourages healthy behaviors, because we often lack the discipline to do things on our own. Just as you may be more likely to exercise if you have an exercise partner or participate in a class, you may be able to maintain the discipline of gratitude more easily if you have a partner with whom to share gratitude lists and to discuss the effects of gratitude in your life. You can join our community on face book called Gratitude- The Ultimate 21 Day Gratitude Journey to Happiness. “If you hang out with ungrateful people, you will ‘catch’ one set of emotions or energy; if you choose to associate with more grateful individuals, the influence will be in another direction. Find a grateful person or community and spend more time.

4) Make a Public Commitment When we become accountable and we make commitments to others we are more likely to follow through. Feel free to use our gratitude community on face book to make your public declaration or to post your daily gratitude. There is plenty of support.

5) Change Your Self-Talk We all carry on an inner dialogue with ourselves that is often called “self-talk.” When this inner conversation is negative, our mood is usually low. Research has shown that we can change our mood by changing the tone of the things we say to ourselves. Thoughts are powerful make sure to watch what you think about. Affirmations are great tools in reconditioning our thoughts.

6. Go On a Gratitude Walk Something about getting out in nature is healing research shows exercise can decrease stress and releases the” feel good “chemicals in your brain. Giving thanks helps you become centered, present and living in the moment. When you are grateful for the beauty around you automatically you will find more beauty to be grateful for.

I hope these suggestion help you. If you have not done so be sure to sing up for our newsletter and receive our free audio ” Living ignited with Self-Love and Inner Peace”. Namaste.

Want To Use This Article In Your Ezine or Website? You have my permission, as long as you include this complete blurb with it. Marie Cornelio is a Spiritual Teacher, Soul-Nutritionist, Transformation Catalyst and Gratitude Practitioner. You can visit Marie, access her free articles archive, and grab free stuff at http://www.mariecornelio.com. Marie lives in Northern, California and loves celebrating life with her family and taking daily gratitude walks with her dog Roxie Love.

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Gratitude Toward Others – Show Your Appreciation!

November 15, 2011 By Admin Leave a Comment

By Sheryl Schlameuss Berger -

Don’t you just feel warm, happy, even glowing after someone pays you a compliment? Whether it is “wow — your new haircut looks great” or “thanks for completing that project before the deadline” or “that new recipe you tried turned out so delicious” any recognition sends a radiant feeling right to our heart, validating us as a human being.

When someone makes a statement of appreciation to us we become enveloped in a good-feeling vibration. Our mood instantly lifts, sometimes a little and sometimes significantly. Of course, an authentic, sincere compliment is better than a backhanded compliment, and most of us are familiar with those (“that shelf you put up did not turn out as badly as I thought it might.)

Knowing that we feel so delighted and acknowledged by receiving compliments, we can translate that into a course of action for praising and recognizing others. The giving of compliments makes others feel appreciated, and comes back at us multiplied.

If giving compliments and praise is such a positive action, then why do we not do it more often? I suspect that most of the time we just do not think of it. We get involved in something else and forget to heap on the appreciation. Or sometimes we are too embarrassed to lavish the praise — it may make us feel too “mushy” or weak or emotional. Whatever reason, we often hesitate to say that “thank you.”

Find something positive to praise about a person, even a nuance about their behavior, appearance, skill, etc. and do not hesitate to pay a compliment. Thank those who help you in the course of your day (such wait staff, taxi drivers, people who hold the door open for you.) Be polite and offer an “I appreciate your service.” Of course, in terms of servers at a restaurant, whenever I have had superior attention, I always offer a “thank you for such excellent service.” The servers face never fails to light up at this. This should be backed up by a generous gratuity too! After all a “gratuity” is a monetary way of expressing gratitude with service provided.

Use every opportunity to show your appreciation — add a smile to it and you will likely get one in return! Make a point to show gratitude toward your friends and your friendship with be enlightened to a new depth.

Take the time to thank your family members. These are the people we most often overlook and take for granted. You can start with small statements: “Thanks so much for setting the table,” or “Many thanks for that gorgeous bouquet of flowers — it was really unexpected.” Work your way up to more general statements that carry emotional meaning with loved ones: “I appreciate your taking the time to really listen to me.”

For your spouse or significant other, let them know with “I am really happy to have you in my life ” or “Thank you for loving and respecting me.” For these more intimate appreciations, timing is definitely key. You will know intuitively when the statement will feel right — be in tune with those moments and do not them pass by without expressing your heartfelt appreciation. It can definitely improve your relationships.

When you say thank you or make appreciative statements, do so with enthusiasm and authenticity. Mean it and you will sound like you mean it — and the message will be received with clear joy. Showing your gratitude is sure to brighten someone’s day — as well as enrich your own life!

Affirmation, Attitude, Action statements for appreciation:

People treat me with consideration wherever I go, and it is easy for me to show my appreciation.
I am grateful that the kindness and respect I show to others is mirrored back to me.
I begin each day with the expectation of joy-filled, positive interactions with others.

Visit http://www.affirmationsforyourlife.com for your Free Affirmation, Attitude, Action Guide from Sheryl Schlameuss Berger, Reiki Master Teacher and Positive Energy Living Coach. Inspiring motivational guide includes full-color printable Affirmation Cards to help bring in the flow of positive thinking!

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From Gratitude Comes Great Well-Being

October 2, 2011 By Admin Leave a Comment

By Dena Lynn -

Most of us, at one time or another, have faced some sort of overwhelming challenge. Whether it be in business, relationships, or health – some challenges can take us for a loop, places where we don’t want to go… if we allow. We’re human – even the most seemingly, perfectly grounded person – struggles at times.

If you’ve been severely challenged or are presently worrying and stressing over a difficult situation – try showing a bit of thanks – gratitude – for all that IS working right in your life. And, build from there. Gratitude is powerful.

Did you know that next to immunodepressants, gratitude heals organ transplant patients fastest?

The Mississippi University for Women found out in a study that patients who kept a gratitude journal scored better in mental health tests than those who didn’t, even when they started off at the same level of mental health. They generally healed faster, had more vitality and were happier.

It doesn’t stop there – those who are unwell are not the only people who benefit from an attitude of gratitude. The debate continues as to whether material well-being and happiness makes a person grateful or whether it is the other way around. Tests were done where participants were all of the same income level, their lives were more or less the same in terms of satisfaction and happiness and their mental health was at par.

Some were asked to keep a gratitude journal and others were asked to go on living as usual. After 2 months, the people who kept gratitude journals showed significant leaps in happiness and well-being. They said they were much more energetic and felt that they got what they wanted. They felt that they traveled towards their goals faster.

What is the connection between gratitude and well being?

There’s really no single explanation, but there’s agreement on one thing: the more grateful you are, the more positive you feel about life and about yourself, and the more you achieve.

Gratitude helps you see all things in their perspective. In the past, when you’ve felt grateful for something or someone – did you see how suddenly that thing’s or person’s value swelled and became even more meaningful to you?

If you wake up and immediately give thanks for a great, blue sky, you’ll notice that the day seems much richer. If you give thanks for your spouse, your brain has a way of picking it up and making you see even better things about them and this makes you feel happier. Happiness leads to well-being.

Gratitude also makes you focus on the things that you’re grateful for and you therefore attract more. It’s the old law of attraction, which holds that what you think about grows. If you’re grateful for strong, fulfilling relationships, they tend to grow and therefore you’ll be happier. If you’re grateful for a strong business, it will grow and you’ll feel more fulfilled.

Does it really matter why gratitude leads to well-being?

You now know that it does, so why not start to practice it. How would you gain from being able to put your challenges in perspective, faster? I was able to start making positive moves to create the outcome that I preferred. Yes, it required a time commitment. In fact, as a busy woman, fitting “gratitude time” into my day was very difficult at first. But, I found the time because it was that important.

I discovered that if I wanted to do it, I had to set aside a time for nothing else but “gratitude time” and my journal had to be in a place where I couldn’t ignore it. After awhile it became my habit – the first thing I do before I get out of bed.

I think about and write down what I am grateful for. The more grateful I am, the more I have to be grateful for – the better I feel and the more productive I am throughout my day. What a powerful way to start your day!!

I encourage you to make a gratitude journal. Plan it in such a way that it’s in your path everyday and you can’t ignore it. You’ll find that after days, even just hours of your first journaling, your perspective will be different and you will have given yourself more time to go forward and focus on what matters most.

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http://EzineArticles.com/?From-Gratitude-Comes-Great-Well-Being&id=5272535

Filed Under: Health Tagged With: Gratitude/appreciation, healing, health, well-being

Happiness Factors

March 13, 2011 By Admin Leave a Comment

By Kelly Ballard -

Why are some people happy and others not? There are certain factors that contribute to one’s ability to be “happy” under most circumstances. These are a few…

1. Flexibility. The old saying “once you make a plan, God laughs,” has proven true time and time again in my own life. Being able to adjust to changing life events, even as minor as dinner plans, with flexibility and ease leads directly to happiness. Why? Flexibility means forsaking control – willingly. Quite a feat to be sure, but a gift – only to be received if you are willing to give up control first.

2. Don’t take it personally. As my father wisely once said, “Some people are just a@@holes.” You can be assured in your life that your will encounter some real “pains in the bottom”, difficult situations, unfairness, and other assorted crap. Promise. And the person sitting next to you, same thing. The same goes with any other person you meet in your life too. We are all stumbling through at times. So, relax, take a breath and imagine what you would like to happen in whatever situation is causing you difficulty. Focusing on what you want enables you to emerge from any frustration with clarity.

3. Humor. Once you are able to either laugh at yourself or whatever the situation, you bring lightness to your heart. Laughter feels good. Watch funny movies, read amusing books, talk to a friend who always makes you laugh, go bowling. Just by adding more laughter to your life and you will notice, gently a quiet lightness entering your thoughts and being.

4. Positive attitude. I am not suggesting to live like some annoying, over-the-top Polly-Anna, but to live your life on the foundation that, “all is well.” This isn’t to deny there are problems or tragedies in life, but it does focus on solutions instead of the difficulties.

5. Gratitude. Happy people are reminded each day of their blessings – the good and the difficult. As much as it drives me nuts, challenges are opportunities. Opportunities to learn, to grow and most importantly, to know yourself better. True gratitude is born out of compassion – just as much for yourself as others.

6. Confidence. Not swaggering, but a calm knowing of ones own abilities. Confidence also means knowing you will stumble on occasion, but the confident person knows not to make a habit of it.

7. Presence. Happy people live right now, in this moment – not dreaming about yesterday or fantasying about tomorrow. Here and now – laughing about the things that others might be frustrated by, and knowing all is well…

8. Choice. All happy people know happiness is a choice. Some days it’s easier to be happy, while other days may be a bit more of a struggle. However, knowing that you have the choice to lift yourself up or push yourself down – often leads to better decisions.

Happiness is not derived from one isolated event, but by attitudes and beliefs. Gratefully, like choice, each of us has the power to change our attitudes and beliefs with time and attention.

Happiness isn’t for someone else, it’s for you. It is for each one of us to sink deeply into the happiness of this moment, however mundane the pleasures. May you discover happiness already waits for you, deep within.

Kelly Ballard is a workshop leader, Intuitive Guide and Healer. Through workshops, private sessions and guided meditations Kelly specializes in helping others discover positive solutions for immediate change/growth in their lives thus drawing their most abundant life into reality. Find out more information about her services and meditation CDs at http://www.kellyballard.com Contact her directly at 720-984-4232 or email kelly@kellyballard.com She lives in Boulder, CO.

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Filed Under: Happiness Tagged With: choice, confidence, flexible, Gratitude/appreciation, Happiness Factors, health, Humor, list, positive attitude, presence

How To Cope When Things Go Wrong: Cultivating Perspective, Balance, And Gratitude

February 25, 2011 By Admin Leave a Comment

By Paula Apfelbach

Perspective, balance, and gratitude: these often-elusive but always-helpful states of mind will help you to cope with life’s stresses and to reduce worry when bad times inevitably come. The next time you’re bogged down, consider some of these methods for rising out of your funk.

Put it in a box

Compartmentalizing is something that we do in many areas of our lives, every time we put something away in a box or bin or other container. Therefore, do the same whenever you’re sad or worried or upset: acknowledge the legitimacy of those feelings, give yourself some time to wallow around in them, but then try to place them into a mental “box” and move on to other thoughts. You can always bring your mental box back out and rummage around in it again later, but if grief and worry are allowed to take their natural courses, they’ll flow throughout the parts of your life that are working well and sully them. So give your upsets their due — but no more than their due.

Appreciation: it doesn’t get any better than this

Enumerating your blessings — especially the basic, humble things — is a powerful reminder never to take even the most mundane element of daily life as a given, and cultivating that “attitude of gratitude” is a goal worth pursuing all year long, not just when the calendar says that it’s Thanksgiving time. Truly, I can’t think of a more effective or reliable way to cultivate balance and perspective than being appreciative and refusing to take things for granted.

Play the “How could it be worse?” game

Okay, so maybe a state of continuous appreciation is a little too Pollyanna for you. If your gratitude occasionally fails and you start to feel sorry for myself, try the opposite approach to regain perspective: engage in the rather morbid-sounding “How could it be worse?” game. The way you play is to think of a negative situation in your life and then mentally turn it into something worse. If you’re anything like me, it will take only about one nanosecond before you realize that any upsetting circumstance you’re now experiencing could be worse — even much worse — and perhaps you do have it pretty good.

Another way to look at this is to remember that everything is relative. What’s awful one day may be only a drop in the bucket the next, and, thankfully, vice versa. Railing against the reality of life’s ebbs and flows will not change that reality. A mantra that I created for myself seems to apply here: “It isn’t fair; it just is.”

You always have options — even when you’re convinced you don’t

I don’t want to “go all motivational speaker” on you, but when life is crushing in on you and every single thing seems utterly imperative, it’s easy to forget that you do have options — it just seems like you don’t. One means to shake off this sense of imperatives is to do a little visualization exercise. My favorite example involves running off to Paris to become a painter creating masterpieces along the banks of the Seine…

“But of course,” you say, “I could never actually do that. What about my family and friends? My business? My dog? My mortgage? My Glee episodes?!” And right then the great majority of people would conclude that abandoning their current lives would be impossible, and they’d dismiss their painterly dreams because their priorities lie much more strongly elsewhere. And that’s not wrong in any way. My only point is that being a Parisian painter actually is an option if it’s of a higher priority than those other life elements. It’s just that it probably seems so ludicrous that most people wouldn’t even view it as an option.

And so it goes with a lot of activities: they seem critically necessary until you realize that perhaps not quite all of them deserve top-priority ranking. So take a while to evaluate how you’re spending your time. If you then choose to continue as you have been, you can feel great about living according to your highest values. But if you discover that there’s room for change, then exercise those options that you perhaps didn’t even know you had.

Accepting your limitations empowers you like little else

We’re all familiar with theologian Reinhold Neibuhr’s “Serenity Prayer,” about accepting the things we cannot change, changing the things we can, and having the wisdom to know the difference. It reminds me that there is relatively little in life that any one individual can control (despite our wishes to the contrary), so we have very little to complain about! In other words, why fret about something you can change, and why fret about something you cannot change?

Fill out a “life report card”

Most of us stopped receiving report cards a long time ago, but they might be worth reinstating. Create a list of all of the major areas of your life — relationships, occupation, leisure, spirituality, health, fitness, intellectual pursuits, finances, and whatever else is important to you — and grade yourself in each area. If you like your grades, celebrate! But, if some disappoint you, figure out what you can improve. Remembering that you can’t control everything might come in handy here, but recalling that you do have options might also come in handy. If you’re tempted to claim that you absolutely cannot change some aspect of your life, think twice: can you?

Perspective, gratitude, and balance: All are within reach, and they’ll help you to cope when things inevitably go wrong. Truly, it could always be worse.

Paula Apfelbach began her business, Breathing Room Professional Organizing, in May 2005. She transitioned out of organizing in the fall of 2010, but continues to write a free mini-zine called “exhale” and accepts freelance assignments on the subjects of organization and life simplicity. Paula lives in Madison, Wisconsin.

Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Paula_Apfelbach
http://EzineArticles.com/?How-To-Cope-When-Things-Go-Wrong:-Cultivating-Perspective,-Balance,-And-Gratitude&id=5986010

Filed Under: Self Improvement Tagged With: appreciation, balance, cope, empower, go wrong, Gratitude/appreciation, options, perspective, State of mind, Stress Management, worry

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