Gratitude Beyond Thanksgiving: Shifting from DOING into BEING

Thanksgiving may have been hard, confronting, joyful or all of the above. Perhaps you didn’t have the Thanksgiving you normally would. Perhaps you are still feeling down because of the pandemic. Perhaps you were able to find some happy and connective moments.

One of the best parts of the holiday for me was connecting to gratitude. Not only did I get to be with my family, I was connected to so many loved ones from afar. I woke up to several loving texts from friends, many of whom I haven’t seen in years. I spent much of the day sending and receiving loving messages.

I love when my heart is so open in this way. I feel so happy and supported. 

Why is it that Thanksgiving nurtures this grateful heart? Why can’t we be like this all the time?!

Most of us don’t feel grateful everyday. We deal with life’s circumstances. We deal with fear of the unknown. We deal with overwhelm, anxiety, depression or just get in a funk once in awhile. When we get in these funks, we don’t feel like connecting with people. We subconsciously push people away and become even more isolated.

Do you deal with this? I used to.

We do not have to wait for holidays or any external circumstance to be happy, grateful and connected with people. We can choose to be grateful at any moment.

Gratitude is one of the most accessible transformational tools we have.  It is an inherent part of who we are. 

When you nurture your grateful heart, you will experience more joy in your life. That joy will provide you with more energy to take on your goals and produce results in your life. This way of being also attracts unexpected gifts in your life.

✨ Are you ready to experience the magic of gratitude?✨

►My challenge for you this week: Take on BEING GRATEFUL everyday.

Inspired by The Magic by Rhonda Byrne, take on the following five steps to building a magical, sustainable gratitude practice.

1.     Every morning, write down 5-10 things you are grateful for. You can do this in your regular journal or a special gratitude journal. Feel into the energy of your gratitude.

2.     Bring in gratitude into your day. Perhaps when you are on a walk, creating art, or even cleaning, connect to something you are grateful for and say thank you.

3.     Notice when you are feeling overwhelm, fear, sadness, etc. Try to find something to be grateful for instead– there is always something if you look for it! Your energy will shift in seconds. 

4.     Before you go to bed, celebrate something that happened in your day. What miracle moments showed up? Even the small miracles count!

5.     Over time your gratitude practice will transform from a “practice” into who you are. You will show up in life BEING grateful rather than DOING gratitude. It’s truly an amazing way to live. 

At first it might take something to start and develop a consistent gratitude practice. It might take faith, trust or even discipline. Trust me, I get it. It took me something to build my practice and transform it into a way of being. 

​​​​Here’s my coaching: be open, willing and committed to live your life in powerful this way. I promise you will never have to wait for a holiday or other circumstance to be happy. Your experience of life will transform as you transform.

I am truly grateful for you and your willingness to do this transformational work. May it help you connect to something greater in your life. 

Photo by Matheus Ferrero on Unsplash