Gratitude. A feeling of thankfulness and appreciation. Today we celebrate Thanksgiving in Canada, about a month ahead of the US. I like to think of Canadian Thanksgiving as a reminder. A reminder to develop your attitude of gratitude. The act of showing gratitude is a skill you can learn. You can learn to understand the power and potential of gratitude and applying it in your life. Gratitude may be the single most decisive factor in drawing more success and happiness into your life.
Gratitude instills a positive feeling in you and the people you show gratitude to. It’s like going into the world, approaching everyone as if they had “appreciate me” written on their forehead. It alters your perspective. You replace negative feelings, thoughts and beliefs with feelings, thoughts and beliefs to the things you are grateful for. Gratitude raises your awareness and shifts your focus. It can inspire you to achieve bigger and better things for yourself and the people around you.
What are the obstacles that are holding you back from showing gratitude to yourself and others?
How can you unleash gratitude to yourself and to others?
The obstacles are negative thoughts, emotions and beliefs that you may hold on to. Limiting gratitude goes hand in hand with limited, success, happiness and freedom. I talk more about overcoming these negative thoughts, emotions and beliefs in my book. If you’d like to overcome those, get a copy of my Happiness book in The Freedom Project series.
Ready to get started on implementing gratitude? The process is simple. First, be appreciative of all your achievements – big and small. Start making a list of everything that you have experienced so far in your life. Most people will do this in a short version over Thanksgiving dinner. Expand on that list. And celebrate your successes. Ask yourself: when was the last time you rewarded yourself for those achievements? Treat yourself with a simple or extravagant (whichever is appropriate) reward. It’s not the price tag, but the experience that counts. Do something good for yourself today. Celebrate all your past achievements and the future ones going forward.
Stop putting down, insulting and complaining about the people around or working under you. Instead, try complementing, praising and appreciating them for all they have done. Be specific, and refer to their contributions to your well-being and achievements.
Make a thank you list of all the people you are grateful for. Refer to this list to give yourself a better and greater feeling.
Reach out to these people often. Give a simple verbal thank you, note of appreciation or even a thank you e-mail. At times, thoughtful gifts or presents may be appropriate. The point is to show them how much you appreciate them.
Gratitude. There is nothing complex about performing the act of showing gratitude. When you show gratitude to yourself, the things and the people around you, you unlock your personal growth and your success. It’s one of the key principles of my Millionaire Mindset online program. If you’re looking to do something good for yourself today, check out the free preview video. Explore the curriculum of the course. As one of my students put it, “this course inspired me to take massive action“. And in the end, that’s what gratitude is all about.
Happy Thanksgiving, Canada. For those in the US – why not use the next month to work on your attitude of gratitude.