Thursday, September 6, 2007

Gratitude? “Thanks for the encouragement” but “Not when I’ve got attitude!”

That’s the gist of the emails I got in response to yesterday’s post. You’re right! Meaning both “you’re ok” and “you’re correct”.

For those of you who thanked me for any assistance I may have provided in making your daily life easier, you are most welcome I appreciate you’re taking the time to let me know.

For those of you who are feeling frazzled - when you’re overwhelmed with you’re daily life or having a bad day, thinking about gratitude can feel like just one more thing to do. Correct. But if you take the 2 minutes to do it you’ll find you feel a bit better.

How? Well, for one thing, you’re focusing you’re attention on something positive. That doesn’t mean that everything is wonderful, perfect or that all your difficulties will vanish, it just means that you’re taking the time to see that it isn’t all one way or the other. You’re focusing your attention for just a few moments on positive thoughts and experiences. No pressure. No added work.

Focusing on the positive means that if you found a parking spot right away and didn’t have to circle and get your blood boiling about it – that’s a good thing. If you’re child has a teacher they love and are feeling motivated this year – that’s a good thing. If you’re able to handle things better than you were able to last week, year or yesterday – that’s a good thing and it should be noted. Give yourself or someone else a pat on the back and distract yourself with something good for a couple of moments.

Life Skills Tip for children of all ages…. Focus your attention on something (anything) positive for just a moment or two during your day for starters. Then begin to take note and be in the moment during a positive event. Demonstrating this trait to your children will empower them to do the same.

Let me know how goes!

No comments: