Gratitude Diary

Gratitude - The First Step in The Law of Attraction

2007-05-28T16:18:00.000-07:00

This Costs Nothing, and Takes Only 5 minutes Each Day

Keeping a Gratitude Diary is a very powerful, easy technique to change your life, become more positive, happy and content, and attract everything you want. And it's FREE! And Easy. It is part of the Law of Attraction, and talked about in The Secret DVD.

Turning Negative To Positive

2007-05-11T17:09:00.000-07:00

You know that in most cases the negativity we find in our lives comes from someone else. It’s either learned over time from the people closest to us or it is instilled, intentionally or not, with tools of blame, fault and ridicule. They lead to guilt and humiliation that can gnaw away at your insides and erode your self - confidence, self - esteem and dignity.

But negative feelings only persist when they are given the space to and that’s all down to thought - positive or negative.

Thinking in a positive way is really very simple. Changing your mental outlook is like breaking a bad habit.

If you can show the determination and intention to achieve a more positive pattern of thought then you can change your life.

Keeping a Gratitude Diary is a fantastic tool you can use to turn a negative outlook and attitude into a positive one. Making a commitment to keep it for just 1 month, for 5 minutes each day, will turn your life around, I promise!!

You will be happier, the people around you will be happier.

We become what we think about

2007-05-06T20:55:00.000-07:00

“We become what we think about”, said Napoleon Hill (author of "Think and Grow Rich")

Thinking ungrateful thoughts and taking things and people around you for granted, will bring you more things to be ungrateful for. And you will become, or continue to be, an ungrateful person.

This is easily reversed by starting a Gratitude Diary. For people who complain a lot, finding things to be grateful for will be difficult at first. A little perseverance over a month or so, for 5 minutes each day will turn that attitude around, and miracles will start to occur in life.

Free Positive Thought

2007-04-28T15:32:00.000-07:00

This is from a wonderful site called Free Positive Thought.
Sign up for free and they send you a daily email with a positive thought, affirmation and visualization :-)

Form the habit of being thankful at all times and you will be at peace even in the midst of life's storms!

Today's Positive Thought:
With an attitude of gratitude, life can be simple, easy, and joyful.

Today's Positive Affirmation
I have an attitude of gratitude therefore I expect my day to unfold with simplicity, ease, and joy.

Today's Positive Visualization
I take an even breath and relax into the presence of God that dwells within me. For a moment I experience the ease, simplicity, and joy this divine connection brings to me. I allow myself to remember all the wondrous things that God has done for me and I am filled with thanksgiving. I commit to living my life with the attitude of gratitude and I expect to receive the abundance and joy the law of thanksgiving provides. In my mind's eye I see myself going through my day filled with thanksgiving. I combine these images with feelingsof joy and let them go, knowing that they will create the good things I am visualizing and thinking.

The Law of Correspondence

2007-04-22T18:27:00.000-07:00

Keeping a Gratitude Diary invokes the Law of Correspondence.

This powerful mental law says, "as within, so without." It says that your outer world is like a mirror that reflects back to you what is going on in your inner world. And the law of correspondence says that everything that happens outside of you corresponds to something that's going on inside of you. When we say that your outer world is a reflection of your inner world, we mean both at a conscious and at a subconscious level.

If you consciously believe that you have the ability to achieve your goals and you can hold a picture of those goals clearly in your mind long enough and hard enough, eventually your outer world will correspond with it.

You will see this law of correspondence in action when your outer world of people starts to correspond exactly with your own attitude. You will always see your attitude reflected back to you in the faces and the behaviors of the people around you. If you have a positive, optimistic attitude, people will respond to you almost immediately, even before you open your mouth, in a positive and cheerful way.

If your attitude is one of gratitude towards everything around you, then this will also be reflected back to you.

Gratitude

2007-04-15T16:50:00.000-07:00

GROW
RELEASE
ACCEPT
THANK
INSPIRE
TREASURE
UNDERSTAND
DELIGHT
EXPECT

Do You Squidoo?

2007-03-30T17:37:00.000-07:00

I've just discovered Squidoo! And there's heaps of information in there about the Law of Attraction etc. Here's my page (they call them lenses) on Squidoo about a Gratitude Diary. You can create your own page in there, for free, about any topic you like. Very addictive!

Use Gratitude to Overcome Resistance to Affirmations

2007-03-20T21:19:00.001-07:00

If you've ever encountered some internal resistance when you first read or speak a positive affirmation, that's an indication that you do not really believe what you're saying. For example, how can you really believe the affirmation, "I am perfectly healthy in body, mind and spirit" when outer appearances point to the contrary (e.g., you're sick or in pain)?

An important part of believing is to feel "as if it has already happened." I have found that one of the best ways to evoke that feeling is to express *gratitude* after you recite an affirmation.
Just saying the words, "Thank you" after you state your affirmation reinforces the belief that the universe (or God, or your Creator, or whatever name you call the Supreme Being) has already set about the fulfillment of your desire. You may not see your affirmed desire fully manifested yet at the present time, but expressing thanks makes you believe that what you've asked for is already done. Thereafter, you have a sense of expectancythat what you desire will eventually come to fruition.

If there was ever a "formula" for manifesting desires, this is it. Ancient spiritual manuscripts, including the Bible, emphasize that a single-minded belief is essential in receiving what you ask for. They also warn against double-mindedness. Know with absolute and unwavering certainty that what you are affirming is already yours. "If you can believe, all things are possible to him who believes." So believe that it's already done by simply saying "Thank you" or assuming an attitude of gratitude after affirming what you want. I once heard a wonderful quotation from an anonymous author that says it profoundly: "We can start with who we are and what we have today, apply gratitude, then let it work it's magic. Say thank you, until you mean it. If you say it long enough, you will believe it. Today will shine the transforming light of gratitude on all the circumstances of mylife."

TIP: An attitude of gratitude is absolutely essential in yourpractice of affirmations.

Thanks and gratitude to Jeff Staniforth (www.AffirmWare.com.au) for this information.

The Happiness Show

2007-03-20T21:19:00.000-07:00

I just found this web site The Happiness Show. What a find!
Heaps of resources, information, articles and over 100 streaming vidoes on happiness that you can watch inline or download.

Resources include happiness songs, happiness research, ways to be happy and affirmations.

And other items to tickle your sense of humour. Check out the "HEY, BILL GATES - START A HAPPINESS CORPORATION!"

The Happiness Show is worth a look!

The Secret CDS - even better than the movie

2007-03-14T16:11:00.000-07:00

The Secret has released a set of CDS which are even better than the movie. They go into a lot more detail and answers a lot of the questions that may have come up for you.
Great for listening to in the car.

The Secret CDS in Australia

What is the best time to write in your Gratitude Diary?

2007-03-12T18:41:00.000-07:00

Before going to sleep is a good idea, as it will get you in a positive frame of mind, for a better night’s sleep, free from worries or stress.

First thing in the morning has its advantages too, as you will start your whole day off well and attract more things, situations and people to be grateful for. This improves your memory too, as you need to think back on yesterday, which is what you’ll mainly be writing about.

I’ve tried both, and personally prefer the morning, however, what ever time is best for your schedule, is the best for you. It doesn’t really matter – it’s keeping your gratitude diary EVERY DAY that is important, not the time of day.

Some Wise Sayings

2007-03-07T15:01:00.000-08:00

Plato, 428 – 347 BC, Philosopher
A grateful mind is a great mind which eventually attracts to itself great things

Charles Fillmore
We increase whatever we praise. The whole creation responds to praise, and is glad.

Margaret Cousins
Appreciation can make a day, even change a life. Your willingness to put it into words is all that is necessary.

Marvin Phillips
The difference between try and triumph is just a little umph!

Lao-Tzu
For the wise man looks into space and he knows there is no limited dimensions.

The Law of Expectations

2007-03-02T14:15:00.000-08:00

This law says that whatever you expect with confidence, whether this is positive or negative, becomes your reality.

If you confidently expect to succeed, if you confidently expect to learn something from every experience, if you confidently expect to become wealthy as a result of applying your talents and abilities to your opportunities and you maintain that attitude of confident expectations long enough, it will become your reality.

It will give you a positive optimistic cheerful attitude that will cause people to want to help you, and will cause things to happen the way you want them to happen.

Develop your own attitude of positive expectations. Look for the good in every situation. Look for the valuable lesson in every setback or difficulty. Be positive and cheerful about everything that happens and you will be amazed at the difference it makes in your life.

Keeping a Gratitude Diary will help invoke this law, because you will begin to see, and expect the good everywhere you look.

Interview With Masaru Emoto on Gratitude

2007-02-22T20:12:00.000-08:00

Interview with Masaru Emoto on Gratitude:

Have you come across a particular word or phrase in your research that you have found to be most helpful in cleaning up the natural waters of the world?

DR. EMOTO: Yes. There is a special combination that seems to be perfect for this, which is love plus the combination of thanks and appreciation reflected in the English word gratitude. Just one of these is not enough. Love needs to be based in gratitude, and gratitude needs to be based in love. These two words together create the most important vibration. And it is even more important that we understand the value of these words.

For example, we know that water is described as H2O. If we were to look at love and gratitude as a pair, gratitude is the H and love is the O. Water is the basis that not only supports but also allows the existence of life. In my understanding of the concept of yin and yang, in the same way that there is one O and two Hs, we also need one part yang/love to two parts yin/gratitude, in order to come to a plae of balance in the equation.

With thanks and gratitude to www.gogratitude.com for this interview

LOA Joke

2007-02-18T18:13:00.000-08:00

If you’ve seen The Secret, you know to ask for what you want in order to receive it. But you have to be really clear, and very specific, and unambiguous when you ask. Someone sent me this joke the other day, and I immediately thought “what a great example of receiving what you ask for – and being careful what you ask for!”

A man walks into a restaurant with a full-grown ostrich behind him. The waitress asks them for their orders. The man says, "A hamburger, fries and a coke," and turns to the ostrich. "What's yours?" "I'll have the same," says the ostrich.

A short time later the waitress returns with the order. "That will be #9.40 please," and the man reaches into his pocket and pulls out the exact change for payment.

The next day, the man and the ostrich come again and the man says, "A hamburger, fries and a coke." The ostrich says, "I'll have the same." Again the man reaches into his pocket and pays with the exact change.

This becomes routine until the two enter again. "The usual?" asks the waitress. "No, this is Friday night, so I will have a steak, baked potato and a salad," says the man. "Same," says the ostrich.

Shortly the waitress brings the order and says, "That will be #32.62." Once again the man pulls the exact change out of his pocket and places it on the table.

The waitress cannot hold back her curiosity any longer. "Excuse me, sir. How do you manage to always come up with the exact change in your pocket every time?"

"Well," says the man, "several years ago I was cleaning the attic and found an old lamp. When I rubbed it, a Genie appeared and offered me two wishes. My first wish was that if I ever had to pay for anything, I would just put my hand in my pocket and the right amount of money would always be there."

"That's brilliant!" says the waitress. "Most people would ask for a million pounds or something, but you'll always be as rich as you want for as long as you live!"

"That's right. Whether it's a gallon of milk or a Rolls Royce, the exact money is always there," says the man.

The waitress asks, "What's with the ostrich?"The man sighs, pauses and answers, "My second wish was for a tall chick with a big a*s and long legs who agrees with everything I say."

_________________
Moral : Be VERY specific!

BE THANKFUL

2007-02-15T13:58:00.000-08:00

Be thankful that you don't already have everything you desire.
If you did, what would there be to look forward to?
Be thankful when you don't know something, for it gives you the opportunity to learn.
Be thankful for the difficult times.
During those times you grow.
Be thankful for your limitations, because they give you opportunities for improvement.
Be thankful for each new challenge, because it will build your strength and character.
Be thankful for your mistakes.
They will teach you valuable lessons.
Be thankful when you're tired and weary, because it means you've made a difference.
It's easy to be thankful for the good things.
A life of rich fulfillment comes to those who are also thankful for the setbacks.
Gratitude can turn a negative into a positive.
Find a way to be thankful for your troubles, and they can become your blessings.

Note : I am grateful to the person who sent me this (and my apologies for not recording who you were) :-)

Happiness is a Journey, not a Destination

2007-02-11T17:19:00.000-08:00

Most people believe that when they have what they want, THEN they will be happy.

This is NOT TRUE, in fact, the opposite is true.

The more we are grateful for what we have NOW, the more the Universe responds with giving us more to be grateful for.

Since the Universe only responds to your vibrations, having a vibration of appreciation and gratitude is what the Universe will send back to you.

We must however, FEEL the appreciation and not just say the words. By feeling the emotion of appreciation we are sending out the vibration. By just saying the words we are not sending out the vibration.

Keeping a Gratitude Diary for a month will help you achieve this, and will return good things to you ten-fold. It will transform your life!

Gratitude is so powerful for creating a happy, joyful, abundant life.

Remember, happiness is a journey, not a destination.

Positive Mental Attitude Formula

2007-02-08T17:23:00.000-08:00

Our 3-step positive mental attitude formula.

In any situation, however apparently bad:

1. Keep cool and coolly examine the situation. Turn it upside down, inside out, downside up and outside in.

2. Suddenly you realize it could have been worse. Find out how and why it could have been worse.

3. Finally, the good side of it will just appear to you. This can happen gradually or in a flash. It all depends on parts 1 and 2.

Soon you'll see all things and all people in a positive way. What you call "failure" is in fact simply a new opportunity to try again and do better than if you had "succeeded" in the first place.

Now, have you noticed that a rich person has more of a chance of getting a bank loan than a poor person? In other words: you must have money to be given MORE money! In the same way, if you are a "happy person", you'll get MORE happiness.

As the great American poet Theodore Roethke said: "The right things happen to the happy man"

Don't worry, whatever type of person you are, you can easily turn yourself into a "happy person".

I can almost see your wry, "easier-said-than-done" smile. But please, just try our 3-step formula and soon, very soon, in fact much sooner than you think, you'll take up a sturdy and radiant Positive Mental Attitude to life and THAT is the only key to wellness, happiness, and a longer life.

Source (and with grateful thanks) :
A.M.Sall, Editor/Publisher http://www.health-beauty-wellness.com

Using Alpha and Theta Waves

2007-02-02T17:57:00.000-08:00

Did you know that it is much easier to replace old beliefs and negative attitudes by using the power of Alpha and Theta brain waves?

Normally, we would use our normal state of mind, which is Beta. Most things recorded in Beta will fade and disappear over time. So affirmations and the other techniques we use to change our beliefs may only be of limited benefit. Ah! Does this maybe explain why some affirmations haven't worked for you?

Your unconscious mind records your beliefs as you learn them from a very young age. They are recorded in a particular format which works on the Theta or Alpha level, and can last your whole life. These brain waves are much slower than Beta.

Will power is also formatted in Beta, by the way.

So to both speed up the process, and achieve a lasting result, use Alpha and Theta waves to change those negative beliefs to those that will support the new, enlightened you.

There's a lot more information on this topic at Centrepointe. they will even post you (for free) one of their CDs to get you started.

What sort of things can you put into your Gratitude Diary?

2007-01-21T15:27:00.000-08:00

Remembering that you can never repeat anything, all enries must be different, try being specific.

Instead of being grateful to a person on the whole, for example, state exactly why you are grateful. Did they make you a cup of tea? Did they laugh at your joke? Or bring you a present, or give you some great advice, or, or, or, or. You get the picture.

Only do try to enter just one thing for that person per day. There's heaps of other things to be grateful for as well.

What the Philosophers are saying about Gratitude Journals

2007-01-18T18:35:00.000-08:00

Found this nice, quick article about what various philosophers and teachers featured on The Secret DVD are saying about using a Gratitude Diary or journal at http://www.the-secret-dvd.ashop.com.au/?A=373.

Changing the World

2007-01-15T15:07:00.000-08:00

When we develop a right attitude of compassion and gratitude, we take a giant step towards solving our personal and international problems.
~ H.H. Dalai Lama

How true this quote is - once a person has a Gratitude attitude, it becomes impossible for that person to wage war, or do the 'wrong' thing to anyone or anything else. And if we were all that way, many of the world's problems would disappear. Gratitude is the beginning of seeing how everything is connected, and one day everyone will see this.

Gratitude Excerpt

2007-01-10T18:21:00.000-08:00

"The more gratefully we fix our minds on the Supreme when good things come to us, the more good things we will receive, and the more rapidly they will come; and the reason simply is that the mental attitude of Gratitude draws the mind into closer touch with the source from which the blessings come.

If it is a new thought to you that Gratitude brings your whole mind into closer harmony with the creative energies of the universe, consider it well, and you will see that it is true. The good things you already have have come to you along the line of obedience to certain laws. Gratitude will lead your mind out along the ways by which things come; and it will keep you in close harmony with creative thought and prevent you from falling into competitive thought."

From The Science of Getting Rich (free copy at this link) by Wallace D. Wattles

Getting What You REALLY Want

2007-01-07T21:25:00.000-08:00

Keeping a gratitude diary will bring you more good things in your life, however, wouldn’t it be great to direct this power to bring you more of what you actually want? Not some haphazard stuff, wonderful as they may be, but things that you truly desire.

This is possible by using the information in The Secret DVD to direct and focus on what you want.

So now it’s a 2 step process –
Your Gratitude Diary will bring you things
The Secret will help bring you exactly those things you want.

It's the Law of Attraction at work in your everyday life.

An Attitude of Gratitude over Christmas

2007-01-01T23:40:00.000-08:00

I've had a break from posting on my blogs, as my son came to stay over Christmas and I had difficulty getting near my computer!

I played the Glad game for this situation, and found the positive in it.
I am grateful to my son, as it forced me to take a well-deserved break, and do other things.

Albert Einstein said :

"There are two ways to live your life.
One is as though nothing is a miracle and the other is as though everything is a miracle."

When you practice an "attitude of gratitude"you live in a state of "celebration", recognizing the awesome "divine goodness" all around you.

So that's what I did. Sure beats getting annoyed about it and wasting energy!

Identify Your Negative Beliefs

2006-12-18T20:36:00.000-08:00

I just found a great book that will help you identify and understand your negative beliefs – those beliefs that are stopping you from getting what you want.

It’s called Prisoners of Belief: Exposing & Changing Beliefs That Control Your Life by Matthew McKay and Patrick Fanning.

Some Gratitude Quotes

2006-12-16T19:47:00.000-08:00

Let us rise up and be thankful, for if we didn't learn a lot today, at least we learned a little, and if we didn't learn a little, at least we didn't get sick, and if we got sick, at least we didn't die; so, let us all be thankful. –Buddha

If you always do what you’ve always done, you’ll always get what you’ve always gotten.

In our daily lives, we must see that it is not happiness that makes us grateful, but the gratefulness that makes us happy -Albert Clarke

Everything has its wonders, even darkness and silence, and I learn, whatever state I may be in, therein to be content -Helen Keller

Gratitude, like faith, is a muscle. The more you use it, the stronger it grows, and the more power you have to use it on your behalf. If you do not practise gratefulness, its benefaction will go unnoticed, and your capacity to draw on its gifts will be diminished. To be grateful is to find blessings in everything. This is the most powerful attitude to adopt, for there are blessings in everything. -Alan Cohen

Attitude is more important than the past, than eductaion, than money, than circumstances, than what people do or say. It is more important tyhan appearance, giftedness, or skill. The remarkable thing is, we have a choice everyday regardingthe attitude we will embrace for that day. We cannot change our past. We cannot change the fact that people act in a certain way. We cannot change the inevitable. The only thing we can do is play on the one string we have, and that is our attitude -Charles Swindoll

Peace comes from within. Do not seek it without. -Buddha

The Power of Our Language

2006-12-12T18:24:00.000-08:00

There are 2 sides to every coin, so they say, and this works for gratitude too. For every negative in your life, find a positive to replace it. Now this won’t always be easy, but it can be done. You can be as conservative or extreme as you like. Remember like attracts like, so think and talk positive, and you'll get positive back. This is also known as The Grateful Game!

Here are a few examples to get you started … How many can you think of?

Negative : The taxes on my paycheck are ridiculous!
Positive : I am grateful I have a job.

Negative : I hate cleaning my house.
Positive : I am grateful I have a home.

Negative : My clothes are too tight!
Positive : I am grateful I have enough food to eat.

Negative : I had to park at the far end of the parking lot!
Positive : I am grateful I can walk and own a vehicle.

Negative L: My heating bill is huge!
Positive : I am grateful I am warm in the winter.

Negative : I am tired and my muscles ache!
Positive : I am grateful I am capable of working hard.

Keeping a gratitude diary will help you to find the positive in every situation, and turn your life around for the better.

Positive Mental Attitude

2006-12-10T16:01:00.000-08:00

Look at this glass on the table in front of you. Is it half-full or is it half-empty?
Now, do you realize that it is entirely for you to decide what the answer to this question is going to be?

The choice is yours. You can choose to see the good, or the bad. One will make you feel good, the other will make you feel bad.

So, the very same reality can be seen in totally opposite ways: in a positive way, and in a negative way. And there is always a positive side to any thing, any situation, any event, any person.

Look at the world in a different way. Try to find out that positive side. At first, you might literally have to dig it out, but after some time, it automatically appears to you. In fact, you eventually only see the good side. Everything is beautiful, "everybody's beautiful, in their own way", as the song goes.

Play the “Glad Game” and actively look for the good thing/s in every situation. Add these to your Grateful Diary every day. I have problems keeping my diary down to only 5 entries every day, there are so many things to be grateful for!

How To Pay Bills With a Smile on Your Face

2006-12-05T16:23:00.000-08:00

We all hate that time of month where we sit down and pay all our bills, watching the bank account go down, or the credit card go up.

Like attracts like, so when you feel awful paying bills, you'll attract more of that.

So here's a simple way to turn that around next time you pay a bill :

Before you pay it, sit down and write out all the good things that this product or service did or is doing for you. What did it enable you to do? What would have happened if you didn't have it? Did it help you to achieve something? What did you learn? Are there benefits for the future ?

Smile while you're writing, and you'll soon start feeling grateful for this product or service.

An example is your electricity bill. I'm always grateful when I pay it, because electricity enables me to cook, to play CDs, to have long hot showers, read at night, watch TV, cool or warm the house, keep my food fresh, use my computer and make a living. WOW! Where would I be without it?

Now that you're feeling grateful or amazed, now pay for it. If writing a cheque, add a smiley face to it. If paying online, say "thank you".

Sure beats feeling sour about it!

Value Things We Take For Granted

2006-12-03T16:19:00.000-08:00

We are already millionaires. Stop and think about this....

Are you currently in possession of anything for which someone on the planet might be willing to pay in excess of one million dollars?

The initial response is typically negative. Most people give up very quickly after considering the fair market value of their most prized material possessions.

However, let's think about this further.

What about your eyesight? Do you believe that someone who had lost (or never had) the power of sight would say that eyesight would be worth in excess of one million dollars?

What about health? Wouldn't it be fair to say that, to a person who has lost physical mobility due to illness or an accident or to someone who has been diagnosed with a terminal illness, 'health' would be worth at least, if not more than, one million dollars?

Consider freedom? Loving relationships? The use of your ability to think and remember?

In your Gratitude Diary, remember to be grateful for those things we take for granted.

Attract Lots of Money!

2006-11-30T16:05:00.000-08:00

If you've been keeping your Gratitude Diary faithfully, and attracting more good things into your life, you may be now asking yourself this question. What will my life be like when money is unlimited? And what does it take for me to accomplish this outcome?

The Secret DVD) has a free ecourse you can sign up for, called “7 Steps For a Winning Life”, and a home study journey that begins with The Science of Success. He says success and Harmonic Wealth® are guaranteed when you understand the Laws of the Universe... His

Say “No” to Negativity

2006-11-28T17:34:00.000-08:00

When negative beliefs come up via your self talk, try saying :

“Up until now…”, once you realise you are experiencing negativity. This will help replace the old thought for a positive, new one.

Here is what it would look like :

Your old self talk : “I’ll never be successful”
Your new self talk : “I haven’t been successful up until now. Now what I want to create is……………….. and I believe it’s possible”

This is an excerpt from a wonderful book, called :
“Divine Intuition – Your Guide to Creating a Life You Love” by Lynn A. Robinson.
It is a truly inspirational book, and has a warm, caring feel to it.
I turn to it often, when I need some guidance or nurturing.

The Science Of Getting Rich - Free Copy

2006-11-26T16:42:00.000-08:00

"It is a natural law that like causes always produce like effects. Therefore, any man or woman who learns to do things in this certain way will infallibly get rich." Wallace D Wattles

The Science of Getting Rich states that the ownership of money and property comes as a result of doing things in a certain way. Those who do things in this certain way, whether on purpose or accidentally, get rich. Those who do not do things in this certain way, no matter how hard they work or how able they are, remain poor.

Grab your free copy of "The Science of Getting Rich" by Wallace D Wattles.

Thanksgiving

2006-11-23T14:02:00.000-08:00

Here’s a fun thing to try! Write one thing to be grateful for each letter of the alphabet. Especially good for Thanksgiving.

I am grateful for:

A: Assistance from ………..

B: Bird sounds that I hear every morning

C: Cool rain after a hot day

You get the idea. How creative can you be??
Don't forget to smile while you write!

Does Your Partner Irritate You?

2006-11-19T17:14:00.000-08:00

A Gratitude Diary can help your relationships too. Are you often noticing things that you don't like about your partner? Do you find that you are irritated by the things they do or don't do? You can learn to shift your focus away from the things you don't like onto the things that you do like and all of a sudden you will realise that either those niggles stop bothering you or that they will disappear altogether.

In your Gratitude Diary, write down at least 5 things that you do like or love about your partner, and feel gratitude as you write them.

Changing Your Beliefs (2)

2006-11-16T13:39:00.000-08:00

This came to me in a blink, so I’m running with it to see where it will go…

All our beliefs exist to protect us from pain, and therefore as opportunities arise, we turn them down, or sabotage them. The ultimate protection would be to exist in a place of no pain at all – hiding under a table somewhere wrapped in cotton wool. You can see that this also denies us happiness and joy. It would be pretty boring under that table, even if there is no pain. No, we must work out a way to change our negative beliefs so that they still serve us, and change our attitudes to more positive ones.

Instead of working out what the belief is, which in a way strengthens it (!), think of situations in your life that had a not good outcome, or didn’t feel good at the time. To protect you from this next time, you probably drew a conclusion from it that became a belief that is now working against you. For any given situation, there are more than just one conclusion, so be flexible here. Remembering the situation, what other conclusions can you come to?

For example : A female has just been hit by a man, as the result of a violent argument that escalated out of control. The conclusion she reached afterwards is that all men are b******s. This becomes a belief that now denies her a good relationship with a man. In fact, she now only attracts b*****s, because subconsciously she has to prove herself right. So she only attracts bad relationships that strengthen her belief.

However, other conclusions could be : Everybody has their breaking point. If I goad a man long enough he’ll hit me. Raising my voice in anger leads to disastrous results. Any of these conclusions woud serve her better, as they would stop her from arguing in the future, and she would have to find alternative ways to resolve issues.

So, now go back to the situation you are remembering, think of some other conclusions you could have reached. Make sure they have some value that will help you in the future, not hinder you. Pick one or two, and make them your own. Don’t discard your original one, but allow it to soften by repeating the new belief everyday to yourself, with the memory of the situation. Eventually, the old one will be replaced.

This is the choice we have, to be a victim, or a victor. To choose to stay with a belief that keeps us in victim mode, and is therefore a negative belief, or to choose a new belief that will empower us.

Changing your Beliefs

2006-11-14T14:04:00.000-08:00

To be able to receive more good things, events and people into your life, it may be necessary to change any negative beliefs you have.
Here is the technique taught to me :

Stage 1
First you need to work out what they are. Look at your results, listen to what your inner voice is saying, and notice what you say to others. Ask your friends and family too, sometimes they know you better than yourself, or can see an aspect of you that you can’t. Keep some paper and a pen with you at all times, and stay attuned to this task. Every time you notice a belief, jot it down.

Stage 2
I used a speadsheet on the computer for this part, as it got quite messy, however, paper is fine too. Draw up 4 columns. In the first, write down one of the beliefs you have noted. In the second column, write what you would like to change the belief to. What is the opposite of the negative belief? Do not use negative words in this. Reword it to be a positive statement.

Stage 3
In the third column, write down a time or event in your life when this new belief was true for you. Yes, you heard right. This is the hard part. If you hold the belief that no-one loves you, for example, then go back and recall a time when someone, anyone, showed you an act of kindness that would indicate love. Never mind their motivation, that doesn’t matter for this exercise. Can you think of any others? You see, precisely because of that belief, we tend to block out anything or anyone that doesn’t fit in with that belief. So spend some time remembering. Look at old calendars to help you, or scrap books, or photo albums. Ask people you know, or go into meditation. This is the crucial step in changing your belief.
We hold our beliefs because events prove them. Because the events prove them, we hold the beliefs. So this pattern must be interrupted, and this is done by proving that the new belief is also true. By doing this, we break the hold and disempower the old belief.

Stage 4
Use the new belief as an affirmation. Write it on a card and read it to yourself several times a day. Each time you do, recall the event that proves it.

Stage 5 (optional)
You may find too many beliefs to cope with at once. You can either handle 2 or 3 at a time, or you may want to go over your list, and see if you can group any together to reduce their number. There may be several for example that essentially say “no-one loves me”. You can then combine them, leaving just the one to deal with.

I had a wonderful life coach who showed me this technique, and I did a lot of work on it. In doing so, I discovered that I didn’t believe this technique would work for me. Talk about self-sabotage!

So I decided to test it out on something that wasn’t important. I had the belief that all drivers of front wheel cars were inconsiderate on the road. In my experience, they had no qualms about cutting in in front of other cars, parking haphazardly to take up 2 spots instead of 1, and not giving way to other drivers.This was not an important belief, more an annoying one.

So I changed it to “front wheel drivers are considerate on the road”. My inner voice was saying “yeah, right” sarcastically, however I remembered one time when one was considerate to me, letting me in when 2 lanes merged. So I focussed on that. That very night, proving how quickly this technique can work, I was crossing a dimly lit street on foot, when a front wheel drive car appeared. It stopped for me while I was still in the middle of the road, and not on a pedestrian crossing – I was amazed! The technique works!

Are you Good at Receiving?

2006-11-13T14:06:00.000-08:00

How much do you allow yourself to receive, and have, before you feel guilty, afraid, or withdraw? If you believe you are not good enough, or don’t deserve it, then even though the Universe is trying to give us things (because we are practising gratitude) your beliefs will stop you from receiving these things.

Did you grow up hearing your parents tell you that money doesn’t grow on trees? Well-meaning as your parents were, if you still hold that belief, and others like it, then it is possible to negate the law of attraction that gratitude invokes. What you end up doing each time fortune is about to smile upon you, is to sabotage yourself or the events (consciously or unconsciously) that would have resulted in that good fortune.

Additionally, the more we have grown up believing we need to be independent to be successful, the worse we are at receiving. We’re very good at giving, however! But think about this – if we are all giving, then who is there to do the receiving?
Not receiving is really just another guilt trap set up by ourselves to protect our belief about independence and our lack of self worth.

You can discover/uncover what your beliefs are by looking at your results, by listening to what your inner voice is saying, and by noticing what you say to others. It can take some time and effort to uncover your beliefs, however, it is well worth it, if you suspect you are being held back by them.

For example, you may hold a belief that no-one loves you. This makes it difficult for anyone to love you, and since you must prove yourself right all the time (and we all do that), you push people away from you so that no-one loves you. Voila! You were right again! That is self –sabotage. Our beliefs dictate our lives very powerfully.

Imagine if you turned this power around to work for you instead of against you? Tomorrow I’ll go into how to change your negative beliefs.

You are POWERFUL

2006-11-12T15:25:00.000-08:00

WE MAKE OUR OWN REALITIES, OUR OWN FATE AND OUR OWN LUCK…

Virtually everything in our society tells us, reminds us, and insists, that we are limited, aging “creatures”, who live our lives between luck and fate, in a hard, unforgiving world. The whole world wants you to believe suffering and sacrifice are normal.

So how come some people get the lucky breaks, and some people seem to constantly land on their feet, while others have to struggle and scrimp just to survive? Are these people smarter than you? Are they more deserving than you? Have they paid greater dues than you? No! They're actually living in ways that ENGAGE life's principles so that the Universe begins serving them.

These same principles are now at play in your own life, whether you know what they are or not, and they are ridiculously easy to use. You don’t have to understand how these principles work, nor the processes. Just know how POWERFUL they are, and how powerful YOU yourself are.
By identifying, understanding and harnessing them... you can access the power that literally turns wishes into reality.

Learn and read more about this at Infinite Possibilities : The Art of Living Your Dreams, by Mike Dooley.

Unconditional Success

2006-11-11T14:31:00.000-08:00

This is a very appropriate excerpt from an excellent book, “Unconditional Success” by Nick Williams.

As the maxim goes, we don’t know what we’ve got till it’s gone. We are often grateful in retrospect, sometimes only when we’ve lost something. We can learn to be more grateful in the present moment, and even ahead of time. We can give thanks for what we have now, and what we will have.

We can easily put off gratitude, thinking : “When I have more or when I am more successful, I’ll be more grateful”. It’s always a when thing, not a now thing. Obviously I don’t know you, but I imagine you have a reasonable life – food to eat, a roof over your head, friends,family, employment, clothes. But you may not see it that way. Sometimes we need some contrast, a different perspective, to show us how fortunate we are. When I went to India in 1995, I came back with a profound sense of gratitude, realizing how blessed I was in comparison to the majority of the world’s population.

Gratitude can be used as a guilt trip – you should be grateful for food with half the world starving; you shouldn’t want more when so many have so little. This is not the kind of gratitude I’m talking about. I mean the willingness and ability to feel truly blessed, to accept with an open heart the goodness of what you have.

Gratitude is a positive state. It’s hard to be grateful and depressed at the same time, or grateful and unhappy, or grateful and cynical. Gratitude transforms so much negativity in our lives.

Gratitude is Infectious

2006-11-09T16:47:00.000-08:00

Gratitude, closely aligned with happiness, is infectious. Friends will ask what’s happening with you –what good fortune is making you this way? Explain to them about your gratitude diary, and the results you are getting. Because keeping a gratitude diary is easy to do, hopefully your friends will start one as well. Everyone will be happier! They will understand totally when you say to them “I’m grateful” when something happens. Joy shared is double joy.

Our Pets Show us the Way

2006-11-07T15:46:00.000-08:00

I am in awe of my cat. She teaches me many things as I observe her. She lives entirely in the Now, in the Present. She is grateful for all attention she receives, and shows her gratitude with her responses of affection. She is never cross if she is woken up – just delighted to see me! If I am away for for a couple of days, she follows me everywhere for the next couple of days, like a dog. And the more grateful she is for me, the more grateful I am for her. Truly inspirational, to observe gratitude at work in this way.

Achieving Prosperity

2006-11-05T17:58:00.000-08:00

It is a fundamental law of the universe that what we focus on, grows. If we continually think about what we lack, that is what will grow for us. To achieve real prosperity we must learn to focus on what we have. Feeling gratitude for what we have is one of the most powerful techniques for achieving prosperity. It's the feelings that are important, they must be genuine.
Feel grateful, and receive more things to be grateful for.

The 'L I T T L E' things

2006-11-02T11:37:00.000-08:00

I received this in an email today, and although you may have seen it before, I feel it is very relevant to this blog's theme.

As you might know, the head of a company survived 9/11 because
his son started kindergarten.

Another fellow was alive because it was
his turn to bring donuts.

One woman was late because her
alarm clock didn't go off in time.

One was late because of being
stuck on the NJ Turnpike because of an auto accident.

One of them
missed his bus.

One spilled food on her clothes and had to take
time to change.

One's
car wouldn't start.

One went back to
answer the telephone.

One had a
child that dawdled
and didn't get ready as soon as he should have.

One couldn't
get a taxi.

The one that struck me was the man who put on a new pair of shoes that morning, took the various means to get to work but before he got there, he developed a blister on his foot. He stopped at a drugstore to buy a Band-Aid. That is why he is alive today.

Now when I am stuck in traffic, miss an elevator, turn back to answer a ringing telephone... all the little things that annoy me.
I think to myself, this is exactly where I’m meant to be at this very moment..

Next time your morning seems to be going wrong, the children are slow getting dressed, you can't seem to find the car keys, you hit every traffic light, don't get mad or frustrated; Be glad – there’s a reason!

May you continue to feel gratitude for all those annoying little things and may you remember their possible purpose.

When Our Buttons Are Pushed

2006-10-31T18:48:00.000-08:00

Once we have religiously kept a gratitude diary for a few weeks, feeling gratitude can be fine most of the time when things are going well. But what happens when our buttons are pushed? Do we revert back to our old patterns of thought and behaviour? Feeling frustrated, angry, and just not good. This is very easy to do!

Next time this happens, I suggest NOT fighting these feelings, but allowing them. Then recognise that this is a gift. Work out why this is happening and where it is coming from. Get to the base of it, in a calm, reasoning manner. Preferrably with a friend who will be your sounding board and ask pertinent questions, to help you get to the hub of it. How can we clear the blocks and issues we have that interrupt and impede our happiness, if we don’t know what they are?

Once identified, we can work on them. So, next time our buttons are pushed, be grateful for this gift. Once we feel gratitude again, we will be re-centred. The surest way to always be happy is to always be grateful - no matter what! There is a gift in everything.

The Glad Game

2006-10-29T16:29:00.000-08:00

Did anyone get to see a movie called"Pollyanna"?

In it, the heroine, who is a girl around 10yrs old, was taught by her father to play the Glad Game. Playing the game means finding something to be glad about, no matter what the situation is.

Pollyanna spreads this around, so that lots of other people start playing the game too. Their lives are enriched because of it.

If you haven't seen it, and you get a chance, I encourage you to have a look.
It's another version of a gratitude diary, and very effective.

Research Project on Gratitude and Thankfulness

2006-10-25T21:51:00.000-07:00

Highlights from the Research Project on Gratitude and Thankfulness by the University of California Psychology Department :

Distinguishing Between Gratefulness and Indebtedness

Gratitude is the “forgotten factor” in happiness research. We are engaged in a long-term research project designed to create and disseminate a large body of novel scientific data on the nature of gratitude, its causes, and its potential consequences for human health and well-being.

In a narrative study, people who write about being indebted to others reports higher levels of anger and lower levels of appreciation, happiness, and love relative to people who write about being grateful to others (Gray & Emmons, 2000).

The experience of indebtedness is less likely to lead to a desire to approach or make contact with others relative to an experience of gratefulness. Thus, indebtedness tends to be an aversive psychological state that is distinct from gratitude.

Learn more about this project at :

http://psychology.ucdavis.edu/labs/emmons/

Feeling joy for the little things

2006-10-19T18:39:00.000-07:00

Gratitude is not just for the big or wonderful things in your life. It’s also for the many little things that make up your day that can give you joy :

A magnificent sunset (or sunrise if you’re up that early!)
The pure taste of clean water.
The smell of newly mowed grass or ground coffee.
Someone thanks you.
You receive a joke by email.

Feeling joy and gratitude for all the little things in your day sets you up for more. Like attracts like!

A Course In Miracles

2006-10-17T16:51:00.000-07:00

A Course in Miracles changes your life and shows you how to change your mind about those things that rob you of your peace. A very deep and truthful source that teaches you to unravel your thought system that has kept you away from the truth.

Many people have been helped by A Course in Miracles , which has the power to change one's thinking from negative thoughts of fear and limitation to realization of one's divinity. It is taught in classes all over the world.

It is however, not the easiest of reads. A much simpler book, based on A Course in Miracles, is Love is Letting Go of Fear. It is a set of tools in the form of daily, progressive lessons for personal transformation, releasing the fears that rule our lives, and replacing those fears with love. These crucial lessons work through the concepts of giving, forgiveness, cause and effect, perspective, reactive behavior, victimhood, judgement, living in the present, releasing the past, visualization, freedom to choose, and taking responsibility. This one is a favourite of mine – you can open it at any page and find something relevant to the situtation you are in. Truly inspiring.

"The Secret"

2006-10-12T17:43:00.000-07:00

Have you seen “The Secret” DVD yet?

It’s about the Law of Attraction and how we get everything we ask for. Gratitude is an important component of this and is emphasized in the film. Being grateful for what we have will bring more to be grateful for!

Watching the DVD once is not enough, if you are lucky enough to get to see it. You will want to see it over and over again, because you'll understand it better each time, and you will note different things in it each time. I found it best for me to watch about 20 minutes at a time, then let that sink in for a while. Sort of takes it from being academic, in your head, to your heart, where it will be most effective. So you'll need to get your own copy, and you can get it at The Secret DVD Shop.

TIP - ACCENTUATE THE POSITIVE

2006-10-08T17:38:00.000-07:00

To encourage children to notice the positive things in life, ask them to say three positive things about their day before saying something negative.

This works great for the whole family. Instead of coming home complaining of every little thing that went wrong that day, they will come home sharing all the good news.

This will teach them to concentrate on the positives and forget about the silly negatives. This daily ritual could also be a fun way to begin dinner conversation each evening.

what Are You Attracting?

2006-10-05T15:56:00.000-07:00

An attitude of gratitude is important in engaging the Law of Attraction. The more you appreciate what you have the more that you will receive to be appreciative of.

It sounds simple and yet many people complicate their lives by looking for only "great" things to be thankful for. We can be just as grateful for the simple things in our lives that we take for granted – sunsets, water on tap, hot showers, our health, friends, little things people do for us.

The more you are grateful, the more you get. .What are YOU grateful for? Remember, like attracts like….what are you attracting?

Gratitude For Children

2006-10-03T15:42:00.000-07:00

Making thankfulness and gratitude a daily habit is beneficial for everyone, including our children.

We want our children to be appreciative and thoughtful, and teaching our children to attain an attitude of thankfulness will require repeated efforts over a long period of time, but it is well worth the effort.

A crucial point in teaching children about gratitude, is that children have to feel loved and cared for themselves, before they can really have concern for other’s feelings. Children must have their emotional needs met first before they can think beyond themselves and their own needs.

Keep a gratitude diary, in which only positive things are written down, keeping in mind the many things that we are blessed with on a daily basis. Our children can have their own journals, and if they can’t write, they can draw pictures.

Have your children make thank you cards and give the cards to someone special. Your children can write and/or verbalize thank-yous after they receive gifts and acts of kindness from others. This sets a good pattern of acting on thankfulness for the future.

And, of course, in order for our children to adopt an attitude of thankfulness, we must first have that attitude and model gracious manners and behavior ourselves, as adults. We need to focus on and be fortunate for what we have versus what we don’t have, and verbalize thankfulness. If we are constant complainers of bad fortune, our children will be, too, and will grow up with that attitude, as well.

We can model saying thank you to our spouses, family members, our children, and others. Remember to say thank you to your children when they have done something that you appreciate. We should accept and acknowledge our children’s hugs and kisses as forms of gratitude too.

A Key to Optimum Wellness : Gratitude

2006-09-29T22:24:00.000-07:00

An attitude of gratitude promotes wellness. Research shows those who are grateful for their life heal faster, have stronger immune systems, less stress and greater. This week before you begin your day's "busyness" stop and write down at least three things you are grateful for in your life in your gratitude journal.

This exercise will promote a day of increased awareness of good, a sense of peace and fulfillment. Remember, what we hold in our mind creates our outer world. Begin with gratitude and experience more gratefulness all day long.

Written by Dr. James http://www.9news.com/optimum/gratitude.htm

Realize there is an opportunity in every experience.

2006-09-27T16:03:00.000-07:00

There are no accidents in life. You are the creator of all of it. Health, joy, and freedom are actually natural and part of your true nature, regardless of what your life may look like at this moment.

Whenever you are not experiencing health, joy, and freedom, or if your peace is disturbed in any other way, it is helpful to remind yourself “I do not know what this means. I don’t know how to respond to this, but I am willing to see the opportunity here. What is the opportunity here?” and then, see it and act on it, whatever it is.

If you try this, and make this practice a habit, your life will literally transform itself into a wonderful series of opportunities for greater health, joy, and freedom.

With gratitude from The Secrets of My Success at ZenChill.com http://zenchillcom.blogspot.com/2006/06/secrets-of-my-success.html

Gratitude disables your inner brat and boosts positive feelings

2006-09-24T20:15:00.000-07:00

This article is by Pauline Wallin, Ph.D.Author, "Taming Your Inner Brat: A Guide to Transforming Self-defeating Behavior" http://www.innerbrat.com

As I gave my dog a small morsel of toast the other day, I reflected on how grateful a creature she is. Abby is just as thrilled to receive a crumb as she is to get a huge bone. She never complains that the crumb is too small, or too cold or too moldy even! She always wants more, but if I don't offer it she gets over it quickly. No sulking around for what she didn't get.

Wouldn't it be nice if more people were that way? Not that people are never grateful, but most of the time it's after an accident or a disaster. For example, after a fire you’ll often hear the victims say, "We lost everything. But at least we're alive and still have each other." People are also grateful when they're frightened, hurt or down on their luck, and someone comes to their aid. Being on the receiving end of kindness when you need it most, always evokes feelings of gratitude.

When you're in a grateful state of mind, your inner brat is essentially disabled. Your mind is open and receptive. You feel connected to the world.

Being grateful for what you have is not just a more pleasant state of mind for the moment. There are lasting benefits, both mental and physical. Dr. Robert Emmons, a psychologist who specializes in research on gratitude, found that:

* People who kept a daily "gratitude journal" reported higher levels of alertness, enthusiasm and energy, than those who journaled about hassles or neutral events. This was the case even among people with neuromuscular disease.

* Grateful people report higher levels of life satisfaction and optimism.

* They also are more likely to share their possessions and to help others in need, thereby increasing their feelings of involvement and being appreciated themselves.

* They are less envious, less resentful, less bitter, and less neurotic. They are also less materialistic.

* Grateful people do not ignore problems. If anything, they may be somewhat more cynical than average. While they may anticipate more difficulties, they are also thankful when other people help make their life easier.

Besides feelings of well-being, an appreciative attitude can also have physical health benefits. One study showed that people who were instructed to focus on appreciation for five minutes had better heart rhythms, than did those who were told to think about anger for the same five minutes.

If this doesn't get you enthused, consider the following research finding: In a study of 180 nuns over time, those who wrote about being positive and appreciative early in life, lived on average 6-9 years longer than those who were pessimistic and negative.

Even if you have a good number of years behind you, it is not too late to expand your gratitude and appreciation. When you do, your inner brat will instantly recede to the background.

But gratitude doesn't just reduce negative feelings. It also increases positive ones. Instead of feeling angry, empty or victimized, you will experience contentment and perhaps even joy. You'll start to notice more beauty in the world, despite the stresses and difficulties you're facing.

The More you Appreciate, the More You Get!

2006-09-19T23:36:00.000-07:00

When you are in the Gratitude mindset, you will recognise lots of things to be grateful for.

These can include everyday things you take for granted (Examples – enjoying the sunshine, having a hot shower, sleeping in a comfortable bed, are all pleasures that most of us don’t appreciate anymore), as well as all the new ‘goodies’ you are attracting to yourself.

Last week, in 3 days, for example, a friend took myself, my partner and my son to dinner – and paid for all of us. The next night, I was given tickets to dinner and a show by another friend. AND I entered a competition to win tickets to see a show, and – you guessed it, I won them.

The spiralling effect of gratitude is awesome - the more you appreciate, the more you get!

The Law of Attraction

2006-09-17T18:23:00.000-07:00

Focussing on, and feeling gratitude for what we have, attracts more of the same. This is one of the rules of the Universe (or whatever name you want to call it).

Every time you feel grateful for something or someone, you will attract to yourself another thing to be grateful for. It’s a spiralling effect, of give and take. Give gratitude, take the rewards.

As soon as you stop feeling grateful and start taking things for granted again, the flow will also stop.

This happened to me, because I became cocky about all the good things that I was receiving into my life and thought I didn't need a gratitude diary anymore. I thought I would automatically continue to feel grateful for everything. BUT I didn't. Little things would go wrong, and I became more and more negative, more and more stressed. I forgot to be grateful. and the more negative I was, the more negative things I received. Again, a spiralling effect.

A gratitude diary can reverse this if this is the situation you're in.

Have a look in the July 9th entry of this blog for instructions on How a Gratitude Diary Works.

A major key to contentment is gratitude.

2006-09-14T16:20:00.000-07:00

Being thankful for what you have leads to contentment, while continually wanting more and more leaves us feeling empty and unfulfilled. Having MORE does not, alas, make us more content over the long run - the initial high about the new car, the new wardrobe, or the vacation quickly fades. No matter what our former economic status, we become accustomed to the new level and soon it isn't enough either.

It is human to want MORE, and while that motivates us to keep moving, seldom do we have any sustained sense of ENOUGH. To be content, we need to slip out of the well-worn rut of wanting more, more, more and just experience that, right now, in this moment, we have enough.

A Gratitude diary helps contentment, by getting you to appreciate what you have, the people around you, your circumstances, and events. It is difficult to take things for granted when you have to come up with 5 new things to be grateful for each day.

Don’t like writing? Can’t read your own handwriting?

2006-09-11T23:11:00.000-07:00

Don’t let that stop you from creating your own gratitude diary.

You could type it instead, into a document.
Or do it online. Go to http://www.simpleabundance.com/gratitude.html and type in your reasons to be grateful, then print it out.

5 minutes a day, that's all it takes. The good things you will attract to you will absolutely amaze you.

Happiness is a State of Mind

2006-09-09T19:33:00.000-07:00

Keep in mind that happiness is mostly dependent on our state of mind, not on our status or the state of our bank account. Barring extreme circumstances, our level of well being is determined by what we choose to focus on (the full or the empty part of the glass) and by our interpretation of external events.

For example, do we view failure as catastrophic, or do we see it as a learning opportunity?

When we receive an electricity bill, do we curse, or do we feel gratitude for all the comforts and conveniences that electricity provides?

Keeping a gratitude diary will not only help focus you on the positives in your life, it will bring more positive things into your life as well.

As an example, just this week, 2 different lots of friends invited me out for dinner and a show, and paid for me, AND I won tickets valued at $140 to see an international drumming/martial ats show. My son came home for the weekend from interstate as well. And that is just this week. I am attracting so many wonderful things into my life.

Positive Psychology Updates

2006-09-06T20:11:00.000-07:00

Recently psychologists in the Positive Psychology movement, as well as economists like Richard Layard, have been looking at what promotes happiness.

In the economic field, Layard and others have found that beyond a fairly basic minimum level, increases in income don't make us happier. Once our basic comfort and survival needs are satisfied, we focus on status. Plus, money matters less the more you have of it. More about this in Layard's excellent book Happiness: Lessons From A New Science.

The Education Guardian recently interviewed another 'happiness economist', Andrew Oswald :"Before we can tell how happy we are, we have to keep comparing ourselves with the neighbours. To keep up with the Joneses, we spend a vast proportion of our income on things we don't need. It's the way human beings are. But, collectively, we can't all be ahead of the average. That's the key factor in why the continued emphasis on economic growth doesn't work for the whole of society."

Keeping a Gratitude Diary stops us from comparing ourselves with everyone around us. It keeps us focussed on what is really important to us, what it is that makes us happy and gives us joy.

Sometimes It's Hard to Be Grateful

2006-09-03T17:22:00.000-07:00

Sometimes and in some places it's hard to be grateful - so remind yourself.

Put a sticky note in your car that says, "What do I have to be thankful for?"
That way, when you're setting out on onerous errands, stuck in hellish traffic, or coming home to chaos, you have the chance to pause and reflect on that which you do consider a blessing: your health, the loved ones you're shopping for, your nice warm coat, whatever.

And you can write these blessings in your gratitude diary later on.

Gratitude Diary - easy!

2006-08-27T23:04:00.000-07:00

It’s joyful, it’s free, and it takes only a couple of minutes each day.

A gratitude diary is my kind of personal success activity! Once you start, you'll find it becomes easy to be grateful for everything, and wonderful things will start to happen in your life.

happiness and contentment are just 2 of the by-products.

Contentment

2006-08-25T22:23:00.000-07:00

How many moments of contentment do you allow yourself to experience in a day?

Like most emotional states, contentment is created by our thoughts, most of which are life-long habits. The more we focus on a particular state of being, the more of it we create for ourselves.

If we habitually focus on resentment, envy, a sense of lack or other painful states, they tend to increase, like a well-worn rut in the road. If we focus, instead on more positive states like contentment or hope, they tend, likewise, to increase.

A gratitude diary does exactly this - keeps you focussed on the positive aspects of the life around you and within you. Looking for the good in everything becomes a habit.

'How To Get Happy' is the most popular university course at Harvard

2006-08-22T23:46:00.000-07:00

March 22, 2006 · At Harvard University this semester, students are flocking to a new class that might give them some insight into the secret to happiness. Psychology 1504, or "Positive Psychology," has become the most popular course on campus.

Twice a week, some 900 students attend Tal Ben-Shahar's class on what he calls "how to get happy." He achieved personal happiness by taking himself off the tenure track -- because not having to publish makes him happy. His class offers research from the relatively new field of positive psychology, which focuses on what makes people happy, rather than just their pathologies.

He looks at what’s going right. Every evening since September 19 1999, religiously, Ben-Shahar has made a list in a notebook of five things for which he feels grateful (”it could be that fantastic sandwich I had, or it could be my family”), and keeping a gratitude diary is now part of the homework for the Harvard course.

Article to read more about this

Results after only 6 weeks!

2006-08-20T20:33:00.000-07:00

These are the results I've had since I started starting up my Gratitude Diary again, on July 8th, 6 weeks ago :

My long term (5 years) on-again, off-again partner asked me to marry him, I said yes, and he has since moved in with me. I'm grateful!!

I received some unexpected funds into my account, with access to more. Whooppeee!!

I am attending my son's graduation in Adelaide next week, all expenses paid. Hooray!

I was invited to contribute my SEO Tutorial to SEO Giveaway, and have quadrupled the number of subscribers to my newsletter, in only 6 days. Whooohooo!

I was offered 5 free tickets to a live show, and took some friends with me - wonderful!

I found a buyer for all my duplicate furniture and appliances - a young couple setting up house for the first time (bless them!) who bought the lot in one go. This saved me weeks of selling everything piece by piece. Fantastic!

I have been invited to join an international Joint Venture group. 7 of us will be setting up a website to help people make money online. Awesome!

All that in only 6 weeks!! If you haven't already, I urge you to start a Gratitude Diary and get your life back on track - look at all the good things waiting for you!

Click on the July archives, Sunday July 09.
Read "How a Gratitude Diary Works", for instructions/suggestions on how to start your own Gratitude Diary.

Remember the less fortunate

2006-08-15T18:24:00.000-07:00

Even with car payments and other bills weighing you down, it's always easy to find gratitude for what you do have by thinking of -- and giving to -- those with much, much less.

And it's always a great time to write a check, even a teeny one, to a favorite charity (or even encourage the kids to donate their pennies).

Express Gratitude whenever possible

2006-08-13T21:35:00.000-07:00

Express gratitude, whenever and wherever possible.

We too often take our lives for granted. Learn to appreciate and savour the wonderful things in life, from people to food, from nature to a smile.

And it's infectious! Others will start doing it too.

Think "Thanks."

2006-08-10T17:46:00.000-07:00

"I spend a few minutes each day sitting in my study -- my favorite room -- and gazing into the backyard, which is gorgeous in any season, but I especially love it when the snow makes the streets look like they're covered with meringue and sprinkled with sugar," says Amy, 38, of Lexington, Massachusetts. "It grounds me and gives me a chance to reflect each day, and it reminds me how lucky I am to have a home and a yard like this."

Remember when you start a Gratitude Diary, that you will experience a shift in your attitude, to a very positive one. You will be thankful for everything in your life, and will stop taking things for granted. A wonderful state to be in, I think!

Find the Positive

2006-08-08T17:03:00.000-07:00

Find the positive -- in any situation. Ask yourself, "What's right about this?"

When the relatives are being impossible, notice your niece's adorable dress. When slaving over a hot stove, remember when you had a blackout and couldn't cook at all. When the electricity bill comes in, be grateful for the heating/cooling it gave you. When you pick up the latest virus going round, be thankful you can have a couple of days in bed! (Visit www.juice-detox.com to find out how to stop getting sick).

You get the drift. Finding the positive in any situation changes your attitude, lightens up your life, and attracts more good things to you. Remember to record them all in your gratitude diary!

Appreciate Yourself

2006-08-06T20:59:00.000-07:00

Your gratitude diary should not just be about others - include yourself in it!

Appreciate yourself as well, and acknowledge your successes.

Keep a diary not just of what you did, but what you did well, and what you appreciate about yourself and others. "I sometimes write lists of how I was successful that day," says Karen, 37, of Westborough, Massachusetts, who writes in her journal when her family is asleep. "Really basic stuff, like 'turned TV off and played hide-and-seek with kids.' It forces me to acknowledge, when I can be so hard on myself or focus on what I should be doing, that I'm really doing all right."

How a Gratitude Diary Works

2006-08-02T21:16:00.000-07:00

Here's how a Gratitude Diary works :

1. Every day, write down 5 things you are grateful for. It can be anything - feeling the sunshine on your face, happy that a friend phoned, receiving a present, being able to take a walk, anything. Work out a time to do this. Ideally, around the same time every day works best.

2. Make a commitment to yourself that you will write down 5 things every day - this is very important.

3. The 5 things MUST be DIFFERENT each time. Never repeat anything. NEVER REPEAT ANYTHING!

5. Smile as you write them down. This will help you to feel grateful.

6. You can write a lot about each thing, get really detailed, write why you are grateful for it. Or if you don't have time, just write one line.

Here's what will happen :

The first day you'll be thinking hard about what you're grateful for. You will find them, though.

The second day, knowing you must find 5 new things to write down, you'll start to look for things to be grateful for. As the days go by, you'll experience a shift in your attitude. You'll begin to expect things to happen to be grateful for.

As more days pass, there will be another shift. You'll start to recognize when things happen to be grateful for.

Another shift will take place when you start to feel grateful at the time the event takes place. This is when the miracle of gratitude will really start happening for you.

From experience, I would say that this process will take about one month. Keep it going for at least this length of time and you will see changes start to happen in your life.

Don't stop the gratitude diary at this point, no matter how good things are going. Never stop!

Seen this?

2006-08-02T20:41:00.000-07:00

I AM GRATEFUL:

FOR THE WIFE WHO SAYS IT'S HOT DOGS TONIGHT, BECAUSE SHE IS HOME WITH ME, AND NOT OUT WITH SOMEONE ELSE.

FOR THE HUSBAND WHO IS ON THE SOFA BEING A COUCH POTATO, BECAUSE HE IS HOME WITH ME AND NOT OUT AT THE BARS.

FOR THE TEENAGER WHO IS COMPLAINING ABOUT DOING DISHES BECAUSE IT MEANS SHE IS AT HOME, NOT ON THE STREETS.

FOR THE TAXES I PAY BECAUSE IT MEANS I AM EMPLOYED.

FOR THE MESS TO CLEAN AFTER A PARTY BECAUSE IT MEANS I HAVE BEEN SURROUNDED BY FRIENDS.

FOR THE CLOTHES THAT FIT A LITTLE TOO SNUG BECAUSE IT MEANS I HAVE ENOUGH TO EAT.

FOR MY SHADOW THAT WATCHES ME WORK BECAUSE IT MEANS I AM OUT IN THE SUNSHINE.

FOR A LAWN THAT NEEDS MOWING, WINDOWS THAT NEED CLEANING, AND GUTTERS THAT NEED FIXING BECAUSE IT MEANS I HAVE A HOME.

FOR ALL THE COMPLAINING I HEAR ABOUT THE GOVERNMENT BECAUSE IT MEANS WE HAVE FREEDOM OF SPEECH.

FOR THE PARKING SPOT I FIND AT THE FAR END OF THE PARKING LOT BECAUSE IT MEANS I AM CAPABLE OF WALKING AND I HAVE BEEN BLESSED WITH TRANSPORTATION.

FOR MY HUGE HEATING BILL BECAUSE IT MEANS I AM WARM.

FOR THE LADY BEHIND ME IN CHURCH WHO SINGS OFF KEY BECAUSE IT MEANS I CAN HEAR.

FOR THE PILE OF LAUNDRY AND IRONING BECAUSE IT MEANS I HAVE CLOTHES TO WEAR.

FOR WEARINESS AND ACHING MUSCLE AT THE END OF THE DAY BECAUSE IT MEANS I HAVE BEEN CAPABLE OF WORKING HARD.

FOR THE ALARM THAT GOES OFF IN THE EARLY MORNING HOURS BECAUSE IT MEANS I AM ALIVE.

AND FINALLY, I AM GRATEFUL FOR TOO MUCH E-MAIL BECAUSE IT MEANS I HAVE FRIENDS WHO ARE THINKING OF ME.

Are You A Rebel?

2006-07-31T15:40:00.000-07:00

Do you rebel over injustice, stupid rules, authority, bad design, etc etc the list can go on. Do you grumble, and waste time and energy on protesting over these? Is your favourite TV show "Grumpy Old Women" or "Grumpy Old Men"?

Did you know that it is your reaction to these events, that is keeping you unhappy?

You have the choice to be happy or sad, or be in a temper, or experience frustration – yes this is your choice (stop rebelling for a minute and hear me out).

What you resist is what you get to keep. Acceptance brings a calm, peaceful relief, and a base from which any actions you take come from a logical and reasonable place, not a het up one where emotions can cloud your judgement. I’m not saying to not do anything about what you see is wrong around you. I’m saying that in a calm state, you’ll be able to see more sides to the story than otherwise.

The next step after acceptance, is gratitude. Using the same Universal principle as “what you resist is what you get to keep”, likewise, the more gratitude you have for everything around you, the more everything around you will become gratifying. You will attract more good things to you, and you will be able to use your time and energy more constructively.

Try a Gratitude Diary for 1 month – what have you got to lose?

Gratitude, like Faith, is a Muscle

2006-07-29T18:46:00.000-07:00

"Gratitude, like Faith, is a muscle. The more you use it, the stronger it grows, and the more power you have to use it on your behalf. If you do not practise gratefulness, its benefaction will go unnoticed, and your capacity to draw on its gifts will be diminished. To be grateful is to find blessings in everything. This is the most powerful attitude to adopt, for there are blessings in everything.”
Alan Cohen

I am determined to see things differently

2006-07-26T16:11:00.000-07:00

Our state of mind is our responsibility. Whether we experience peace or conflict is determined by the choice we make in how we see people and situations. A shift in perception can reverse our way of thinking, so that we see the world around us in a new, wonderful light.

A gratitude diary is one tool you can use to help shift your perceptions, and allow you to start experiencing a wonderful life.

Online Gratitude Diary

2006-07-24T15:25:00.000-07:00

You can create your own Gratitude Diary online at http://www.simpleabundance.com/gratitude.html

Treating Depression

2006-07-22T23:32:00.000-07:00

A very good friend of mine suffered from depression for years, and was taking medication on and off. The doctors he went to did not even ask him any questions about his depression, or recommend counselling, or ANYTHING. Merely repeated his prescription of a drug.

After I learnt about and started benefiting from a gratitude diary, I encouraged him to do the same. However, it did not work for him at all.

OK, I reasoned something a little more drastic was necessary.

I asked him to start listing everything he could be grateful for. Everything he had in his life right now - beautiful kids, comfortable furniture, a computer etc etc etc - everything. And then everything that had happened in his life he could be grateful for. This effort was a monumental task for him, but he did it. Took him 2 days, and many, many pages.

The idea was to turn his thoughts away from negativity, from what was wrong in his life, and what he didn't have, and start focussing on what he DID have, and achievements he could be proud of.

At the same time, he commenced an excercise program of walking each day around his neighbourhood- to stimulate him, to get him out of the house, to start appreciating things around him, and to turn his mind outwards instead of inwards.

The other program he undertook was a juice detox, with a detox diet following. This was to eliminate the toxins that interfered with the chemicals in his brain, that were somehow stopping his supply of seratonin and other essentials that help keep us stable and happy.

Between the 3 programs - Gratitude, Exercise, and a Juice Detox, he was completely normal within about 2 months. Yes, he still has sad or negative days - but don't we all? Most of the time, he is not depressed, and is handling his life very well.

Gratitude diary instructions : http://gratitudediary.blogspot.com/2006/07/how-gratitude-diary-works.html

Juice Detox diet he followed : http://www.juice-detox.com

When you Feel Like Screaming...

2006-07-20T17:10:00.000-07:00

When you feel like screaming at your partner or the kids and you’re feeling very sorry for yourself, then it’s the time to start a Gratitude Diary.

Make a list at the beginning or end of each day of at least 20 things that you are thankful for today. You can write it down or do it in your day.

Start noticing the little things.

For example; “Thanks for the smile my son gave me at breakfast”; “Thanks for the taste of that first sip of my morning coffee”; “Thanks for the compliment I got about my work from my boss”.

Keep this diary for at least 2 weeks, and it will become a useful tool to help you keep a positive attitude when life is challenging!

Who Has Time For Gratitude?

2006-07-19T16:57:00.000-07:00

In our very busy lives, it’s just another thing we're supposed to do, isn’t it?

However....
It's not about time, but rather about perspective, says M.J. Ryan, author of Attitudes of Gratitude: How to Give and Receive Joy Every Day of Your Life (Conari, 1999).

"Gratitude is what we feel when we look at what's right about our lives," she says. And why is that important? Especially when something's stressing you out or getting you down, she says, "When you shine the flashlight of awareness on what's right [in your life] you have an entirely different emotional experience. You activate your left pre-frontal cortex where your positive feelings reside." Not only do you intellectually "appreciate what you have," you also feel more grateful, positive, and happy.

More Research

2006-07-18T17:24:00.000-07:00

Ulrich Schimmack is Professor of Psychology at the University of Toronto at Mississauga

His area of Research is Personality and Well-Being.

He says "The main aim of my research is to contribute to the scientific understanding of happiness. The ultimate goal is to develop a causal theory of happiness that can be used to predict the impact of personal and societal changes on happiness (cf. Kahneman, Schwarz, & Diener, 1999, “Well-Being: The foundations of hedonic psychology”). The scientific term for happiness is subjective well-being (SWB). SWB has a cognitive and an affective component. The cognitive component is assessed with life-satisfaction judgments (“I am satisfied with my life.) The affective component is based on the amount of pleasant and unpleasant experiences in people’s lives."

Schimmack cautions people about the self-help section of their local bookstore, saying there is no universal advice on how to be happy.

He does, however, point to one strategy that has shown some effectiveness. "Every day at the end of the day, write down a couple of things you are thankful for in your own personal gratitude diary," he says. Research suggests that being more aware of the good things produces a long-term improvement in life satisfaction. "Athletes lose a lot of competitions, but they always remember the victories because they're more meaningful. Collect positive experiences like an athlete collects trophies."

Happiness is a journey, not a destination.

2006-07-13T17:05:00.000-07:00

While waiting in a queue the other day, I was talking with a 20year old guy.

He hadn’t been in Australia very long, and was complaining it was hard for him. Between work, dealing with government agencies and learning the language, he said he had no time for fun.

I asked him why he couldn’t be happy where he was? He looked incredulous, like it was a concept he hadn’t thought of. I told him happiness was a journey, not the destination.

He left me looking very thoughtful, and I’m grateful I could help him. It got me thinking though – we are so ingrained to be negative, and complain all the time. No wonder so many people are unhappy. A gratitude diary can be the first step to reversing this.

The Key To Contentment is Gratitude

2006-07-12T17:47:00.000-07:00

A major key to contentment is gratitude. Being thankful for what you have leads to contentment, while continually wanting more and more leaves us feeling empty and unfulfilled. Having MORE does not, alas, make us more content over the long run--the initial high about the new car, the new wardrobe, or the vacation quickly fades. No matter what our former economic status, we become accustomed to the new level and soon it isn't enough either.

It is human to want MORE, and while that motivates us to keep moving, seldom do we have any sustained sense of ENOUGH. To be content, we need to slip out of the well-worn rut of wanting more, more, more and just experience that, right now, in this moment, we have enough.

Oprah

2006-07-11T17:52:00.000-07:00

In March of 1996, Oprah invited Sarah Ban Breathnach to The Oprah Winfrey Show, and her book Simple Abundance inspired Oprah to start a gratitude diary.

Sarah's personal journey toward discovering her authentic self has motivated millions of people to live happier and more joyful lives.

I highly recommend Sarah's books :
"Simple Abundance Gratitude Journal"
"Simple Abundance : A Daybook of Comfort and Joy"
The links take you to Amazon.

Scientific Study Results on Gratitude

2006-07-10T21:58:00.000-07:00

Two psychologists are working to unlock the puzzle of how gratitude might promote happiness. Dr. Michael McCollough, of Southern Methodist University in Dallas, Texas, and Dr. Robert Emmons, of the University of California at Davis, say their initial scientific study indicates that gratitude plays a significant role in a person's sense of well-being.

From Cicero to Buddha, many philosophers and spiritual teachers have celebrated gratitude. The world's major religions, including Christianity, Judaism, Islam and Hindu, prize gratitude as a morally beneficial emotional state that encourages reciprocal kindness. Pastors, priests, parents and grandparents have long extolled the virtues of gratitude, but until recently, scholars have largely ignored it as a subject of scientific inquiry.

McCollough and Emmons were curious about why people involved in their faith seem to have more happiness and a greater sense of well-being than those who aren't and decided to study the connections. After making initial observations and compiling all the previous research on gratitude, they conducted the Research Project on Gratitude and Thanksgiving. The study required several hundred people in three different groups to keep daily diaries. The first group kept a diary of the events that occurred during the day, while the second group recorded their unpleasant experiences. The last group made a daily list of things for which they were grateful.

The results of the study indicated that daily gratitude exercises resulted in higher reported levels of alertness, enthusiasm, determination, optimism and energy. Additionally, the gratitude group experienced less depression and stress, was more likely to help others, exercised more regularly and made more progress toward personal goals. According to the findings, people who feel grateful are also more likely to feel loved. McCollough and Emmons also noted that gratitude encouraged a positive cycle of reciprocal kindness among people since one act of gratitude encourages another.

McCullough says these results also seem to show that gratitude works independently of faith. Though gratitude is a substantial part of most religions, he says the benefits extend to the general population, regardless of faith or lack thereof. In light of his research, McCullough suggests that anyone can increase their sense of well-being and create positive social effects just from counting their blessings.

How a Gratitude Diary Works

2006-07-09T15:53:00.000-07:00

Here's how a Gratitude Diary works :

1. Every day, write down 5 things you are grateful for. It can be anything - feeling the sunshine on your face, happy that a friend phoned, receiving a present, being able to take a walk, anything. Work out a time to do this. Ideally, around the same time every day works best.

2. Make a commitment to yourself that you will write down 5 things every day - this is very important.

4. The 5 things MUST be DIFFERENT each time. Never repeat anything. NEVER REPEAT ANYTHING!

5. Smile as you write them down. This will help you to feel grateful.

6. You can write a lot about each thing, get really detailed, write why you are grateful for it. Or if you don't have time, just write one line.

Here's what will happen :

The first day you'll be thinking hard about what you're grateful for. You will find them, though.

The second day, knowing you must find 5 new things to write down, you'll start to look for things to be grateful for.

As the days go by, you'll experience a shift in your attitude. You'll begin to expect things to happen to be grateful for.

As more days pass, there will be another shift. You'll start to recognize when things happen to be grateful for.

Another shift will take place when you start to feel grateful at the time the event takes place.

This is when the miracle of gratitude will really start happening for you.

From experience, I would say that this process will take about one month. Keep it going for at least this length of time and you will see changes start to happen in your life.

Don't stop the gratitude diary at this point, no matter how good things are going. Never stop!

A Gratitude Diary Works!

2006-07-08T21:59:00.000-07:00

I kept a gratitude diary for about 12 months a couple of years ago, and the results I had were amazing.

I kept winning things - competitions, prizes etc. About $10,000 worth I estimate.
And everything I wanted came to me really easily.

Examples (out of many) :
I was having coffee with a friend, and when I arrived, he introduced me to a friend of his, John. Within 20 minutes, John offered me the use of his car for the next 2 weeks (I didn't have a car at the time).
And I could pick it up after it was delivered to him the next day - it was a brand new Mitsubishi 4wheel drive. Unbelievable. I did take him up on his offer, by the way. I asked him why he was doing this - he said he didn't know, he just felt motivated to do it.

I needed to find a new place to live, and had scheduled myself to start looking on the internet at 10am. At 9.57am a friend phoned to say he had a house that needed looking after, did I want it, and go to see it today, because the air conditioning was being installed (!). And he charged me a very low rent.

Unfortunately, I started taking it all for granted, and stopped the diary. Thought I didn't need it anymore. Big mistake! My life has been much more difficult since then. So I've started one up again - I know it works.