Over the past year, I’ve had some major challenges in my life. They’ve been prompting lots of personal growth, but they also come with the temptation to hide from that growth. There are days when the last thing I want to do is keep going. I want to curl up in small in a nest of fluffy blankets and let the whole world go by without noticing me. Challenges and disruptions in life are going to happen. Period. How you navigate the way through those challenges will determine if you will continue to grow or hide away and shrink. Working with many Chiropractic offices over the last 20 years, I’ve seen this truth over and over.
Do you play the “blame game” when things don’t go as planned? Do you become angry and resentful of others? Do you blame the weather, economy, or other unpredictable forces as the cause of why things aren’t going the way you want them to?
There is only ONE person who can control how you think. You guessed it, YOU. I adopted a mantra many years ago and it has proven true over and over again. It goes like this:
“What you think about comes about, and manifests itself in physical form”
What are you thinking about? Are you focused on what you want? Have you taken time to write down your goals? Or are you focused on lack, how bad things are, or what you don’t have?
One of the ways that I tend to work through stressful situations or disruptions in my life is to focus on serving others. By serving others, I am in a state of gratitude. When you are in a state of gratitude, the noise seems to quiet down. You are constantly reminded of what is GOOD in your life. You will notice a calm within and solutions will be presented to you. Being in a state of thankfulness raises your spiritual energy. You will notice that people and solutions are presented to you easily, like someone opening a door.
Here is an exercise to help you get and stay in an “attitude of gratitude”:
- Every evening before bed, write down 10 things you are thankful for.
- Say Thank you to each and every person who comes into your practice every day.
- Tell people how much you appreciate them.
- Send 5 Thank You notes every day to someone who does not expect it
- Write a love letter to your spouse/significant other/children
- Wake up early and spend 10 minutes in quiet thought/prayer.
- Get to the office early, before anyone else, to get your mind right for the day.
If you do this exercise every night, I guarantee that your gratitude quotient is going to bring you peace, joy and growth beyond measure. Happy New YOU!
