What do you appreciate in your life?
You know, for years I have been told from many people, books, and courses to adopt a practise of gratitude… where daily you give thanks for what you have in your life… and I get it, it’s a powerful practise for many reasons but one practical reason, that makes sense to me is that…
It’s the antidote to our survival mindset.
We’ve evolved over millions of years to protect ourselves, to be on guard, to constantly monitor our environment for threats, problems, to look for what’s WRONG… and a practise of gratitude, looking for what’s RIGHT in our life, what we would give thanks for, counteracts this built in process.
Not Easy For Me…
BUT whenever I’ve sat down to give thanks, asking myself “What am I grateful for?”, the answers have not come easily for me, I’ve struggled with it and so, not continued doing it on a regular based…
One Simple Change
Then one day, I realised that if I changed the wording to what I “appreciated” in my life, I found it much easier to do!
It was the same focus on what was RIGHT in my life… and as I practised, I felt the warm glow of positive appreciation, and the growing sense that life was good… it worked for me.
And I don’t know, but maybe after practising appreciation for a while it may make the gratitude practise easier for me, we’ll see.
Pro Tips For Focussing On What’s Right In Your Life
So, if you are wanting to develop a practise of appreciation (or gratitude)…
Here’s are few pro tips…
1. Start Small
If you find it challenging to get started, you can actually warm yourself into it, build it up as you go?
When you consider the question – What do you appreciate in your life? – you don’t have to start with the biggest thing you most appreciate.
You can start with something small and basic, like…
I appreciate the sun, this chair I am sitting on, if you are in bed… the softness of these sheets I feel against my skin, in the shower… the warmth of this water…
Begin with small things to get the feeling of appreciation started…
Then something magical happens…
When you have the feeling state you will find it easier to think of the next thing you appreciate, then the next, and before you know it you’ll be on a roll!
2. Bathe In The Feeling
It’s good too see many things in your life that you appreciate, that are right, but it’s more important to really bathe in the feeling of appreciation.
As we bathe our neurology in this state, we condition ourselves to access this feeling more easily each time, to condition ourselves to live from a place of appreciation.
3. Increase The Feeling
So, to increase the feelings of appreciation, you can use a simple technique…
When you state the thing you appreciate and feel the feeling, you can ask…
Why? What is it about this that you appreciate?
And as you recount your reasons why you appreciate this thing, you’ll deepen the feeling of appreciation as you associate or connect more fully to the experience.
For example, you appreciate the sun… Why? What is it about this that you appreciate?… the warmth, the beautiful colours, the glisten on the water, and so on.
Thank you for joining me for this episode, I really do appreciate it!
