It’s Thanksgiving week and all over social media, people are sharing things they are thankful for. The “30 days of gratitude” informally takes place every year and it’s refreshing to see what people have to say as they reflect upon their lives.
“I’m grateful for my children, spouse, and family.”
“I’m grateful for my job and co workers.”
“I’m grateful for my health.”
“I’m grateful for the armed forces.”
“I’m grateful that my mom is still here after surviving breast cancer.”
“I’m grateful that the election is over.”
“I’m grateful to have survived the car accident I was in last month.”
It’s encouraging and inspiring to read the things people are grateful for. Really, we are all richly blessed. We live in the greatest time in the history of the world where there is more opportunity for success than ever before in history. There is much to be thankful for!
However, it’s all too easy to forget that.
In our modern society, we live in a fast paced world where we are constantly exposed to messages telling us to be dissatisfied with our “lack.” Advertising is a smart business, and a fascinating one. But the idea behind their message is always that your life is incomplete without certain things. How can you be happy unless you have this
Sometimes, it’s easy to get caught up in the idea though that we are somehow incomplete -that we will be grateful and satisfied once we have such-and-such thing. Today, Google says that we are exposed to an average of 5,000 ads a day; from logos to commercials, branding and advertising is everywhere. They can create a culture of want – of never being satisfied.
In a culture of want, the choice to be grateful for what you have must be intentional.
Now, it’s important to note that there is obviously nothing wrong with desiring growth, having visions for your future, and stepping into the future with a mindset that thinks big. That’s what I encourage everyone to do!
But the key is to take every single step with deep gratitude.
Be grateful for your opportunities.
Be grateful for the process of growth.
Be grateful for the people that are supporting you.
Be grateful for the challenges that stretch you to grow personally.
Be grateful for setbacks that you can learn from.
Be grateful for your successes.
Be grateful that you have more tools than ever to be successful.
Approaching life with gratitude means you can’t help but be optimistically focusing on the positive things happening in your life. When you intentionally start looking for them, you’ll find that there are indeed many. Contrarily, when you are searching for and focusing on only the tough things in life, it’s easy to feel the weight of potential burdens before they even show up.
As for me, I’m grateful for many things.
- I’m grateful that I get to spend time with top notch professionals that love their work.
- I’m grateful that I have the privilege to help people grow personally and professionally.
- I’m grateful that I am helping people make a lucrative career in sales easier.
- I’m grateful for the staff that I have helping me to make this work so much easier.
- I’m grateful that I get to rub shoulders with some of the movers and shakers people in their field.
- Most importantly, I’m tremendously grateful for you. Yes, you. I mean that.
New Year’s resolutions are just around the corner. I’d encourage you to get a head start on one. Practice gratitude daily. Do it with your family, your coworkers, even strangers. My hope is that you carry the blessing of gratitude over the whole rest of the year.
Happy Thanksgiving!
