How to Shift Your Life with Gratitude - Week #28 of The Awakening Journey

Do you ever find yourself complaining, nitpicking or having a generally low level of anxiety? Are you unhappy with your life in general or even in one area? Are you feeling frustrated with your kids, partner or boss?

Gratitude is a practice that can shift everything in your life. 

Gratitude is a core value of mine & I use it as a tool for mindfulness. You can use gratitude to bring you back into the present moment and to deepen your level of awareness on the awakening of your leadership journey. 

How does gratitude work?

Gratitude sits at the higher tiers of emotions on the vibrational frequency. And gratitude also creates other emotions that are higher frequency. When we bring gratitude in as a mindfulness practice, It shifts the vibrational frequency from lower emotions like sadness, anxiety, fear and worry to emotions like happiness, joy, contentment and peace.

When your vibe changes, the vibe around you changes too. When the vibe around you changes, so do the events and experiences you are a part of.

How can I use Gratitude?

Have you ever woken up late and felt like the whole morning was off because you were rushing to catch up? Feeling anxiety that you were going to be late or because you wore your pajama pants to your first zoom call & you beat yourself up for it?

When we start the day like this, things often continue to feel like this for the rest of our day. 

Using the above scenario, you woke up late & feel the morning is off. You stop and simply ask yourself: what am I grateful for right now?

You might say to yourself, “wow, I woke up late but I sure slept well and I’m grateful for feeling rested. I’m going to use that feeling of rest in my first meeting.”  Already, just with this simple statement, something inside shifts.  

Gratitude, when you use it as a tool to empower yourself changes your outlook, your experiences and your day. 

“Wake at dawn with a winged heart and give thanks for another day of loving.” Kalil Gibran

Doesn’t that mean I’m just putting lipstick on a pig? 

How is this not being pollyanna and naive? These are great questions. And sometimes there are deeper issues that need to be addressed. However, by bringing in gratitude each and every day, it will begin to shift how you show up to problem-solving, critical thinking and resolving those deeper issues. 

How can I be grateful with so many bad things happening?

Your gratitude doesn’t mean that you are spiritually bypassing the sad things happening in the world. 

Your gratitude actually means that you are. 

My story of gratitude: By-products of gratitude

A while back in one of my relationships, I was going through a particularly challenging time with too many things to do and not enough time. My significant other at the time and I were feeling challenged quite a bit as many relationships eventually do where people are learning and growing together.  I remember leaving a conversation with my own coach and having a huge aha:

I decided to take on a Gratitude Challenge: 30 Days of Gratitude.

I would commit to 30 days of gratitude. I would give authentic gratitude to my partner 10x a day every single day.  And each day I had to start with a clean slate, I would not repeat anything I had previously been grateful for.

This experience changed my life. I was shocked by the byproducts of this experiment. Not only did I feel energized and excited, but the byproduct was also that I ended up receiving so much more gratitude than I gave. Not only from my partner but from others in my life as well. 

The overall vibe in my life was forever shifted because I saw how simply shifting my perspective and my choice to be grateful changed the world around me. 

Your Gratitude Mindfulness challenge:

Choose someone in your life & take on a Gratitude Challenge with them. 

For 2 weeks, express gratitude every single day 10 times a day. 

Track this every day & take notes of how you feel & what is shifting around you.

Next, we will talk about Meditation, in the meanwhile remember the present moment is where your best life happens.

With love, presence and gratitude,

Darla