Sunday, February 15, 2009

Getting Gratitude Abundance

By Deanna Collins

Practicing the art of graciousness is powerful in your life. Focusing on the things you have keeps your mind off of what you don't have in your life. When things go wrong, it's hard to stay focused on those things. But, you can still live graciously.

Gratitude is Important

Gratitude changes your perspective on the life that you've been given. When you have gratitude in your life you:

Look to others, and their faults and mistakes as blessings. Blaming no longer exists. Rather than to look at what you lost or what you don't have, you simply look at what you do have and go from there.

View others with an open heart rather than a closed heart. This means that you feel compassion for others regardless of whether you have anything in common with them or not. A life filled with compassion is a happy and abundant life.

Don't pass judgment on yourself or others. See people for who they are and have the potential to be. Praise them and be grateful for their strengths.

Show mercy. Everyone has not learned to be gracious and live a better life yet. From your place of gratitude, be merciful and encourage it in others.

Look at what you do have and be grateful. Concentrating on the positives in your life attract more positive energies. How is that? Whatever you cultivate in your life will begin to grow. If you want a good life, change your focus.

Gain Gratitude Abundance in your Life

Use a journal to record the things in your life that you are grateful for. Identifying your blessings makes you aware of them. We don't give enough thought to such things and usually take them for granted. Think about the breaths you take each day and the food you get to eat when you are hungry. What about the people who make your life great and the pleasant surroundings you life in? Once you learn to recognize them, you'll be amazed at how they begin to outnumber your challenges.

Practice gratefulness. You won't become an expert overnight but with practice you will see a difference in your attitude and your life. Instead of going to sleep feeling weighed down, you can use that abundance of gratitude you have developed to sleep well and wake up unencumbered by worry.

Use gratitude in your everyday life. Some people develop rituals to make it easier to develop a gracious spirit. Wear gratitude jewelry; get routine massages; spend time with friends; meditate; you can also use your journal. Whatever brings you positive thoughts can be incorporated into your routine.

Find ways to help others. Paying it forward puts the focus on others and not us. Give to charity, volunteer at a shelter, or show support on a case by case basis. Change the world one person at a time.

Clear away those things which are not important to you. Finally, to invite more gratitude into your life consider removing those things which do not make you feel good. Eliminate those things which make you feel negative about life and which detract from your life.

You can attract gratitude to your life if you want it. Learn to embrace your gracious nature and change your life and the lives of those around you. - 15683

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