Life hack #2 - Gratitude

Since 2016, I have started my day by writing a journal. The first section of my journal is to write down 3-5 things that I am grateful for. It is truly unbelievable how far the power of gratitude can go. If you allow me by reading, I would like to share my journey on how I have learned to be grateful.

Skepticism

A hard period in my professional career and personal life was taking a toll on my health. I started to read a lot of self-improvement books and found, in several sources, the recurring theme of gratitude. I remember watching the following video and realizing, there is always someone who has more and someone who has less.

It's clearly exemplified in the video yet there are many dimensions beyond the material / financial one. Then it clicked, it's not about comparing yourself but just about being grateful for your current state. Later on in life, I was lucky enough to stumble upon the book by Viktor e Frankl, Man's Search for Meaning. The book's first half is focused on telling his story of how he survived concentration camps during WWII. He did not force things, he went with the flow and he was grateful. He had no paper to write his blessings but he would think about them every morning, grateful that he was not bit up, grateful that there was a piece of potato a the bottom of his soup, grateful that he got to see the sunrise one more morning.

Being gratful first thing in the morning will wire your subcontious with a positive visualization of your life allowing for better outcome for the day to come.

So I started to practice it. There were many things that I was lacking, like everyone else. Yet my focus was on what I did have. The compound effect of the gratitude exercice in the mornings allowed me to appreciate the simple and complex blessings that I have.

The process

How did I get started? KISS, Keep It Simple Stupid. Following Dr. Frankl's description, I started by being grateful for simple things trough my senses.

I sit down one morning, brew a cup of coffee and absorbed the marvels of the experience.

I started with the sound, I listened carefully at the blending of the coffee in the mill, and how the singing of the birds in the background made such a magical combination. The bubbling of the water and soft sound of pouring it and the blooming of the grain. While I was focused on the sounds, the evolution of smells at each step was so pleasant. I started to notice the temperature of the odors. I poored it into a cup, tilted sideways to appreciate the foam, the density and viscosity. While I hold it in my hands, I could feel the temperature transfering to my hands... to my arms, to my chest and my heart. I take the first sip and take in all the mix of flavors evolving in my mouth. The acidity in my pallet, the sweetness and bitterness balanced and canceling each other prior to swallowing.

I wrote in my journal, "I am grateful for how my coffee allowed me to appreciate life through my senses".

Postive thinking will attract opportunities, good people and better interactions with your environment. It doesn't matter what you are grateful for, it matters that you exercice it.

Life hack challenge #2

1. For thirty days write down 5 bullets at the start of your day for which you are grateful.
2. Share your challenge with someone who cares about you. Ask them to pay attention if they see a difference in your crankyness, patience and overall mood. Ask them to notice how often you smile.
3. Make your you are grateful for the things you attract during the process.
4. Write down in the comments what changed in your life by being grateful!

I wish you become the better version of yourself.