There is always something to learn in Life

There always some insight we can get from life, people and Circumstances.

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How to Be on Target...Bob Proctor tells us how

Bob Proctor is a Canadian Motivational Speaker. He is a motivational speaker and best selling author. He is one of America's Premier prosperity Authors.

You might have seen him in the movie The Secret. Here is a link to know more about him. Click Here  It has a detailed story about him.

I like this particular quote which I want us to reflect on.


It is apt and logical, the smartest way to succeeding is to stick with our goals and vision.  Don't let Lack of resources, knowledge or motivation let you down or come in the way of Pursuing your Happiness.

*Image:https://www.maxpixel.net/Focus-S-Dartboard-Aiming-Aim-Target-Arrow-Goal-1551522

Gratitude Journal Styles *

In my previous article, I have covered a lot of ground on Gratitude. Please click here to check it and please do subscribe to my emails for future articles and announcements. Practicing gratitude has really helped me see things differently and it has helped get a more positive outlook.

To me, it seems like the most obvious thing, but sometime back it was not. A lot of times good ideas just tickle our imaginations and senses. It is very seldom implemented. Either because we feel that it is impractical or we don't have a plan to guide us. In this app driven world where everything is an app. It can be difficult to do things without a plan or framework. Today I shall be sharing a beautiful concept related to gratitude called a Gratitude journal.

So let us first understand the idea before actually making one. I believe that recording our feelings and reactions while finding a grateful attitude to filter out our emotions can be quite helpful. Primarily on not so good days, it would help us understand the reasons to find some cheer. It would also remind us that our selective thinking focuses our attention only on pitiful memories when we are down or on brighter moments when we are upbeat. Which I think it doesn't seem like any kind of objectivity. So in life, I think adding a dash of hopefulness to seeing situations can be very useful. It helps us understand our situations and also guides us to strategize ahead. This is where gratefulness plays a key role.

So, Here are 5 ways to a Gratitude Journal:

'The Weekly Gratitude' Journal:

A Weekly Gratitude Journal is a weekly record of the events, moments and things that make you feel grateful. Choose just a small list of say five things that make you feel grateful. I believe this could very simple and normal things. The idea is developing an attitude of gratitude and not filling up a book. So reflect intently and fill the list.

'End of the Day Gratitude' Journal:

This is a daily record of encountering gratitude. So choose a quiet and peaceful time of the day. Calm your mind and reflect on the events during the day. Now record it on paper or if you are using a software or an app key it in. Keep the sentences short. So when you get back to your journal, its a like a summary of all the grateful moments during your day.

'Anytime Gratitude' Journal:

This style of journaling would involve recording your gratitude moments on the go. You feel it, you know it, you write it. It's quite simple. So one just needs to use some tact and to stop and think. Then after reflecting at the situation, person or challenge, we need to record it in the journal. But in this style, there is no real time or place. It's on the go.

'Monthly Gratitude' Journal:

This style of journaling should be done once a month. But to keep it meaningful and factual. It should be more of a ritual. A day of the month should be chosen to record the reasons to be grateful. This could be done in a quiet place or after some prayer or meditation. This helps you focus and engage with the process of journaling our gratitude moments.

'Hybrid Gratitude' Journal:

In this style, we pick and choose some of the above styles to our convenience. We can combine anytime journaling with Monthly journaling ( or formats of your choice). So the first one becomes like a daily tracker and the second one to record the highlights for the month. Creatively bespoke it to your convenience and good health.

Ending Thoughts

In short, I would say there is no one particular style I would recommend. 'Anytime Gratitude' Journaling is an approach that helped me.

I prefer writing paragraphs then just lists. It helps me recap the emotion and situation. I don't use any particular template. But there are many useful templates to use. Check this article by PositivePsychologyProgram, It covers some interesting templates and apps that can be used for creating a Gratitude journal.

Your views

In the comments section, please do mention what approach has helped you. In a future article, I shall cover some templates and technologies like apps and platforms that have personally helped me. God bless! See you in the next article...

Other Articles

Turn Pain to Joy: 11 Tips for a Powerful Gratitude Journal
https://tinybuddha.com/blog/turn-pain-to-joy-11-tips-for-a-powerful-gratitude-journal/

How To Start A Gratitude Journal You’ll Actually Keep
https://www.shutterfly.com/ideas/how-to-start-a-gratitude-journal/

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*https://www.maxpixel.net/Journal-Blank-Notebook-Writing-Paper-Book-Diary-3193808

The Essence of Being Positive...What is Positive Thinking and What it's not.

Life is never like a straight line graph, everything going fine all the time. There are ups and downs, rises and falls, twists and turns. In a way, this adds fun and pain to the journey we call life. So it's a given that we are going to be negative or at least have phases when things don't go as expected.

Understanding Pessimism

So how does one become more positive? It's just not about seeing the glass half full. Become more positive is like an addition sum where add something to what we already know. It's not an escape. So, I am not saying that negativity is wrong. Here is a quote on Pessimism which shed some light on the matter,

"We are all in the gutter, but some of us are looking at the stars." by Oscar Wilde

In a way, we are all in a metaphorical gutter, muddled in our situations. It is that hopefulness that is the essence of being positive. So if we take pessimism as a kind of Reality seeing exercise, Being positive is just adding a tadka to it. Just a dash of hopefulness to spice it up. This adds flavor to this guttery dish called life- now suddenly things are different and better.

Benefits of Positive Thinking

Of course, There are Benefits of positive thinking and advantages of it as well. Let's list some of them. According to an article by Mayo Clinic, The health benefits of Positivity are tremendous.*1 These benefits touch various areas of one’s life, right from the common cold to improved cardiovascular health. It seems it can also increase one's life span. Personally, I initially thought of it as something that was obvious, but I was wrong. But it’s quite a long story- it has helped me tremendously in my workspace. As an Entrepreneur and Educator, Sowing times when we are waiting for projects and dreams to materialize, it can be quite stressful. A small amount of Faith and loads of positivity have helped move ahead quite successfully.

Attitudes can affect others

So then, Be positive and understand the effect. It’s just not going to affect you, but like negative thinking affect others. Ideas and thoughts are quite contagious. Imagine a negative salesperson, quite the disaster. It would be quite demotivating when business is bad. When there are no sales and fresh ideas or strategies are required, the negativity can block ideas. So the sales person would need to be hopeful, this would help him generate or at least consider ideas to solve his problem of poor sales. This too would have an effect, but now a much positive one.

Positive Thinking is not being delusional

Lastly, Positivity is not being delusional. Positivity can become delusional if we don't keep our expectations and hopes within a boundary of common expectations. According to Lyndelle Palmer Clarke, Dealing with change requires a balance both Negative and Positive ways of thinking.*2 This balance between negative thinking and positivity can be like that of changing hats.

So here is my take on Positive Thinking, I hope you find it useful. Please Share and comment if you like this article. For any feedback, please do email me. Here are some articles, I found useful.

For Further Reading,

Fours Keys to overcoming negative thinking for Good by Melli Obrien.

The Power of Positive Thinking by Remez Sasson

References:

*1, Mayo Clinic Staff. 2017. Positive thinking: Stop negative self-talk to reduce stress. [ONLINE] Available at: https://www.mayoclinic.org/healthy-lifestyle/stress-management/in-depth/positive-thinking/art-20043950.

*2, Lyndelle Palmer Clarke. 2018. When Positive Thinking Becomes Delusion. [ONLINE] Available at: https://dailygreatness.co/blogs/be-your-own-guru/49767237-when-positive-thinking-becomes-delusion.

Gratitude is the attitude of being Thankful...

In my college days, I invariably used to be quite religious. This would precisely mean going to church regularly and to the confessional very often. There is one possible thing from all this that I undoubtedly learned... the essential virtue, namely Gratitude. I have frequently tried merely employing this personal virtue more like a tactic to improve my life and improve my Spiritual Quotient.

As an Educator, it is tremendous to see so many former students in diverse sectors and positions doing well. I feel indebted for opportunities like this. I feel really grateful. This leads me to think about Gratefulness and How to achieve a more grateful attitude? Simply put by the dictionary, Gratefulness means being thankful. So Let's carefully look at some possible reasons to be thankful. I reasonably think it is significant to properly understand 'Why' before getting to the question 'How'.

My 3 Top reason to be Grateful:

It Feels good:

From my viewpoint, I have been consciously tried practicing Gratefulness. In my personal space, I would often think at length of all the pleasant moments and not so good instances, it has helped me grow abundantly as an Individual and also helped me practice Gratitude. It encouraged me to be more positive and vibrant.

It tracks your blessings:

I can't speak for others, but from my practical experience, People are not Positive at all possible times. There are possible times one gets into the negative zone. Practicing a bit of Gratefulness can be extremely nice. It shifts focus and encourages us to see the best in our circumstances or Life situations.

It builds your Spiritual Quotient:

Merely choosing to be Grateful can open up an alternative view towards life. It’s not easy, I must say earnestly. There are situations and circumstances where it may seem extremely unreasonable. But by solely adopting an alternative approach and choosing to be grateful can open another dimension in one’s life. It can encourage us to gain a considerably deeper meaning to life.

Hence, my top three practical reasons to be grateful. Let's say this whatever may be your worldview, whether you believe in a God or some higher power, we must accept this fact that we are here and conscious. This is enough a reason to appreciate Life and be thankful. Cheers!

Image Source: https://pixabay.com/en/thank-you-thanks-greeting-card-944086/
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