Has it been a year for anyone else out there? Anyone? Bueller?

Is your mind as blown as mine at the fact that we are about to step into a brand new year and in a sense, begin again?

It’s been a wild ride and as I reflect back on 2021, there were some high highs and some low lows. There was a lot of laughter and there were definitely tears. There were challenges and there was a ton of opportunity as well as personal and professional growth.

Life is a series of ebbs and flows, ups and downs, highs and lows. It’s a beautiful thing really. However, for most of us, our focus flows to the negatives because our brain is simply wired that way. As humans, we have what is called “negativity bias”. Simply put, we dwell on the 2% negative and forget about acknowledging and celebrating the 98% positive that we have experienced.

But did you know that YOU have the power to change your brain?

YES! YOU have the power to train your mind and improve the probability of finding the opportunity, the good, and the positives instead of continuing to allow your brain to take over and and focus on the negatives.

What we appreciate, appreciates…whether that be good or bad…so why not choose to focus on the good and let IT appreciate and grow and multiply in our day to day?

Despite the challenges, the tears, and the lows of 2021, I choose to celebrate the growth, the laughter, and all of the highs. I choose to learn from the low points and to celebrate the opportunity, the positives, and all of the good that came over the past year.

My hope is that you too will push your brain outside of its comfort zone and do the same. That you too will choose to shift your perception, focus on the good, and experience the appreciation and growth that comes with THAT.

It takes work, but YOU are worth it.

Let me repeat that….YOU are so worth it!

To help you get started on your journey, I put together this Gratitude Journal as a gift from me to you. Take just ONE next step toward positive forward progress by clicking the image below to take a peek, see if this journal feels right, and then download it for free. This is available to anyone, so if you love it, feel free to gift it to someone else and spread the love!

I’ll give you a moment to download it now…

OK, now that you have received this beautiful gift, start using it. You didn’t go through all of that to download it only to look at it and do nothing right? There is no time like the present. Keep going! Leave this journal by your bedside so in the morning before you start your day, you get your mind into a space of gratitude, of focusing on the good. If it feels better to use this journal at night before you go to sleep as a way to reflect on your day, then do that. Just DO something! Just START.

If you’re stuck wondering what the heck you are going to write down in your journal or what you have to be grateful for, let me help.

Here is a list of 12 things to help get you started.

Keeping a gratitude journal can feel like work at first because, well, it requires mental energy. We are proactively going against our negativity bias with each journal entry and instead, acknowledge the things we are grateful for. So don’t get discouraged if at first, this does not come naturally. Keep going! You will begin to notice in time that this “work” begins to feel easier and more natural. Each time you write down something you are grateful for, imagine your mind doing a “mental rep” to strengthen and improve your overall mindset because that is what is actually happening! With consistency and practice, your brain, your mindset, and your perspective will begin to shift to find the opportunities, the positives, and the good each day all around you. THAT feels amazing!

YOU HAVE THE POWER.

My hope is that this journal helps you to focus on the highlights in your day, appreciate the little things that mean so much, and love yourself more because you…YOU ARE WORTH IT!

There is so much good around us if only we take the time to stop, look around, see it, and acknowledge it.

So let’s do that.

Let us slow down. Let us acknowledge the good. Let us appreciate the gifts all around us, now and always.

Wishing you and yours a beautiful holiday season. I am grateful for YOU! YOU are a gift…and don’t you forget it.

xo-

Heather