Here we are on Day Three!

On Day One we found something to feel grateful for in the future. On Day Two we looked at the past for something to be grateful for.

Today, I want you to think about your everyday life. The PRESENT.

The goal is to turn gratitude into a daily practice so it’s easy for your brain to find and appreciate things.

I love the word appreciation. When things appreciate, they become MORE VALUABLE.

The more you appreciate your life, the more valuable it becomes to you.

This is important if you want to feel better, especially if you are anything like me.

It’s too easy to forget that happiness is an inside job—we think our life needs to change first.

Or maybe we don’t forget, but we’re tired of the struggle to be happy because we think it would be easier to be happy if our life was different. It seems like we wouldn't have to effort so much.

If your life feels like an uphill battle, today's gratitude prompt will help you.

Day Three Gratitude is internal. Ask yourself, What do I want to look forward to each day?

What do you want to look forward to each day that will bring you joy?

It can be your morning coffee, time spent alone, a workout, an uninterrupted shower.

(I remember when all I wanted was to be able to take a shower without someone screaming for me.)

This is different from Day One because Day One was in the future. It might be a one-off experience. Today's prompt is about the present, the everyday, consistent habit you want to have in your life.

What do you want?

What makes you happy in your everyday?

This is not the time to be grandiose.

There is a concept called Unicorn Days that I teach my clients.

A Unicorn Day is a day where everything goes perfectly. The kids sleep in, you get up early, you do your workout and shower and get dressed and the house is still quiet when you’re sipping your coffee and journaling.

That might happen once in a while, but that is not the everyday occurrence, certainly not when you’re in a growth or creative phase.

If you are basing your happiness on Unicorn Days, you will for sure be disappointed because that’s just not how real life works.

Instead, you want to consider YOUR reality.

Because remember, when you argue with reality, you lose 100% of the time.

You already know what’s probably going to happen. You know when the kids will probably wake up. You know they only sleep in when you have to leave the house early.

You know how long it’s probably going to take to clean the house.

You know you don't like to do anything after lunch.

You know because you’re smart.

So in YOUR everyday life, what do you want to look forward to?

I recommend choosing one thing that you can control.

And keep it light.

Do not tell yourself that you need to workout because you know that will help you feel good for the rest of the day.

That’s coming from a negative place because you’re making your workout responsible for how you feel.

Do the workout because YOU WANT TO WORKOUT.

And if you can only guarantee that you workout for 7 minutes, then do a 7 minute workout.

This is what I did, only it was 5 minutes.

I have a recumbent exercise bike in my bathroom (I have a huge bathroom).

I knew I could bike for 5 minutes before I showered, and I wanted to do that.

And then I found out I could bike a mile in less than 5 minutes so it became a challenge for me to complete.

It became fun.

But this only happens when you WANT to do what you’re asking of yourself.

Your desires are a great way to appreciate your life.

Remember to start small.

Don’t tell yourself you want to appreciate your creative time but that you need three hours to create everyday and the kids need to be napping or you need a sitter…

That’s starting to get complicated. We can get to that later.

Start small. Start where you are in your current life.

What do you want to appreciate everyday?

It’s okay if it’s something you’re already doing. When you start appreciating it, you enjoy it on a deeper level.

Here’s my response:

I want to appreciate quiet nature in the mornings.

I love this because it gives me a lot of freedom. I can write, I can walk, I can sit outside and feel the sun on my face. And even if it’s not sunny, I can appreciate the ebb and flow of nature and how my life is the same.

Over time this might change, and that’s okay. 

But for this season of life, where I am right now, this is what I’m choosing to appreciate in my everyday.

Then, once that becomes habit, you can add in another thing to be grateful for.

So, what about you? Leave a comment if you want to share or if you need some help. I’m here to support you.

xo,
M

DAY THREE GRATITUDE : what do you want to look forward to daily?

GIVE :  call or text someone you look up to and express your appreciation