Develop An Attitude of Gratitude

A focus on gratitude is particularly necessary at this time of year.  It is, after all, the season of joy and glad tidings.  But truly, it should be a year round, every single day kind of practice.

The Universal Laws of Attraction teach that when you are grateful for what you have you will naturally attract more things to be grateful for.  The universe works that way.

More on this topic:  The Inuksuk

I recently ran across a blog post that included a list of steps you can take to create your ‘attitude of gratitude’.  I just had to share it and ask you which of these you already practice, which you need to work on and those that you think really aren’t relevant.  Leave your thoughts in the comments section at the bottom of this post please.  I’d love to read your them….

“…here are six simple tips on how to make gratitude a natural part of your daily routine, so you can attract more joy and abundance into your life all year long:

Take a couple of minutes each morning to write down everything you appreciate in life

Starting your day this way primes you to be receptive and grateful for everything your day will bring. It also helps you cultivate an air of positivity that makes you naturally more attractive to other positive people – and inspires them to want to help you achieve your goals.

Make a conscious effort to appreciate at least three people every day

By letting people know how much you appreciate them, you increase their own sense of appreciation and self-worth, and encourage them to pay this positive energy forward to other people.

While most people enjoy receiving verbal appreciation, written notes are also nice because they can be saved and re-read.

Play the Appreciation Game

Set a specific time each day to consciously appreciate everything you encounter. An ideal time to do this is on your way to or from work. Appreciate the people you pass, the road you walk on, the cars that let you merge into a different lane, the street signs that make it easy for you to know where you’re going, the rain that’s nourishing the plants and trees, and so on.

Look for the good in all situations – even those you would normally view as negative. As the saying goes, “Every cloud has a silver lining.” For example, when my wife was in a car accident a few years ago, she could have chosen to berate herself or question her judgment. Instead, she focused on her gratitude for suffering only minor injuries and for the help she received from other drivers.

Carry a physical token of gratitude in your pocket, such as a heart-shaped stone, crystal, or some other small item

A physical reminder can bring you back to your practice of gratitude when your mind has drifted elsewhere. As you reach into your pocket throughout the day and feel the token, use it as a reminder to stop, breathe and take a moment to fully experience the emotion of gratitude. The more conscious effort you put into seeking it out, the easier it will be to find it – and the more powerful your experience will be.

Remember to appreciate the smallest blessings

The best way to activate your gratitude is by acknowledging the gifts most people take for granted. If you have food in your refrigerator, clothes in your closet and a roof over your head, you are better off than seventy-five percent of the world’s population.

If you eat three meals a day, you are far better off than the 1 billion people on the planet who eat once a day at most.

Do you have a phone? How about a car that allows you to travel to work or to explore the country? Is your family healthy? Do you have a computer and Internet access to stay in touch with the world, get access to education, and perform work for which you are paid? Do you have clean water to drink?

Celebrate these simple blessings. These daily conveniences are gifts that most people in the world do not enjoy.

Appreciate yourself

Finally, don’t forget to appreciate your OWN positive qualities and accomplishments. In addition to celebrating your big successes, acknowledge your small daily successes too.”

I particularly like the last point.  It is very difficult to appreciate others when you’re not comfortable with you.  Like most things in life, it is a process to get there.

Something to think about:  “There is more hunger for love and appreciation in this world than for bread.”  (Mother Teresa)

Text Neck. Yep, It’s A Thing!

Let me apologize in advance.  I feel a rant coming on.  So there I was, reading through some of my favorite entrepreneurial websites and I ran across a phrase I haven’t heard before.

Text Neck.  Yep, it’s apparently a thing.  And not a very good thing.

Have we really come to this point that so many people spend so much time on so many handheld devices that there’s actually a new medical condition?  I’m calling it a condition because I’m not sure that the word ‘disease’ fits.  Maybe it is a disease.  Staring at your device and ignoring people certainly has become one.  I’m not even sure what my doctor would say if I made an appointment to discuss text neck.  I’m guessing his immediate response would be “you’re an idiot”.  He’s blunt like that.

Text Neck even has people talking about the right name for this condition/disease/whatever.  Some think it should be called Text Neck and others are lobbying for the name iHunch.  I’m not going to jump into that highly controversial slugfest.  I’m actually getting a headache just thinking about it.

The worst part is that these are not just physical ailments.  They apparently also lead to psychological problems.  I thought ‘psychological’ problems were pretty much guaranteed if you were actually trying to figure out whether Text Neck or iHunch was a better name.

But I digress.  The article says that “If you haven’t heard the official term “text neck“–the slouched posture one gradually adopts over time from texting too much–chances are you’ve felt its physical effects in the form of headaches and a sore neck.

And even more concerning, according to a recent New York Times piece by social psychologist Amy Cuddy, existing research indicates that bad posture isn’t just reflective of a bad mood or low self-esteem–slouching may actually cause self-esteem issues.

STUDY SAYS ‘FEELINGS OF DEPRESSION’

A June study conducted by researchers at the University of Auckland …found that participants with good posture reported feeling more confident and being in a better mood after the tests. And a study published last year inClinical Psychology and Psychotherapy found that bad posture may also affect your memory.

COPING WITH TEXT NECK

If you’re on your phone constantly, there’s no need to panic yet. Cuddy says that there are simple ways to prevent your phone from ruining your posture. Try using a larger device, so that you don’t have to slouch over as much to be able to read the screen. Remember to hold your phone at eye level, so you can read through your emails and texts while sitting upright.

I HAVE A MUCH SIMPLER SOLUTION

Put the darn device down and talk to people.

Or better still, put the darn device down and go have some fun outside.  You remember where outside is, right?  That’s the place you used to spend lots of your time before you discovered texting.  It’s easy to find.  Go to the door, turn the knob (usually a round thing that opens the door) and step outside.  You’re going to find the world’s largest screen with the highest possible resolution presented in breathtaking real colour.  Plus, it’s free.

Final thought is always something to think about:  “A conversation is a dialogue, not a monologue. That’s why there are so few good conversations: due to scarcity, two intelligent talkers seldom meet.” (Truman Capote)

On Searching For Scams

As most of my friends and readers know, I’ve been involved in the direct sales industry (network marketing) for many years.  I’ve always been very careful about companies that I partner with, because YES, there are some very bad deals out there.  But that DOESN’T mean that all home business opportunities are bad deals.  Far from it.

There are thousands of legitimate, profitable ‘work from home’ opportunities available if you do your homework first.  Most people get into network marketing because someone they know asked them to.  But this should be a business decision.  If you want to find out how to make an informed decision about a networking company, please refer to this article I wrote in November of 2009..

But to the point…..

I got a call from a friend today telling me that he was doing due diligence on a company with an incredible 10 year track record but he was going to decline.  When I asked him why, he responded that it was obviously a scam.  How did he find out it was a scam?  He googled the company name and the word scam.  Almost instantly 39,500 links showed up.  That’s a lot of links.

Here’s the problem.  Google is like the library.  Sometimes you have to find the right section and then look at dozens of shelves to find the book you are hunting.  Most people don’t do that with internet searches.  Google, although the most widely used, is just one of a large number of search engines.  And they are a resource that requires you to manage the information.

So here’s a short comparison.  Remember, my friend googled the company name and the word ‘scam’ and got 39,500 results.  Here’s some comparisons using the company name and the word ‘scam’:

My friend’s search:  39,500 results

Mark Kay:  367,000 results

Avon:  512,000 results

More unbelievable?

Petro Canada:  45,900 results (not a home business but apparently it’s a scam according to search engines)

Canadian Tire:  295,000 results (again, not a home business but also not legit according to search engines)

And if you search ‘Is Apple A Scam’ it returns almost 22 million links.

The point is, Google is a resource.  And like all resources it can be manipulated.  Just for giggles, search “where is Elvis today” and you’ll get about 35 million results answering your question.

Please, do your homework.  But please remember that an internet search is simply a starting point.  The business you’re reviewing may be a scam. Or it may be the opportunity of a lifetime.

And as always, something to think about:  “The greatest obstacle to discovery is not ignorance – it is the illusion of knowledge.” (Daniel J. Boorstin)

 

Mentors – How to Choose

I have never met anyone that has had massive success without the help of a mentor.  Period.

Mentorship is the oldest form of education.  It is one-on-one learning from a person that has already travelled the path you desire.

Plato was mentored by Socrates.  Together they founded the Academy in Athens,the first institution of higher learning in the western world.  Along with Socrates and his most famous student, Aristotle, Plato helped to lay the foundations of western philosophy and science.   I’d say that mentoring relationship was pretty successful.

So how do you find a mentor?

I asked myself that question over 35 years ago when I decided I wanted to become a radio broadcaster.  There were virtually no institutions of higher learning that taught broadcasting and I couldn’t have afforded the tuition anyway.  So I took a gamble.  I called a man that I knew had massive success in the industry and said “If it’s okay with you, I’d like to take you for lunch and pick your brain about getting into broadcasting”.  He agreed and when we sat down to lunch he asked me to repeat, word for word, the request I had made when I originally called him.  I said, “If it’s okay with you, I’d like to take you for lunch and pick your brain about getting into broadcasting”.  His response was, “If you want to have huge success, stop asking for permission.”  That little nugget alone was worth the price of the lunch.  We had a lengthy mentoring relationship that created a 35 year career that I loved.

When I decided to expand my horizons after reading a book about multiple streams of income, I called an acquaintance that had the kind of success in business that I wanted to achieve.  Having learned from my first mentor, I dialled the number and said “I’d like to take you for lunch on Thursday or Friday this week.  What works best for you?”  Instant positive response.

In anything I have ever achieved, I have been blessed to find truly wonderful mentors.  Here’s a short list I give people when they ask me how to find a mentor:

1.  Has this person already achieved the success necessary to help you reach your goals?

2.  Do your personal values align?  It’s important to find out whether there is a common moral, educational and family basis for ongoing conversation.  A great mentor not only works on your specific goal with you.  They know that your life has to be in alignment on all fronts if you’re going to succeed.  It’s much easier to have those discussions if you share common values.

3.  Is this someone you would trust with your family, income and future because that’s exactly what you’re doing when you agree to a mentoring relationship.  You are putting total trust in someone’s ability to get you where you want to go.

4.  Most importantly, ask questions and listen to the answers.  Is this a person that you want to spend the next several years working with?

I get asked to take the role of mentor regularly.  My available time is limited and precious but I help whenever I can to pay homage to the mentors that have influenced my life.

“I’ve had a life that has taken many interesting paths. I’ve learned a lot from mentors who were instrumental in shaping me, and I want to share what I’ve learned.” (Herbie Hancock)

 

From Where, Success?

A friend sent this to me today.  I felt compelled to share it.

If you’ve ever wondered what truly separates people when it comes to success, this is probably the best explanation I’ve seen.

I didn’t write it.  I wish I had.

From speaker and philosopher T. Harv Eker:

*  Poor people base their decisions on fear and say things like, “What if it doesn’t work?

*  Middle-class people base their decisions on false hope and say things like, “I hope this works.”

*  Wealthy people base their decisions on faith and accountability and say things like, “It will work because I’ll make it work!”

There’s nothing I can add.  It’s perfect just the way it is.