In the hustle and bustle of the holiday season — which for many people starts on Thanksgiving Day and goes until the second day of the new year, it’s time to count your blessings. As an entrepreneur, I count on my positive attitude to get me through the day and to power through challenges.
It’s not every day, though that we do stop to count our blessings. We don’t often enough stop and think about all for which we have to be grateful. Attitude colors everything and it can make it bright or it can make it dark. This is true not only at the holidays, but year round.
It’s Time To Count Your Blessings
I love this thought: “A person is about as happy as he makes up his mind to be.” If you wake up and think, “I have to go through so many horrible things today… it’s going to be a bad day.” Then, chances are it will. Even if you’re facing a challenging, or bad, day you can wake up and think, “It’s going to be a challenge. I will, however, come out the other side and my day will be better after I get through XYZ.”
Dread is natural, but you may be able to turn it on its head and wake up in a better frame of mind. The challenge you’re anticipating may not be as daunting as you’d imagined. Even if it is, having a more positive attitude will help you recover from the challenge more quickly.
Picture this: If you’re a negative person and if you’re unhappy, negativity and unhappy people will follow you. Your attitude will impact those around you. Like brings like. If you’re happy and if you surround yourself with like-minded happy people you will be happier and your attitude will soar.
What can you do to adopt an attitude of gratitude? You certainly don’t want to look at others’ suffering as your blessing, but you can stop and look at your “suffering” through a different lens. If, for example, you’re angry about work — think about those people who don’t have a job and would love to have one. If you’re unhappy with where you live, think about those people in Alaska or Hawaii who have lost their homes — they would likely trade places with you in a heartbeat.
I urge you to take a moment today to count your blessings. Write them down so you can see all you have to be thankful for. Think about your blessings before you fall asleep at night. Face each day with a smile because there are many people who will not be given the gift of a new day.
Happy holidays to you and yours.