Gratitude!

It’s All About Choices

How you feel - how happy you are, how stressed you are, even how well you sleep - may seem like it’s out of your hand, but it is actually a choice you make.

You can choose to be grateful for what you have, and happiness follows. Or you can choose to focus on what you’re lacking, who has wronged you, and what’s not going your way. And guess what? You’ll feel miserable.

You may blame circumstances, others, or fate for your unhappiness. But at the end of the day, it’s all about you and the choices you make. You choose happiness or misery.

Self-Care Book & Workbook

Same scenario. Your friend stands you up. You’re disappointed and maybe even a little mad. You take a deep breath, let those negative feelings go, and make a choice based on gratitude. What can you find to be grateful for in this situation?

Maybe you’ve wished for some quiet alone time so you can hear yourself think. Maybe there’s a store you’ve wanted to check out or a movie you’ve wanted to see for a while, and this is the time to do it. Maybe there’s an old friend you’ve been meaning to visit. 

Or perhaps you will enjoy a good meal by yourself and grab some takeout for your spouse on the way out the door.

Instead of heading home angry, you’re going home grateful for these few special hours you carved out for yourself. And who knows. Maybe you will talk to your friend later that evening and find out that she had a family emergency that caused her to miss your lunch date.

How guilty would you feel then about the anger you let yourself feel towards her? And how guilty would she feel for having ruined your day?

So instead, you should focus on gratitude and how you can make the best of the situation; you create happiness for yourself. If you ask me, that is what I call a superpower.

Pat Bracy

The Importance Of Self-Care