I am happiest
when I find that for which I
am truly grateful
One of the best pieces of advice I ever received, and I'm not even sure at this point when or from whom I first received it, was that when things look darkest, find something you are grateful for, and write it down.
No matter how large or how small, everyone of us has something for which we can be grateful, even if it is simply that we continue to breathe in and out.
And studies have shown that people who make gratitude a practice, and keep a record of what they are grateful for, actually putting it in writing, are measurably happier than those who don't.
Counting our blessings isn't just childish Pollyanna thinking, it can have profound and lasting effects on our health and wellbeing, and make a real difference in improving our quality of life. It is as beneficial as meditation, affects similar pathways in the brain, and its effects are lasting, even when the practice is paused for a time.
Shortly after I split from my former spouse, and possibly even a bit before, I came across a little website that I came to love: www.gratitudelog.com.
The idea was simple: make a daily habit of logging online something for which you are grateful, big or small, even if only one line.
Unbeknownst to me in the beginning, back in the days before Facebook, Twitter and other social media came onto the scene, the site allowed users to interact with one another.
As a result, I frequently found that after posting something for which I was grateful, others would comment their support and/or agreement, as well as an occasional, "That's great! I'm using it!"
And there wasn't any snark, at least not that I recall, simply users supporting one another, helping one another to stay grateful, and bouncing ideas around in the community. It was a great community and a valuable service while it lasted.
Unfortunately, the site is now defunct, but the man who started it, Vishen Lakhiani, went on to found www.MindValley.com, initially offering meditations and information on how and why to begin meditating.
They later added an ever-expanding series of masterclasses and online courses, in a wide array of subject matter, taught by truly amazing teachers such as Michael Beckwith, Jon Butcher, Marisa Peer, Robin Sharma, Ken Wilber, Barbara Marx Hubbard, Neale Donald Walsch and many, many more.
Today, www.gratitudelog.com redirects users to the main MindValley site.
I've been involved with MindValley from the beginning, became a supporting MindValley Tribe member as soon as it was offered, and I can attest to the high quality of the online courses they offer, as well as their no-BS refund policy if ever you are unsatisfied. Their customer service really is first class.
And Lakhiani has a larger vision, seeing firsthand how backward our educational system has become, and is already making great strides in creating Mindvalley University, utilizing an entirely new way of teaching, which I can also attest first hand works extremely well.
Called Quests, courses are broken up into small increments, rather than being taught an hour or two at a time; they are taught more as humans have evolved to think, and as our increasingly busy lives allow.
Each module covers one primary point, usually consisting of a video from three to twenty minutes long, with a further thirty minutes or so on average of thinking and journaling to be undertaken prior to the next module.
They are designed to be used one module per day, though with the majority of Quests, unless you are starting a class with a group on a new Quest, you can go at your own speed.
I have personally found it valuable to stick to their one-module-per-day schedule, which fit well into my available time.
One of the first Quests they offered was the "Quest for Personal Mastery," by Srikumar Rao, who is something of a legend in the business world, with his typical full-scale masters level courses running up to twenty thousand dollars to attend.
For this Quest, they took his most salient points, distilled them into forty-five modules, with an average video length of eight to ten minutes, and about thirty minutes additional of journaling.
The investment was a mere fraction of what his masters classes would have cost, it was well worth every penny, and it was an enlightening journey. Better yet, my access to the course never expires, and I am planning to retake it again soon, having completed it just over a year ago. I think I'll get even more out of it the second time through.
For me, it was an even deeper experience than most, as I had already started Vishen Lakhiani's book "The Code of the Extraordinary Mind" prior to beginning the Quest, and wound up doing the exercises for both concurrently, which dovetailed remarkably well. I may well do the same again.
So for my first #gratitudelog, I express my ongoing gratitude for having found the original www.gratitudelog.com when I did, and through that MindValley, which have helped me to continue expanding my mind, and my life, in more ways than I can count.
I further express my gratitude for both the "Quest for Personal Mastery," by Srikumar Rao, and "The Code of the Extraordinary Mind," by Vishen Lakhiani, which were and remain massively helpful to me in all areas of my life.
And it is only fitting that I launch this tag today, on the 19th of January, which has always been special to me as the date on which we celebrated the birth of my mother, an event for which I am and will always be truly grateful.
It was my mother, more than anyone, who encouraged my curiosity, who fed it with a wealth of books, museums, plays, botanical gardens, and myriad other experiences, and who delighted in learning new things herself, for as long as she lived. She exuded kindness and generosity in everything she did, she was smart as a whip, and she was hilarious. She is truly one of my heroes.
The photo above is of my mother in her late teens, or very early twenties, taken by her friend and then-beau Bob Eiden, who was an excellent photographer.
So please feel free to use the tag #gratitudelog, and I invite you to make it a daily practice, whether as part of a larger post, as I've done here, or in a separate post.
I pledge 2 STEEM each to the top five posts using the tag before this post pays out. Please post a link to the post in the comments so I don't miss any. Steem on!
I think you'll be surprised what a difference such a practice can have in your life. I wish you the best in your own quest.
For those interested, MindValley has a great many free resources, including several online courses with great teachers, which I can highly recommend. And their paid courses are first rate.
I've taken literally dozens of their courses and masterclasses over the past fifteen years or so, and they've all been excellent - including the one and only course I had refunded, just because I wound up not having time to go through it at the time.
And I can't say enough good things about "The Code of the Extraordinary Mind," which is a truly extraordinary book, and taught me more about myself and my own inner workings than any other book I've read, in conjunction of course with Srikumar Rao's "Quest for Personal Mastery," as noted above.
I highly recommend the book, and MindValley has an online experience as companion to the written book, which I strongly suggest that you take part in as well.
I am dedicating this post to #gratitudelog, and to further this project, half the liquid proceeds earned from this post will be transferred to the author of the top post(s) chosen using this tag.
The photo above was taken by my mother's friend Bob Eiden, in the late 1940s, long before I was born.
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