What is Gratitude? Magic Pixie Dust of Life

My mom makes the most amazing pie crust! It’s flaky, tender, perfect… I have her exact recipe… I do NOT make the most amazing pie crust.

Have you ever followed a recipe exactly and still had the dish not turn out quite like mom’s or grandma’s or the neighbors. You might almost think they left something out on purpose so yours wouldn’t be as tasty… right, I know you’ve thought that!

Well, something was missing… it’s a little nuance that comes with practice… it’s confidence. And confidence is all mindset.

Success in anything is rooted, not in skills or knowledge. It is rooted in your mindset.

And mindset goes beyond the surface concepts of speaking and thinking positively. It is the depth of who you are at your core. And when I say “who you are”, I mean who you are being in a given moment and in most of your moments.

What is your attitude consistently? Pay attention to the words you use, both out loud and in your thoughts. These are reflections of the underlying attitude and mindset that is directing your life through your subconscious. They are symptoms. They are indicators that signal you to adjust if necessary.

You can cultivate an attitude and mindset that will drive you to success… in literally anything you set your mind to.

Now, the truth is, I could make pie crust like my mom. There was a time, when I didn’t believe I could. It was all about mindset.

You can reprogram your subconscious to support you in getting what you want with ease… instead of fighting against it. Whatever your goals are, the Magic Pixie Dust of Life is the same.

Here’s the recipe!

2 Heaping Cups of Gratitude
6 Giant Spoonfuls of Love
1 Generous Sprinkling of Respect

Mix together and constantly share!

Gratitude is at the core of this recipe for success and joy in life. I have a ritual where I express gratitude daily. And like anyone else, I occasionally get off track and don’t do my ritual.

When that happens, I notice a distinctive difference in my quality of life. I don’t feel as motivated. A project I’m working on may start going haywire and I’ll have unexpected snags. Technology gets in my way, things start breaking, I might injure myself accidentally like bumping into corners or stubbing my toes. I know, that sounds kind of woo woo-y… it’s cool, I know it’s real for me.

Tell me you haven’t had days like that. I know you have. We all do.

When I go back to my ritual and focus on expressing my gratitude for what I have, the little details in my life begin to shift again and it all flows easily.

So, what’s the ritual?

Every day, at least once a day (and more if you want to accelerate results), I take 20 minutes or so… while working out, walking, running, getting ready or take time out to meditate and really give it your full attention. My favorite is to do it while I’m walking because I get very meditative then.

Express gratitude for all you have in your life… Really FEEL the gratitude deep in your heart, deep in your gut and allow the feeling to expand within you.

I start with myself, my health and other qualities I appreciate about myself. Think of specific skills, knowledge and outlooks you have. Feel and express your gratitude for them.

Next I think of the people in my life, family and friends. I express gratitude for them. I think of each person and sometimes specific reasons I’m grateful for them. Who do you have in your life that you are grateful for and why?

Then I think of what I have going on in my life that I am grateful for. I think of everything I possibly can to express gratitude for. I might even express gratitude for breathing, for the beautiful day, for the fact that the sun is shining, for my ability to walk.

I even visualize outcomes for events that haven’t occurred yet and express gratitude for the outcome I visualize. I think of the goals and objectives I’m working toward and express gratitude for achieving them. Expressing gratitude is an extremely attractive way to set an intention. Feeling and expressing appreciation combined with visualization is magnetic!

I wrap up the ritual with feeling a deep sense of appreciation and love in my heart. I imagine this feeling of love as a glowing light within my body. I see it start at more core and as I focus on that love more and more, the ball of light beings to grow and expand. I see the light growing and growing as I feel more and more love. I know the love will grow as I share it and as I imagine sharing this love with others, the love and glowing light spills out of my body and into the world, spreading to those around me, then out beyond where I can see to others in the world and finally it expands to the point where it fills the world and everyone in it with love.

Can you imagine what the world would be like if we all did this every day? I imagine it would be a wonderful, beautiful place for everyone to live. There would be no pain and no suffering. We would all be reaching out to each other, supporting each other and lifting each other up to reach our dreams. It would be amazing and I am deeply grateful for that.

Personally, I have Gratitude… For the gifts I’ve been given, For the compulsion to share them with others, For the courage to step up & have a bigger presence… to Encourage others to step up & into their big mission (that means you) and to Inspire them to do so by being a role model myself.

Express gratitude often.