How Thankfulness Can Make You More Productive
Today is Day 26 in the 31 Days to a Super-Purposeful Schedule series.
What are the biggest things you complain about throughout your day? Clothes? Messes? Kids fighting? The competition? Money?
How often do you find yourself saying any of these? "Ugh, I have to pay my bills. I have to go workout. I have to write a blog post. I have to 'deal' with these people."
Grumble, grumble, grumble.
I'm a pretty positive person (it's even one of my top 5 strengths) but when I started paying attention to how often I talk about things that bother me, whew! I admit it's a lot.
You might be wondering what our attitude has to do with a Super-Purposeful Schedule.
Do our thoughts truly affect our actions? I think there's actually a big connection. We don't usually associate thankfulness with productivity. But when we look at things on our to-do list as a chore vs. a privilege we get a little...well, lazy.
"Ugh, I have to do this today," turns into..."I don't want to do this today."
And that turns into... "I'm not going to do this today. Maybe tomorrow."
On the other hand when we see life with a grateful perspective, we live more enthusiastically.
Here's how to change your attitude from grumbly to thankful...
1 | Count your "Best Things."
I know you've heard the phrase, "Count your blessings." But another way to put it that sinks in deeper for me personally is to make a note of your "best things." For example: What is the best thing about your house? Your wardrobe? Your money? Your relationships?
Making a "best things" lists will help remind you of the things you love about your life. Then your "have-to's" start to become your "get-to's" and "can't-want-to's."
2 | Realize the influence you have.
Whether we realize it or not, there is always someone taking note of how we live our lives and being influenced by us. Maybe it's a co-worker, our friends, kids, younger siblings, etc. What impact do you ultimately want to have on them? How would you feel if they imitated your attitude, words, and actions?
There's a good chance they probably will imitate your actions. So having a good attitude and enthusiastic perspective can make you a better leader and example for them to follow.
3 | Compare.
I know you're used to hearing, don't compare. But in this case maybe we should. Compare the bigness of your problems to the bigness of your God. There is never something so big that He is unable to help you through. Seeing from His big picture perspective often puts things in a whole new light.
Or sometimes you need to compare your bad days to others who are going through suffering. Not to diminish or make light of what you're going through, but just to remind yourself that there are gifts in every circumstance.
Today's Action Step:
Count your best things! Think about all the things you get to do today instead of all you have to do. Use the space in your workbook to make a list of all you're thankful for. (*Note: if you're already subscribed and are having trouble accessing this page, email me for a refresher on the password. xo)
