How easy is it for us to be grateful when things are going our way?  Very Easy, we will even pat ourselves on the back and say, ‘Look at what I did’.  How easy is it to be grateful when something goes our way, but more doesn’t go our way?  Not as easy, but we still have that carrot in front of us that says, ‘You’ve done some good, keep pushing’.  How easy is it to be grateful when, over the last month or even a year, nothing seems to have gone right, and everything has been a struggle?  This is when it is the hardest, and least likely you will say or think of being grateful.  It’s hardest to feel thankful when we’re in pain — yet struggle shapes us in ways comfort never could.  Gratitude doesn’t deny hardship; it honors the growth that hardship produces.  Through gratitude, we see challenges not as punishments but as opportunities to become stronger, wiser, and more compassionate.
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There are always things, events from our past that were successful; they don’t just go away because they are in the past.  Remember those successes as a form of motivation and inspiration.  Each past success was a “step up”.  Just because you are not having success right now, it just means “rest”, and “evaluate” your current progress, then keep stumbling forward.

The three moments that occur and they have control over you emotionally: The Past, the Present, and the Future. The thoughts and current emotional weight of the past could have you worrying, regretting, and angry, for things we didn’t do just right or just didn’t do. Instead of learning from the shortfalls, we carry this emotional baggage into the present. The future thought can be just as challenging. We project all of this control over our future. We tell ourselves that if we do this in our work and personal life right now, everything will fall into place in the future. I need to put things in place so events are guaranteed to happen.

The mind often races ahead into worries or lingers in regrets, but gratitude pulls us back to the now. In this very moment, there is always something to be thankful for — breath in your lungs, the ground beneath your feet, your current health, the chance to begin again. Gratitude roots us in the present, where life truly happens. The present is the only place where our current actions and decisions have an immediate effect on us now. Your present gratitude can strengthen your current actions and motivation for a stronger person.
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Be thankful for your current circumstances and situations. Grow forward with the present.

How many people in our lives are there every day? How many of those people have a choice to be in our lives every day? Do you take for granted those who are in your life and keep showing up, or do you look at them as though they have to be? Time to shift the levels of reality and learn to appreciate those who are there, and remain there, of their own free will. We sometimes take those closest to us for granted, focusing on their flaws instead of their support. Gratitude reminds us that every person in our circle contributes something unique — love, challenge, growth, or encouragement. A simple “thank you” can strengthen connections and open hearts. Why worry about what is in our hearts? Because that is what drives us to respond to others as well as for ourselves. A poor attitude travels out to everyone you are in contact with.

Are you the kind of person who others are grateful for? Do you first exude warmth to every person you are looking for? In order to be respected, you must first show respect. Never expect from others what you can’t deliver yourself.

It’s the beginning of the week, and when I need to start this week, perfect and on track. We acknowledge that we have a long four more days. Then, as we have seen, something breaks and costs us time to fix what is broken just so we can get back on track. When plans fall apart, frustration usually takes over. But hidden in those moments is an invitation: to see lessons, to build resilience, or to recognize doors closing so new ones can open. Gratitude doesn’t mean pretending setbacks feel good — it means seeing value even when things don’t go our way. Turn a challenge into a coach, have a gift of turning bad into good, a teachable moment. Turn chaos into a coach. When this goes in a different direction, there is always an alternative path I didn’t see, but now I know. Turn conflict into a coach; I obviously didn’t see all of the angles when other people are involved. Now I see more.

When life feels heavy or unfair. Practicing gratitude is like training a muscle: it grows stronger the more we use it. Have you ever laughed and been thankful for the opposition? That opposition is what has made you wiser and stronger, only when you stop fighting the bitterness, and have accepted the training tool in front of you.

Gratitude is more than saying thank you. 

It doesn’t always have to be verbal. To start with, it is a shift in perspective, and for the small things. You want to be a cliff diver, but you are unable to simply jump into a pool. Learning to appreciate the small successes will lead you to the larger, as you build confidence. Start by learning to swim in progressively larger pools and larger jumps. The small things that occur in your life matter the most. Appreciation for the small is a true indicator that you are aware of small things that will accumulate to larger. If you wait for the biggest of events to happen in order for you to be thankful, you will always be disappointed. Life itself is made up of small successes that occur as you are working hard towards large goals. People wanting to learn to run start out by alternating between running and walking, typically running for minutes and walking for minutes. As they build up stamina, they learn to appreciate where they were and where they are going.

It’s easy to overlook the everyday blessings because we’re searching for something bigger. But when we dismiss the small things, we dismiss most of our lives. Gratitude begins by noticing — a warm drink, a kind word, the comfort of routine. Small gratitude builds the foundation for larger joy.

Gratitude is more than just saying “thank you”, it’s a shift in perspective that turns what we have into enough, and sometimes even into abundance.  But gratitude doesn’t always come naturally — especially when life feels heavy or unfair.  Practicing gratitude is like training a muscle: it grows stronger the more we use it.  Which means you actually have to say ‘thank you’ to people and mean it from the heart.  People have enough empathy in them; they know fake sincerity when it is delivered.  Over the next week, we’ll look at gratitude from different angles, moving from the moments where it’s hardest to feel thankful into the deeper places where gratitude can transform our lives.
 
Goal: Train attention toward the good and productive.
Day 1: Gift of Gratitude – In Small Things.
Day 2: Gift of Gratitude –Even When Things Don’t Go Our Way.
Day 3: Gift of Gratitude – For People In Our Lives.
Day 4: Gift of Gratitude – Present Moment.
Day 5: Gift of Gratitude – Growth Through Struggle.