Gratitude and A Positive Mindset

 

Benefits of Practising Gratitude

Practising gratitude is well known for developing a positive mindset. Our positive reflections force us to notice things that may otherwise go unnoticed. We become more appreciative of those little things that make up our day. 

This brings more happiness to our everyday lives as we do not focus on one bad thing that may be ruminating in our minds.

And what does everyone on this planet want? Happiness, of course! 

Negative people attract negative people and negative interactions whereas positivity attracts positive relationships. Relationships are often a source of frustration so gratitude journaling can help you attract more positivity into your relationships. 

 

It helps us enjoy our lives as we see a balance in our lives, rather than overwhelming gloom and doom. We become more appreciative.

Gratitude is easy to do - just requires us to reflect on our day. But it is a powerful tool for changing our mindset. 

Why I chose to practise gratitude

After some very sad occurrences in my life, I sank into a deep depression. This was very unlike me and it was scary.

I refused medication but had to find my own way out of depression. So I came upon the habit of gratitude while blogging online. 

It was a turning point for me in relationships and work. I was working on a casual basis at schools, at this time but I could choose to work every day with multiple offers. Other staff remarked that I always seemed happy and had a smile for them. I enjoyed my time in classes with children and gratefully helped out when I could.

Each day, I reflected on my day and it made me happy as I reflected on my accomplishments that day.

I became happier when I focused on each day's positives and started reaping the rewards in my new work situation. I became in high demand in my profession and had many offers of work and was given an ongoing position at age 67(which was unheard of).

 To this day, I am grateful and still reaping more benefits borne of practising gratitude.

Gratitude Journaling

A gratitude journal helps you keep track of the positives that happened throughout your day and the most effective way is to journal daily.

They say it takes a month to develop a new habit so you can challenge yourself to a 30-day gratitude challenge here.

Gratitude journaling becomes a beautiful keepsake for you and the coming generations as you can reread your experiences and thoughts throughout the year.

Your children and grandchildren can read and find out what sort of person you were through your journaling. 

I am a teacher and I did the Gratitude Jar with one particular student and we reread it to see what had happened in the past days. You will be surprised at how many little things you forget and it really does become a nice memory.

The Gratitude Jar is a nice idea to use with children who write the day's reflection on a strip of paper, fold it and put it in the jar. They can pull out strips when they want to read their reflections.  

Children do get excited about this activity and love rereading their past refelctions. 

For this reason, I prefer journals to apps as who knows what will happen in the future with apps?

Gratitude Journals  you may like

You can use a gratitude journal daily guide to cultivating a life of gratitude and abundance.

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This is an example page of the full page inspirational quotes in Gratitude: Changing My Mindset

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Gratitude: Changing My Mindset Paperback 

This beautiful big book (8.5 x 11) contains all the important elemnts for your reflections of the day, helping with your mindset and road to happiness. It also has colourful, supporting gratitude quotes. Read more here.

A couple of examples of inner pages if this gratitude journal:

Gratitude Journal for Women & Men: 5 Minute Journal, Daily Manifestation Mindfulness Journal With Positive & Grateful Prompts For More Happiness, Positivity, Affirmation and Self Care

Self-Care Journal: 366 Prompts to Help Nurture & Recharge Your Body & Soul (Volume 9) (Gilded, Guided Journals) Hardcover

Gratitude Finder® 52 Week Non-Dated Journal for Women, Teens & Girls with 165 Hand-Illustrated Stickers

Every Day Spirit Gratitude Journal Paperback

 

Guided Self-Care Journal with Prompts to Boost Mindfulness, Gratitude & Positivity | Inspirational Gifts for Women | Self Love, Wellness, Motivational Birthday Gift for Her | Find Your Own Magic Diary

Gratitude Journal for Kids

By teaching the habit of journaling, we are teaching our children resilience, coping skills for anxiety and stress, kindness, gratitude and happiness.

The journals are fun-based and interactive. 

It also builds relationships between you and your children as you share the reflections and activities.

Fun Gratitude Journal for Kids: A New Unique Journal to Teach Children Ages 6 to 12 About Gratitude and Mindfulness in a Simple, Fun & Creative Way | ... for Kids Ages 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12 Paperback 

Gratitude Journal for Kids: Fun & Interactive mindfulness diary for kids & tweens | Ages 7-11, 8-12 Paperback

ECOFANO Unicorn Diary with Lock for Girls-Lock Diary Journal for Girls, Kids Diary Journal Notebook with Lock,Unicorn Pen ,Stickers,Girls Bracelet, Girls Diary Gifts for 7 8 9 10 12 Year Old Girls

 

Big Life Journal - Teen Edition: A Growth Mindset Journal – Interactive Journal for Teens with Writing Prompts – Journal for Teens & Tweens – Inspirational Goal Planner Guided Journal

5 Minute Girls Gratitude Journal: 100-Day Gratitude Journal for Girls with Daily Journal Prompts, Fun Challenges, and Inspirational Quotes 

I hope you have enjoyed this post. If you are interested in further reading, I have a post on Self-Care you might enjoy. You can read it here 

For more information about gratitude, you can read How Can Practising Gratitude Help You? 

 Wishing you a blissful day. 

Practising Gratitude Towards People

Practicing Gratitude-turning talk into practice.

Today, I would like to practice gratitude towards people who have, in some way or other, left a favorable impression on me and remember them with fondness. 

Those who may have shown kindness, integrity, or gone the extra mile for me.

Gratitude for my dad

My dad-the hardest thing is to limit dad to a few short paragraphs! An incredible man who loved his family and community. 

After his death, all the Hungarian clubs in Victoria that mushroomed from the first club he started, stood for 5 minutes silence in his honour, even though he had been off the scene for more than 30 years when he died at 86.

He left Europe to give us a better life and built a tiny bungalow for us to live in while he built our first brick home.

He was responsible for bringing out all our family, giving them free board and food until they could be independent.

The words 'nuclear family' meant nothing to us as we were always surrounded by a huge family, as well as community.

Dad also helped other young men and couples who migrated to Australia. They were always included in family outings and our combi van was always full of people and food.

He built up small businesses as a greengrocer and had a thriving fish and chips business. His days started mostly at 3.30 am to go to the market and home at 6pm.

He was a homing pigeon and always happy to be home, but sometimes did visit his brothers' families who lived in the same street or area, most of the time.

He never charged the family for food they took from our shops.

As the family did not have cars in the early days, he would do the rounds and pick up all my cousins and drive us to school.

He never complained about being tired, and when we were old enough to go out to functions, he would eat, have a shower and get ready to take us out and wait around somewhere until it was time to pick us up after parties, etc.

He always knew how to cut costs but give people a great feed. In his fish and chips business, he made his own fish cakes and they were so popular.

 On Fridays, I had to help as the shop was bulging at the seams with people and the cue went outside the door and down the side street alongside our side fence. 

We had two fish and chips shops on either side of us, just a short distance away- empty, of course!

Later in life, he became a real estate agent. I remember a time when the interest rates were very high in the 1970/80's and it was common for young couples to get second mortgages on top of a first mortgage.

A young couple wanted to buy a house from dad but he refused to sell it to them as he looked over their finances, and said that a second mortgage would ultimately lead them to lose their house and put pressure on their marriage.

The bank had okayed them for the two loans, as they did in those days!

There is so much more to dad, but the loveliest memory was when he would take mum to the station to go to work in the early morning.

 I would hear a clatter in the kitchen and he would bring me breakfast in bed, with a cup of coffee and a rose in a small vase. He always said 'a rose for a rose.'

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Gratitude for my teachers

Mostly, and unfortunately, the majority of my teachers were stressed, mean, or just interested in getting information across. 

The teachers that I have fond memories of were those who were able to get off their pulpits and show kindness and have a little 1:1 moment while teaching.

 Just reading what I have written, I wonder why I actually liked school!

My Grade 6 teacher

She was a nun and the kindest one in my four years at catholic school. Nuns could be tough ladies!

I don't remember her hitting us, as part of normal practise at the time, when they were annoyed at someone's antics. 

Often, the whole class copped it so we would get angry at the culprit and put peer pressure on him( yes, it was always a 'him').

My family went overseas for three months so she would sit with me every day, before we went, and taught me what I needed to learn.

Looking back, I would have done well with homeschooling as I was a quick learner and enjoyed the 1:1 sessions.

Mr. Pavlov

Mr. Pavlov was a Russian teacher who was a mixture of strictness but funny! He could get angry but no one was really scared of him.

 If the boys got on his nerves, he called them 'potatoes' and they knew they were out of line.

I remember his kindness- when he roved the classroom, he always spoke kindly to me and asked me how I was going. 

I was not backward in maths but I certainly was not super confident.

 If he thought I wasn't sure of something, he explained the concept quietly at my desk and he always got his message through easily.

Mr. Kuhne

Another maths. teacher who struck terror in us all! 

Everything was black and white and there were no excuses. 

He told us the rules on the first day and stuck to them. 

He took a lineup area and everyone rushed to be on time as even talking to a Principal etc was no excuse- you just had to be lined up on time.

What a nice surprise to find how patient he was on a 1:1 basis, and he made maths so easy to understand that I actually enjoyed it.

 He was kind on a 1:1 basis and was patient with students who needed some support.

 He just did not tolerate rudeness and those who wasted time in class.

Mr. Jones

My art teacher who was just a nice guy. You did not have to be good at art, just enjoy it. He was one of the only teachers, in that era, who allowed us to stay inside at lunchtime.

Miss Simpson

My English teacher for both English and English Literature. When I was a teenager, a lot of learning was 'chalk and talk', with copying from the board or answering questions on paper.

I remember being very upset as Miss Simpson would come in, sit on top of a desk, and just talk or fire questions at us. I was so concerned that my exercise books were empty!

She was encouraging us to think and talk, express our views. Our results were phenomenal- with the majority of our class receiving A's in our final year. This enabled me to get into the college of my choice. 

Miss Helen Welsh

Vice-principal at one of the schools where I do a substantial amount of casual teaching.

Helen has been so kind and this has enabled me to have lots of work, especially working in the grade 1/2/3 area.

She has respect for my experience and, as she asks for me by name when she rings the agency, she has given me a high profile as the agency has said that I am the only teacher that is requested by name!

 I am now an ambassador for the agency.

Rahul and Sheetal

The parents of two young students who I tutor, they are doctors and lead a very busy life as they are on call.

They tell me how they appreciate how I teach their children and asked, this past Christmas, if I would mind if they gave me a raise in pay!

The resident doctor who saved my life.

I was five months pregnant and was taken to hospital with appendicitis. 

 I had a high pain threshold but I remember the incredible pain. I was taken in about 9 pm and they were waiting for a doctor to arrive- a Mr., not just a DR.! 

Well, he just didn't arrive and they had to keep changing the time of my operation.

Finally, he arrived and it was about 2.30 pm next day that I was taken into theatre. By that time, my appendix had burst and the pain was escalating and I just wanted to escape the incredible pain.

The nurses said, with glints in their eyes, how lucky I was to have this doctor operating on me.

Well- Mr. arrived! He walked into the theatre (I was still conscious) and walked over to the nurses where there was a bit of giggling going on. Not even a look at me.

The last thing I remember was the resident doctor being very angry and shouting to others to get me ready for the operation as I was in a bad way.

Well, that week I had round-the-clock checks every 10 minutes. I remember not being able to open my eyes at one point but hearing what was going on around me.

 I remember a very high level of pain. I just wanted the pain to end.

I remember feeling that I could just slip away and then, feeling so scared that I could die, I talked myself into positive thinking mode- you will survive, the team in hospital will look after you etc.

When I left the hospital, the matron and the doctor talked to me separately and said that I had been so ill that it was a miracle that I was still alive. 

They actually used the word 'miracle'. So the feeling I had that I could pass on was real!

They also said that there was no word to describe my baby surviving the operation and my subsequent level of illness. They had expected both of us to die. Yes, they actually said 'die'.

My friend, Rob!

My friend who has stuck by me when I went through a bad depression and was close to a breakdown after my dad died and the family went to pieces.

He was there holding my hand when the doctor and nurse were trying to get my heartbeat back to normal, as they said I was having a heart attack, stress-induced.

He never judged me and understood what I was going through.

Who are you grateful for? Who are your 'standout' people that left their mark on you? I'd love you to share your memory with me.

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