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So I have this thing that’s been nagging at me. And I bet it’s been nagging at you, too…
Raise your hand if you ever find yourself on Instagram or Pinterest or Facebook, and empathize with one of these feelings:
“Wow, I would love to have a house that clean and cute. My house is a wreck.”
“How does she have time to curl her hair like that AND have flawless makeup? I barely have time to apply mascara in the car!”
“That bowl of quinoa and apple butter would NOT fill me up, that’s just crazy talk. Why can’t I be strong enough to only eat that much??”
I don’t know about you but I’m over here with both hands up.
The inadequacy and comparison never rage harder than when I hit social media. It makes everything I have seem like…Not Enough.
And you know what everyone kept telling me? “The answer is Gratitude.”
I won’t tell you how many times I rolled my eyes (SO MANY TIMES) but secretly…I knew they were onto something. I knew I needed to change my mindset. To pull back and give my life a hard look.
Because I was missing the amazing blessings around me. I was directing my energy to the wrong place.
So last year, I bought a very specific journal as a treat to myself. I wanted to see if I could make a difference in my days by using it with intention for the purpose of increasing gratitude and improving my outlook.
It’s called The Five Minute Journal: A Happier You in 5 Minutes a Day.
This gratitude journal proved so successful and soul-stirring that I’ve carried it forward as a continual habit.
It takes just a few minutes each morning & evening of filling out some bullet points to:
- manifest the type of day I want (in the AM) and
- to let my brain and heart digest what I learned that day (in the PM)
I also believe it’s powerful because it puts the power of positive words into my subconscious brain to remember.
Thomas Edison said, “Never go to sleep without a request to your subconscious.”
Just like muscle memory, our subconscious digests and retains what we take in through our senses. So we can quite literally change our mind.
Each morning, I write:
- 3 things for which I’m grateful
- What would make today great (the more detailed the better) and
- A daily “I am” affirmation that I repeat aloud several times so that I consciously and subconsciously file it away as a learned fact (example: “I am healed” supports my body’s desire to heal itself)
Then at night, I write 3 amazing things that happened during the day and how I could’ve made today better.
Writing down the “amazing” events has been more powerful than I imagined. Because I’ve discovered that being able to look back at cumulative days & months of wonderful opportunities and blessing sheds light on how much I am loved and provided.
And the “how I could’ve made today better” section has also been insightful. Sometimes, painfully so. But it allows me to learn from mistakes and make the next day better.
Ultimately, The Five Minute Journal encourages me to acknowledge all of my blessings. It leads me to dream about what the best possible day could look like for my life. I love that it focuses on positivity and how to create the day, and in total, the life that I truly desire.
After all, isn’t the whole point to live our best life?
Maybe try gratitude journaling for a few weeks and see what you begin to notice. You might love it. Or maybe your whole outlook on life could change.
Give it a try and drop me a note. I’d love to know what you think and what you discover.
Or maybe you already use a Gratitude Journal? Let me know how you use yours. I love to learn new ways to journal for self-improvement!
p.s. get your free February downloadable here of the Empowered Women: Monthly Planning Pages! It includes:
- a Daily Affirmation to focus on each day of the month
- space to brainstorm your 3 Goals for the Month
- an inspiring quote to keep you motivated
- plenty of room to write important Notes
- an inspiring Empowered Woman muse image
