take a pause and be grateful
“Cultivate the habit of being grateful for every good thing that comes to you, and to give thanks continuously. And because all things have contributed to your advancement, you should include all things in your gratitude.”
― Ralph Waldo Emerson
How about you take a step back and simply focus on gratitude for the things that you’re blessed with? That morning cup of joe, that beautiful painting in your living room, that incredible wooden desk in your home office, and so on and so forth. Why not zoom out and take a bird’s eye view of the things that add value to our lives?
The word that Stoic philosopher Epictetus used for gratitude was eucharistos, which means “seeing” what is actually occurring in each moment. The more we see things, the more we contemplate them, the more appreciation we cultivate within ourselves for those things.
Unless we develop a discipline of taking the complete view of things, authentic thankfulness becomes a challenge.
In Discourses, Epictetus says, “It is easy to praise providence for anything that may happen if you have two qualities: a complete view of what has actually happened in each instance and a sense of gratitude. Without gratitude what is the point of seeing, and without seeing what is the object of gratitude?”
Focusing on eucharistos and getting a whole view on things that we otherwise take for granted and being thankful for them is a wonderful discipline to practice in our everyday lives. Think about the thousands of people who made your morning coffee, the painting that you own, that desk that you work on and other things you see, but not “see,” possible. When you get a 360-degree view, you realize that each ordinary thing is a miracle in its own right. And when you truly appreciate things for their existence and their contribution, big or small, in your life, you have countless opportunities every day to be grateful and feel blessed for having them.
Practicing gratitude is not only a great way to incorporate mindfulness and awareness into our daily routine, but it also acts as a form of self-care and reorients us back to our humanness.
I’ve set up the 21-Day Karma Yogi Gratitude Challenge to help you just do that. To bring back gratitude in your life. To help you embrace positivity and start looking at things from a whole new perspective. To help you become a better version of yourself.
This challenge comprises 21 original and all-new actionable exercises to be implemented at a pace of one per day. They have been designed to eliminate negativity, frustration, anxiety, and restlessness, and help you bring a sense of gratitude and appreciation to your life.
I invite you to join me on this journey. It will not only help you become a better version of yourself but also unlock the success and abundance that you desire in your life.
Click here to enroll now.
You can also access this challenge on the amazing learning platform Skillshare. Here’s the link: https://skl.sh/39uy3YU
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