Gratitude!

As you well know, your Two Chums feel very strongly about how the very simple act of being grateful can change your life.  We could not help but stop to read this wonderful message and want to share it with you.Sarah Bogdanski, a NYU Certified Life and Relationship Coach shared this:

“Being grateful can drastically change your life. I can say this with confidence because it changed mine, especially at a time when I felt like my world was completely crumbling.

Six years ago, I went through an awful breakup with someone I had long term plans with.

I was an emotional and mental disaster for weeks. I lost weight from the stress and heartache. I wasn’t myself, and I was incredibly sad. I wanted to hide until this dark cloud passed.

My roommate comforted me and let me cope in the way I needed to — which meant that I immediately went to bed when I got home from work every day and barely spoke to her.

On another emotionally dreary morning, I received an email from her. She found a job opportunity that would be a huge career move for me. Feeling a glimmer of hope that this may be just what I need to get out of my funk, and needing something new to focus on, I reached out to the hiring manager and dove into the interview process.

Going after this new job gave me a new burst of energy. I started to bounce back slowly from this dark place I was in.

While life seemed to suck badly lately, I realized I had so much to be grateful for: loving family, friends and opportunities surrounding me. Arriving at this new place of awareness, this light through the darkness, I started a new daily (spiritual) exercise to keep this momentum of gratitude going.

Every night before I went to sleep, I thought of 5 things that were good about that day. It could be anything big or small, but the recognition of it alone created positive energy. Whether a baby smiled at me, someone complimented my outfit, or I met a friend for coffee — anything even slightly awesome — I would write it down.

After doing this exercise every day for a few weeks, something changed. I changed. I started to become more energized and ready to take life on passionately, as I always had before. I felt stronger than ever and knew that much abundance was coming…

And, that dark cloud moved out of the way.

This new daily practice anchored me in the present. I was no longer focused on what happened or went wrong, or worried too much about what was to come, either. I had a newfound positivity in being present and mindful of all the goodness around me.

If you’re going through a tough time or feel like something is off in life, I recommend trying this gratitude practice. In time, I believe that focusing on the positive will greatly impact your mindset and attitude for the better. It only takes a minute or two and is soothing way to end your day.

If you know someone who could use a little inspiration right now, share this with them. And no matter what’s going on in life, what are you grateful for today?”

If you have not yet started your “Gratitude Book” (and we capitalize those words as they are very important!), do so today!

More love, more joy and, yes, more abundant lives!