5 Daily Habits of Gratitude and Appreciation | Jack Canfield

But wouldn't it be nice to experience that level of appreciation, kindness and openness every day of the year? Well, appreciation is one of the highest emotional states you can be in. It's the state of abundance. The law of attraction states that like attracts life. And if you are grateful for what you have already received, you will attract more for which you can be grateful. Now, many people find that it requires great diligence to cultivate an attitude of appreciation. We are culturally conditioned to focus on what we don't have, rather than appreciating what we've already received. It's important to activate your gratitude by acknowledging the gifts most people take for granted. Now, if you had food in your refrigerator, clothes in your closet, and a roof over your head, you were better off than 75% of the world's population. Almost half the world, over 3 billion people live live on less than $2.50 a day. And at least 80% of humanity lives on less than $10 a day. If you eat three meals a day, you're far better off than the 1 billion people on the planet who eat once a day at most. So take time to appreciate and celebrate these simple blessings. Now, here are five easy ways to make appreciation part of your daily routine. First, take seven minutes each morning to write down everything you appreciate in life. Starting your day this way primes you to be receptive and grateful for everything the day will bring. Second, appreciate at least three people every day. Most people enjoy receiving verbal appreciation, but written notes are also nice because they can be saved and they can be re read by the people. Third, play what we call the appreciation game. As the saying goes, every cloud has a silver lining. Look for the good in all situations. You know, when my wife was in a car accident, she could have chosen to criticize herself or question her judgment. Instead, she focused on her gratitude for suffering only minor injuries and for the help she received from the other drivers who stopped to help her. Now, fourth, carry a physical token of gratitude in your pocket, such as a stone, a crystal, or some other small item. And as you reach into your pocket throughout the day and feel that token and use it as a reminder to stop and breathe and take a moment to fully experience the emotional gratitude and finally appreciate yourself. We all need acknowledgment, but the most important acknowledgment is that which you give yourself. Now, in addition to celebrating your big successes, acknowledge your small daily successes as well. One of the most powerful ways to acknowledge and appreciate yourself is by doing the mirror exercise. Now, this Powerful exercise is one in which you appreciate yourself for the day's accomplishments while talking to yourself in the mirror right before you go to bed at night. It's a little weird, but it's an exercise that should be performed every night for a minimum of 40 days. Some of my students have done it every day for years. So what you do is you start with a few seconds of just looking into the eyes of the person in the mirror, your mirror image of yourself looking back at you, and then start by saying your name. In my case, I'd say Jack. Then follow that by appreciating yourself out loud for the following things. First, any achievements you had that day. Now, these can be business successes, financial achievements, educational growth, personal things you've done, and emotional successes you've had, like perhaps holding your temper or staying calm in a difficult situation. Second, acknowledge yourself for any personal disciplines you kept that day, such as exercising, meditating, doing your prayer work, or dietary commitments you have in life. And third, any temptations that you did not give into, such as eating dessert or lying or drinking too much or staying up late watching TV or surfing the Internet until hours of the morning. Now, maintain eye contact with yourself throughout the entire exercise. And when you're complete, end by continuing to look deep into your own eyes and say I love you. And then stand there for another few seconds to really feel the impact of the experience as if you were the one in the mirror who had just listened to all of this appreciation. Let me give you an example of what it might sound like for me. Jack. I want to appreciate you for the following things today. First, I want to appreciate you for going to bed on time last night without staying up too late watching tv. So you got up bright and early this morning, you had a really good conversation with Inga, and then you meditated for 20 minutes before you took a shower. Then you ate a healthy, low fat, low carb breakfast. Then you got to work on time and you led a very good staff meeting with your support team. And you did a great job of helping everyone listen to everyone else's feelings and ideas. You had a healthy dinner and now you're going to bed at a good time again and not staying up all night surfing the net. You were great today. And one more thing. I love you. Let me know what you have to be thankful for in the comments below. So thanks again for watching and remember, nothing will change for the better until you do. Now, if you found this video helpful, make sure you like it and share it with a friend who may need it. And for some additional resources on gratitude habits, visit my website@jackcampfield.com so thanks again for watching.