Episode 17: An Attitude of Gratitude

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Welcome to another episode of K12 Education Untangled. My name is Dr. Kim Fields, former corporate manager turned educational researcher and advocate, and I'm the host of this podcast. I got into this space after dealing with some frustrating interactions with school educators and administrators, as well as experiencing micro discriminations that I faced while raising my two kids who were in the public school system. I really wanted to understand how teachers were trained and what the research provided about the challenges of the public education system. If you're looking to find out more on current topics in education that could affect you or your children, then you're in the right place. In today's episode, I'll be discussing the importance of Gratitude I often say that it's impossible to complain and be grateful at the same time. I believe this to be true. Gratitude is something that settles us into the present moment. It allows us to stop taking things for granted and be grateful for the little things. Gratitude is about noticing and appreciating positive things in life. This is something that I became keenly aware of over the last five years. So much so that I started a gratitude journal at that time and I continued to write entries in it on a daily basis. Gratitude is both an attitude and and a practice. There are a number of psychological, physical and social benefits of gratitude, including increased feelings of happiness and hope, a greater sense of social connection, especially if you express gratitude through heartfelt thank you notes or letters, increased acts of kindness and cooperation, and improvements in sleep and overall energy. Here are the things that being grateful allows us to do. 1 Be present 2 Stop worrying about things that may or may not happen in the future and 3 appreciate what you have. Let's start with being present. The only moment that we have in any given part of the day is is the present moment. Being present in this moment, noting our breath and being grateful for that breath shifts into focus. The only thing that is important being alive right here, right now. Being present in this moment grounds us. There's no focus on the future and no reflection on the past. It's being intentional in experiencing what's happening right now. This brings into consideration mindfulness, the act of paying focused attention on what's going on in this very moment. It means noting and appreciating sights, sounds, smells, and sensations in your body. It also involves observing the beauty of nature because even though you may live in a big city, nature still springs forth and surprises us with her beauty. In the present moment, you take notice of a flower growing up through a crack in the sidewalk, a beautiful butterfly flittering past you, or the sound of wind rustling in the trees. These are all nature's way of expressing to you to take notice of the simple things and fully experience them in the now. Moving on to Stop Worrying My pastor often says that worry is like rocking in a rocking chair. It gives you something to do, but it gets you nowhere. Very few of us are prognosticators. We have no real way of knowing what the future holds. Worrying about something that may or may not happen is a waste of time, energy and effort. When you worry about the future, you're ignoring the present. The Bible says to take no thought about tomorrow sufficient for the day are the troubles therein. I know a lot of people that worry about the future. What if this situation happens, what if that doesn't go right, etc. Don't get me wrong, I believe in planning and being prepared in case certain situations don't work according to plan or or that they don't work out the way you thought they might. But worrying about these things doesn't change the outcome. Being prepared, having a plan A, a plan B, a plan C, are ways to fortify yourself against any adversities. Knowing how you will respond to an anticipated situation is the best defense. Worrying changes nothing, so find something positive to redirect that energy and into something more productive. Third, we focus on appreciating what you have. One of the worst habits that I think anyone can develop is the habit of complaining. Complaining generates negative energy. Complaining demonstrates a lack of gratitude for the blessings that are in your life. Complaining doesn't change the situation, it just shows you as a weakness. Emotionally immature person Complaining people are often unhappy with themselves and their lives. Do you know of someone in your life who constantly complains? How do you feel after being around them? Certainly not uplifted or encouraged. These types of people are energy vampires. They train your energy and if you stay around long enough it feels like they sunk suck the life out of you. Wouldn't it be nice instead of complaining that they just demonstrated gratitude? Complaining demonstrates a dissatisfaction with oneself and one's life. There is some self help work that needs to be done to break the habit of complaining. The first step is being self aware enough to realize that you're a complainer. If you don't like a certain situation or decision or an outcome. Settle up with your feelings about it and find the good. Here are some ways that people that constantly complain Show a lack of awareness and gratitude Complaining about what their kids did or didn't do when there are people who desperately want to have kids Complaining about the state of your home, whether that's an apartment, townhouse, condo, or house when there are people who don't know where they're going to lay their head at night Complaining about the condition of your clothes or shoes when there are people who have no limbs on which to put shoes or clothes Complaining about having to walk, quote, unquote so far when there are people who are incapable of walking Complaining about the things that you, quote, unquote have to do instead of appreciating the things that you get to do that simple mindset shift changes everything Here are some gratitude practices that you might want to consider incorporating into your life. 1. Start a gratitude journal 2 Take a nature bath in which you appreciate the sights, colors, sounds, smells and solitude of nature and three Engage in a time of grateful reflection in which you acknowledge and visualize those things in your life for which you are grateful. This can be as simple as identifying two to three things that you are grateful for. The key, though, with these practices or any other practice, is to actively engage in it on a daily basis. Consistency is the key. I've learned over the past several years to be grateful for the little things. The speech to text technology that I use on a daily basis to get a lot of my work done, my community of encouragers, mentors and supporters, the close relationships I have with my children, my siblings and my friends and my daily spiritual practices. These are the things that anchor me, that keep me going, that center and ground me. No more do I feel embarrassed or less than for being physically challenged and temporarily in a wheelchair. I'm grateful that I have one. I am still loved, valuable, and a unique, precious, living soul. I usually end these personal type podcasts with either a mantra, a quote, or a joke because I love surrounding myself with positive thoughts and words. And I also like a good, clean joke. Today I will share two quotes about gratitude that are meaningful to me. The first quote is from Brene Brown, who says that there is no joy without gratitude. The second quote comes from Melody Beatty who states that gratitude turns what we have into enough. If this is the type of subject matter in discussion that resonates with you, please subscribe to my podcast on whatever service you're listening to this. Also, I'd love to hear from you so please leave me a comment, a review, or a rating and share this podcast with anyone that you think would find it valuable. Be sure to tell your friends, family and community about my podcast. Thanks for listening today. I hope you come back for more K12 and educational discussions with even more exciting topics to untangle. And by the way, if you have a burning question about a current issue or interest in a specific topic that you'd like for me to cover and explore, shoot me a quick email@kimberationthrougheducation.com to let me know what your question is. And be sure to stay tuned. On the next episode of my podcast, I'll be discussing the appropriateness of homework. Until next time, aim to learn something new every day. Love my show. Consider being a regular subscriber. You can subscribe for as little as $3 per month. Just go to there's no contractual obligation. You can cancel at any time. If you choose to subscribe, I'll give you a special shout out thanking you in an upcoming episode. Remember, that's HTTPs tinyurl.com podcast support to subscribe.