Hiya Pinkies! Hope you had a lovely holiday weekend for those of you celebrating Thanksgiving. I know I did.
Please welcome Pink Goddess Kim Jenkins, here today with a simple yet powerful way to start reclaiming your mojo. This exercise is especially timely in that it that incorporates the theme of gratitude – something that seems to be on the minds and in the hearts of all us Pinkies, especially this month. Thank you, Kim, for your wisdom and inspiration. Take it away!
I was introduced to the power of keeping a gratitude journal back in 2003. I am a realtor, and at the time I was involved in real estate coaching, through which I met many inspiring people who were doing more than me in the field of real estate – and just about every other aspect of life as well. I was taught to focus on becoming the “whole” person by setting goals in all areas of my life. As someone who is willing to try things that support my growth as a human being, I decided to give this gratitude journal thing a try.
The Power of Gratitude
Not knowing where to start, I asked a friend of mine who suggested that I simply focus on what went right each day. So each night before bedtime, I would write down as many things I could recall that went right. My first entries looked like this:
- Finally made it to the office by 8:45am
- Worked out 35 minutes
- Had a delicious dinner.
- Relaxed with hubby after work outside by the pool while girls went swimming.
Reflecting back on these entries reminds me of the time in my life when I began doing this exercise. My real estate business was good, listings and sales were coming in from various places, the kids were healthy, we had a roof over our heads…you know, the basics of life were being taken care of. However, my husband had just been in a very bad motorcycle accident a few months before, and after 40 days in the hospital, he was home, in a wheelchair, recovering. I can sit here now and recognize the powerful synchronicity of learning to be grateful amidst less-than-favorable conditions. My gratitude journal reminds me how we were taken care of by so many people while he was unable to work. People held bake sales for us, donations poured in to help with bills, friends and family helped me with the house and kids, and so much more. Despite the horrific accident and the resulting consequences, life didn’t stop. I had two young children to attend to, a household to maintain and a business that required daily attention. Focusing each night on the things that went RIGHT was the beginning of my powerful mindset change. To this day, my optimism and gratitude for life carry me through the darkest days. No matter what I’m feeling, I can ALWAYS find something to be grateful for and immediately begin to shift to better feelings.
The 10/10 Journal
Around 2005, my “What went right today” journal took on a new life. Credit goes to a man named Matthew Ferry, who introduced me to the “10/10” journal. It’s called the 10/10 because your goal should be to write a minimum of 10 things you are grateful for and 10 things you want to draw into your life, or attract. The idea is that by being grateful for what you have, you allow more of what you want to flow to you. You will begin living your life in a state of gratitude and, at the same time, be open to more prosperity. Saying Thank You to God, the Universe, Source, whatever you choose to call the amazing Energy that exists all around us is a powerful way to learn to focus on the good in life. As you physically write down what you are grateful for, over time a powerful shift takes place in your mindset.
The power of our thoughts is severely underrated. Your thoughts can create good as well as bad. Are you always afraid of getting sick? Guess what? Chances are you’re going to get sick. Are you fearful of how you’re going to pay your bills? Yep, your bank account stands a good chance of staying empty. Concerned that your flight will be canceled or your computer will breakdown or your night out with the girls will be postponed due to some unforeseen circumstance? Again, chances are you’re right.
Ten Gratitudes
But what if you began a daily ritual of gratitude? What if you learned to expect things to go your way? You can start small and eventually work your way up the scale of gratitude as you learn to embrace the process. Start with “I’m so happy and grateful that _______ (fill in the blank).” Here are some examples:
- I’m so happy and grateful that I learning to feel grateful.
- I’m so happy and grateful that my hair turned out great today.
- I’m so grateful for the yummy soap I showered with this morning.
- I’m so grateful for my car. It’s not the greatest car, but it gets me to work where I can earn a paycheck to support myself and my family.
- I’m so grateful for all of my 10 fingers that allow me to hold this pen and write this gratitude list.
When I first started doing this, I would be grateful for every little coin I found on the street and in that moment I would say, “I am grateful for these wonderful sign of abundance. I attract money everywhere I go.” You even can play little games with yourself when you find yourself in circumstances of frustration and anger. Sitting in traffic, you can be grateful for the forced time of slowing down and the opportunity to listen to an audio book or motivational CD. Don’t allow the circumstances to affect whether or not you will be happy and joyful. Just choose to be that way by focusing on your gratitude list. You can choose to find the perfection in every situation or you can moan and groan about how things never work out for you. Which thought feels better?
Ten Wishes
The second part of the 10/10 exercise is to write down what you want to attract into your life. Be bold! They may not all come true within the next 30 or 60 days, but the time is going to pass anyway, so keep on writing and dreaming and wishing. Some of my early journals show things I wanted like:
- I want to attract one perfect new customer every week.
- I want to attract a free cup of coffee.
- I want to attract a new desk and computer for my girls.
- I want to attract clarity of what I want.
- I want to attract the perfect healthy weight for me!
Once you write them down, close the book, forget about them and go on with your day. Get out there and meet people, do your job with a smile, take a little extra walk around the corner, do whatever you feel inspired to do.
Delegating the To-Dos To The Universe
Finally, as you really get into doing the 10/10 ritual, you can begin to “delegate” your To-Do lists to the Universe. There are things we all want to do, be or accomplish, but our minds are full of negative chatter that often keeps us from being all that we are capable of being. If we write down a really large goal, more than likely a little voice comes out of nowhere and tells you, “Hey stupid, there is NO way you’re going to accomplish that!” Instead of listening to that voice, simply say to yourself, “I have no idea how I will accomplish this, but I am delegating the HOWs to the universe, I will remain open to the signs and will take action when the time is right.” Then….let it go. Allow God to take over and mix up a serendipitous concoction of people, events, circumstances and situations that you would never have dreamed possible. Because of your practice of gratitude and attraction, you will then be in a state of allowing, a state of possibilities, and of course, a state of perpetual gratitude for your life.
Will You Try It?
So Pinkies, I encourage you to go out, get yourself a simple little notebook and try this exercise for 90 days. Each day, write down 10 things you are grateful for, 10 things you want to attract and what you need to delegate to the Universe. Trust the process. Don’t keep score. Enjoy the miracles that occur. Then – and this is super important friends, go out and tell someone else about it who needs a shift in their life. Invite them to try it out. Encourage them to try gratitude. We can make our world better one person at a time by helping each other believe in ourselves and in each other.
Living a life of miracles and mojo,
Kim
