HAVING GRATITUDE FOR YOURSELF...A GIFT TO EVERYONE

What if you are destined to shine and touch people’s lives?I was touched by this question the first time I read it. Is it possible to shine while touching people’s lives? At the same time, isn’t that inevitable? Don’t you have to be who you really are to touch people? And is it possible that by being you, you shine as well?The path to being who we really are is one in which we learn to recognize and acknowledge what is true for us and let go of who we thought we were.A great tool that can contribute on this wonderful path is having gratitude for ourselves. But what does that mean? It means that you give yourself the space to be you. You have an awareness of yourself without any point of view. You are proud to be you, and you don’t make yourself greater or smaller than others.As a mom and an entrepreneur, it can be easy to forget to be grateful for yourself. It’s probably normal for you to be and do everything that is required to ensure things work out around you. But do you take the time to acknowledge that? What if everything that you are and do have been choices you made to create more ease in your life?Gratitude for yourself is the highway to ease, joy, happiness and well-being. When you acknowledge what is present and you are grateful for it, you allow this to expand, to grow. People and situations come to you just with a simple thought/question.Gratitude is the key to produce miracles. By being and doing what inspires you, you become the asset that will sell the most. People are willing and happy to pay to work with vibrant individuals who enjoy what they do.You are not in the gratitude of yourself when you judge yourself or when you have expectations, projections, judgments or are quick to draw conclusions about yourself.The benefits of having gratitude for yourself are numerous. Your body feels younger, more vibrant, more alive, and your immune system is reinforced. You have peace of mind and self-confidence and becoming the master of your life is part of your reality. You can function from a greater space, and everything you desire to create will come with much more ease. You improve your relations to others, naturally, and you become independent, not expecting anything from anyone for your happiness.Is it your desire to develop your muscle of gratitude for yourself? Here are some tips to do so:1. GIVE YOURSELF SPACEAre there activities in which you engage where you don’t see the time fly by? Have you realized how expansively relaxed and present you are during these moments? Plan an hour per day to nourish yourself with these activities. It’s easier to have gratitude when there is an energetic space for you. What if this time opened you up to the greatness that you are, and from that space, you could create what you desire with less time and more ease?2. HAVE GRATITUDE FOR OTHERSIt’s easy to have gratitude for those who contribute to our lives. But what about those deemed to be mean, stupid, backstabbing people? Be grateful for what they have to offer… It’s about being aware of what they have to offer you and being in a space of total allowance. It does not mean that you have to thank them or love it, but rather choose to be in a space where you have no point of view, where you don’t resist nor react. This can be a challenge and at the same, know that it is something that you can choose.3. FOCUS ON WHAT YOU HAVE AND WHO YOU AREBy focusing on the $25 that you have in your wallet instead of the $500 that you would like to have, you generate an energy that will initiate something greater than you can even imagine possible.4. WRITE IN A JOURNAL Have a gratitude journal and every day, write at least one thing for which you are grateful about yourself and add 5 things for which you are grateful. Choose a moment during the day to do this and be faithful to it. Be it the night before going to sleep or perhaps during your lunch time?5. ASK A QUESTIONWe have this tendency to go in the wrongness of ourselves whenever things turn out differently than what we expected. Instead, how about asking this question, ‘’What’s right about me that I am not getting?’’ By asking this question, you receive an insight creating an opening to a new perspective which might not otherwise have been possible.Here are some areas in which you can be grateful:- Your body: what it can do, digest, move, grow your hair and nails, breathe without having to do anything- The ease you created so far- Your choices to trust and follow your desire to be an entrepreneur- Your desire to move forward- Your being- Your talents- Your capacities- Your capacity to manage your life, your relationships- Your capacity to create your business- Your possessions- Your creations- The contribution of others- Your contribution to others- Your moments of inspiration- Etc.Questions to ponder:1) What gives me a greater sense of gratitude?2) What can I create, what can I be today that would bring me gratitude?Having gratitude for yourself allows you to become inviting, an inspiration, which brings people to want to be around you. With this gratitude, you become independent and being in your presence is a gift of lightness and enjoyment for those around you.Edith Paul is a Life Coach, inspirational speaker and certified facilitator of several Access Consciousness® specialty programs, including Right Voice for You. She travels internationally, speaking and providing workshops, classes and consultations in both English and French, extending an invitation to the curious to trust their internal knowing.