Did you know that you have the capacity to feel good now no matter where you are in your life or what your situation is?  It’s all a matter of deliberate focus.  The illusion that most of us are under is that for us to be happy, the outer circumstances in our life must be the way we want them to be.  That’s a pretty hard task to accomplish given that you have little or no control over the actions of others.  In reality, there is only one thing that you truly have the capacity to control, and that is your thoughts.

One of the main reasons that most of us are unhappy is that we have been programmed in many different ways to keep accomplishing and keep accumulating and then we will be happy.  The problem here lies not in the accomplishing or accumulation of things but in the mindset.

Give this some thought…  If we are constantly thinking the thought of “I am not enough yet” or “I haven’t got enough yet” then that is the ingrained mindset by which we live our lives.  So, no matter what you have or what you accomplish, your mindset will still be set in the same practiced pattern of thought, which is again, “I am not enough, I don’t have enough”.  How often have you achieved something, and then soon after you still feel unfulfilled?

The solution to this and quite an amazing way to feel fulfilled and happy now is very simple once you get the hang of it.  It is nothing more than Gratitude.

Remember that your level of happiness in not dependent on everything “out there” being exactly as you want it.  Real happiness can be generated by anyone anywhere by a matter of focus.  Instead of having an argument with your neighbour/friend/family member in your head (hilariously we do in our minds when the person is nowhere to be seen!).  Deliberately look for things to think about that you are grateful for.

“But what if I don’t feel like I have anything to be grateful for” I hear you say.

That is because you are not accustomed to practicing the art of gratitude.  You are probably reading this right now from a piece of technology that is truly incredible, ponder it for a moment and all that it provides you with and feel gratitude for it.  There are so many things to be grateful for, we have just taken most of them for granted.  The air we breathe, the water supply to our house, a constant supply of electricity, friends, family, pets our level of health, on and on the list goes.  Find something to think about that you are grateful for and then think about why you are grateful for it.  This should charge up you feelings of gratitude.

If you don’t stop and actively engage in this exercise then you are likely to discard this as nonsense.  You cannot know gratitude by reading a few words, you must consciously choose it by directing your focus.  This is not a frivolous exercise.  We bring the aftermath of our thoughts with us, so, if in this moment, you are dwelling upon that argument you had with someone a few hours ago, then that disgruntled feeling you are re-energising with your focus will be present with in the back of your mind as you go about you day.  If, however, you become aware of the unpleasant feelings your thoughts are generating and decide instead to look for things to be grateful for, that feeling of gratitude will then be the residue of emotion that you bring with you throughout you day, which is obviously a more pleasant experience.

Try it our for a few days and please, tell me how you got on

Some people are always grumbling because roses have thorns; I am thankful that thorns have roses. Allophones Karr

“Gratitude is riches. Complaint is poverty.”  Doris Day

“Gratitude for the present moment and the fullness of life now is the true prosperity.”        Eckhart Tolle

“What you focus on expands, and when you focus on the goodness in your life, you create more of it. Opportunities, relationships, even money flowed my way when I learned to be grateful no matter what happened in my life.” — Oprah Winfrey

“When you are grateful fear disappears and abundance appears.” — Tony Robbins