Gratitude is indeed the best attitude…

“How we spend our days is, of course, how we spend our lives.” From The Writing Life by Annie Dillard

This quote really resonated with me when I first came across it at a moment when I truly needed it.

Beautiful in its simplicity.

Profound and extensive in its meaning and impact.

It came at a time when I was open to understanding its importance.

It was a time when some difficult things were happening in my life.

A challenging time.

Loss of a loved one. Health issues. Professional roadblocks.

Challenges are not unknown concepts, generally speaking.

Personally and at this particular time in my life it was transformative as I decided to stop, re-evaluate and re-prioritize many things.

I was confronted with and awakened to the importance of living in the moment and being grateful for what we already have.

That is in essence what gratitude is about after all. Being mindful and appreciative of what you already have rather than just directing your focus on what you want.

It implies present and future.

Don’t get me wrong, I of course understand and believe in the significance of planning, having goals and a vision towards what you want to achieve in your life. I am a planner. I am a to-do list person. I am a goal-setter. It brings structure to my life.

However, I also have to note that it is easy for us to fall into the trap of forgetting to focus on the Now. On being present. On being mindful.

Focusing on what you have in front of you and on what is actually ‘tangible’. In other words, on this moment.

What is most interesting is that, as people we tend to fall into this trap despite knowing the fact that without the Now you cannot achieve the Tomorrow as your Tomorrow is shaped based on your Today.

As such we need to focus on giving meaning to each moment.

It is not that we are not aware of the importance of taking in the moment. We just put it in the back burner. We don’t prioritize it.

We get caught up in “building a future” that it is easy for us to forget to “live the present”. We are so focused on running businesses, going to meetings, managing projects, getting ahead of the competition, chasing numbers and getting work done that we simply forget to focus on the engine that actually gets it all done – You.

We forget to stop, take time and focus on ourselves.

I am a firm believer that everything in life is a matter of balance.

As such, I simply let go and decided to make a point of taking the time to do that which I truly enjoy and gives meaning to my day(s).

Take that walk. Read that book. Visit that Museum. Take that class. Reconnect with nature. Take that trip.

Whatever that is for each of us.

Never stop having a sense of wonder.

Define your purpose and never stop giving meaning to your days.

👉 How do YOU want to spend your days?

👉 What is the meaning YOU want to give to your life?