What If Everything You Have Was Gone Tomorrow?

What if everything you have today was gone tomorrow?

Many people go about their day without truly appreciating or being grateful for what they do have right now. 

And, spend a great deal of time feeling stressed and angst about small stuff that doesn’t really matter or what they don’t have. 

I know I definitely used to do this. Is this you too? 

When you truly feel the emotion of gratitude – not just the act of thanks, but really feeling it – your energy changes, you feel happier, and you are more resilient and respond better to stress.

Gratitude is the simplest, most powerful feeling you can cultivate – and everyone has the capacity to do so. It puts the focus on what you are receiving and good things around you.

Now, it is easier to be grateful when things are going awesome, but what about when things aren’t as good as you’d like?

When you feel disappointed you aren’t getting the promotion you want, instead focus on what’s good about the position you have now (or that you even have a job).

Rather than start your day dreading everything you have to do, be grateful you have this day and think about how you can make the most of it.

When you are feeling impatient and not present with your kids, pause to recognize that these are the good times and time goes fast.

Instead of "I hate that I have to . . ." transform to "I am grateful I get to . . ."  These little shifts in your perspective change everything.

And, let’s face it and gain perspective here: a bad meeting or bad performance review or losing your job or someone being disrespectful to you – those things are not that bad.

Something really bad is when your kid is very sick or your spouse dies or you have no food or you get cancer. Even in those circumstances, gratitude can help move you forward.

Most of us are so fortunate in life, yet we spend so much of our time focusing on the small stuff we are unhappy with. 

Someone asked me recently to share any weird habit of mine. Here’s one that is likely making the single biggest difference in my life.

I ask myself several moments in my day or when I am upset about something . . .

"If this were my last day alive, would I be happy with who I am being?" or "What if everything I had today was gone tomorrow?"

These questions gives me perspective, centers me and can put me in a feeling of gratitude almost instantly.

So, what if everything you have today was gone tomorrow? How can you be grateful for what you have now? Start practicing daily gratitude and see the difference for yourself in your life.

I’m grateful to have you read this :)

P.S: Can I ask for your advice on something? 

I get it can be hard to see the good when you're drowning in everything to do.

I’m about to put together a new free series on what it takes to slow down and enjoy your work and personal life so much more (even with all the demands and expectations).

Before I do that, I want to ensure I’m covering the topics that are going to be most helpful… so, my question for you is . . . 

When it comes to balancing your work and personal life, what is your single biggest frustration, problem or challenge you’ve been dealing with?

Would you please CLICK HERE to share with me so I can be sure to address your specific situation? Thank you!

What Next?

You can sign up for Stacey's masterclass, The Confident "No" here.

Stacey L. Olson is a Leadership and Certified Positive Psychology Coach, has 15 years of corporate experience and has gone through her own transformational change from burning out to balanced in life while performing at a high level (both in her corporate career and own business). She works with professionals who want to work less, live more and be their best even with all the demands, high expectations and messiness of everyday life. Stacey is the founder of The Balanced Leader™ program and offers executive and leadership coaching, workshops, and speaking.