I am almost always looking for ways to keep myself uplifted. Yet often during a day, my energy lags behind my ‘to do today’ list and I find myself fizzling out. One way I pick myself back up is to put an exclamation point behind my name, particularly on e-mails. I’m not just Vivian; I’m Vivian!
My lifework is to uplift others and remind us all that we make a difference every day. It can be a positive or negative difference but every day in every way, we make a difference! And we must do that for ourselves as well. In addition to putting an (!) after my name, I also take these eight actions almost every day:
Right away in the morning while still in bed:
1) List 10 things from yesterday that I’m thankful for. (It’s also a great way to keep track of daily events).
2) Complete my ‘Fabulous Five Focus’ sheet (see below).
Upon rising:
3) Say ‘thank you’ three times as soon as my feet touch the floor after I get out of bed
During the day:
4) Act on something that comes to my mind to do for someone else.
5) Organize my day by asking myself, ‘What’s the BEST THING I can do right now”?
6) Another way to getting a sense of direction when I need to make a decision is to ask, “What Would Love Do?”
7) Ask myself, “What’s good about what’s happening right now?” That’s not always easy to answer with great positivity but most times, there’s another perspective that can improve my attitude.
8) Ask Life for a lovely surprise and watch for it! It’s fun to live expecting something positive.
When interacting with others:
9) Say ‘thank you’ instead of “I’m sorry.” “Thank you for reminding me; thank you for sharing your opinion/perspective; thank you for thinking of me; for explaining that to me; thank you for taking time to…”. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you!
10) Ask a question instead of making a blanket statement. Instead of “I need you to go to the store and pick up…”, how about, “Would you be able to” or “I would so appreciate it if…”.
My husband’s punctuation would be a question mark. He’s always asking questions, especially “Honey, where did you put my LALALA.” I don’t usually know what or where his LALALA is because I didn’t do anything with it. Still, he’s inquisitive about everything which keeps life fun and moving forward.
Thanking you for the difference YOU make to Life each and every day!
Vivian!