The Power of Gratitude.
Gratitude is one of the most effective spiritual practices accessible to us all. It enhances our wellbeing and ability to achieve our goals because it allows us to express appreciation for what we have instead of focusing on a desire for what we want. This makes it a powerful tool for manifestation!
Gratitude aligns us with the present moment and helps us distance ourselves from fantastical imaginings and romantic notions about how our life could or should be.
Note anything that does not exist in the present moment is an illusion, and attaching ourselves to the outcomes of our fantasies often leads us to disappointment and unhappiness.
When we express gratitude for what we already have, we attract more positive things into our existence. When our focus shifts from what we lack to what we have, it changes attitudes and energy, which can bring more abundance, joy, and fulfilment.
Gratitude helps us cultivate a positive attitude and enhances our ability to recognise and appreciate opportunities for growth and improvement. It can help us stay motivated and optimistic, even in challenging times, leading to a more fulfilling and happy life.
A life lesson in gratitude.
My 80’s cartoon idol Jem
Suppose you are like me and grew up watching 80’s cartoon fairy tales about power hologram glam-pop-stars. In that case, you might have found yourself at 30 years old in the middle of the Sahara desert, watching a full moon rise whilst wondering where your handsome hologram engineer was and why you weren’t a power player career woman/popstar yet.
The problem with this picture was that instead of focusing on the beautiful experience surrounding me, my attention was placed on a story I had created about not being enough, which led to disappointment about where I was in life and what I had not achieved. If I had put my attention into the moon, the live music playing, the dancing, the fire, I would have aligned my energy with the joy and abundance of that experience, not my lament, and I would have been living exactly what I wanted.
White Desert Egypt November 2010
Release yourself from desire. Gratitude exists as a practice for you to live those vibrations in the moment and draw more of them to you!
Gratitude has powerful effects on physical health, social relationships, and self-worth. People who regularly practice gratitude report higher levels of positive emotions, including more joy, pleasure, happiness, and optimism. These people also have stronger social relationships and fewer feelings of isolation and loneliness. Research also shows that gratitude can reduce the frequency or duration of episodes of depression.
In addition to its mental and social benefits, gratitude as a practice has been shown to improve physical health. Those working with gratitude have more robust immune systems, sleep better, and report fewer pains and aches.
Research shows that cultivating gratitude is a simple way to make big changes in our lives and wellbeing.
How to cultivate gratitude
Did you know that gratitude is a yogic practice? The Yama Aparigraha, which translates to non-attachment, can be effectively realised through gratitude practices.
Feeling gratitude remarkably impacts how we feel about ourselves and our world.
We can practice gratitude by simply consciously acknowledging what we have in our lives.
3 ways to practice gratitude:
Keep a gratitude journal
Keeping a journal of things that go well improves happiness and health.
Start a gratitude journal by listing three to five things that went well or that you’re grateful for every day or multiple times a day for maximum effect.
Say thank-you
Boost your happiness by writing a postcard, letter, or email to someone in your life for whom you’re grateful. This will make you happier whilst nurturing your relationship with the other person. Acknowledging the work that others do will increase and sustain their motivation.
Practice mindfulness meditation
Use mindfulness to focus on what you’re grateful for in the present moment. It could be the warmth of the sun, a pleasant smell, or a feeling of peace and calm. If it suits you, you can also use prayer to acknowledge and cultivate gratitude.
The more you bring gratitude into your life, the more your life will feel joyful and abundant, and the more you align your energy with the vibration of abundance, the more of it you will bring into your life.
P.S. After learning about manifestation and gratitude, I finally married a handsome man (an AV engineer, so I assume he’ll be working with holograms soon). Weirdly, I was also an agent for performing artists like my childhood idol Jem/Jerrica, so be attentive to what you wish for, let it go with love and gratitude and you might find your dreams do come true!
Love,
Kristen
Kristen Ross founded Affinity Wellness in 2007 and since has helped hundreds of clients to unlock their Inner Guidance, Unleash their potential and create lives they love.
With a history in the management of artists. Kristen had the opportunity to help guide the careers of many professional actors and artists, helping others thrive personally and professionally by connecting to their intuition and inner compass, this led her to study healing modalities such as kinesiology and counselling to enhance her work as a soul empowerment guide.
Kristen combines a striking combination of energy healing (kinesiology), counselling, coaching, dreamwork, meditation and yogic medicine practices to tap into the many facets of the self, mind, body and soul and release the layers that block her clients from accessing their intuition and self-love.
She believes that your life is your spiritual practice and that every decision you make is a part of your journey towards peace, power and enlightenment.
Everything you create and achieve comes from your ability to love and accept yourself and to do that you must engage in inner work.
Kristen currently runs a private online practice servicing individuals across Australia, New Zealand and the UK based in Melbourne, Australia.
