Don’t Be Grateful, Appreciate Instead

11/22/2017

The thanksgiving season is normal for Americans to give thanks for an event that happened hundreds of years ago. But this year I want to ask you to not be grateful but to be appreciative instead.

Of course we all want to be grateful of the awesome moments we’re now living in our lives and in this country. But sometimes being grateful, especially in your life, could be hurting you. Read more to understand why.

Don’t be grateful

Being grateful implies a past. When you feel grateful it’s because you no longer are living the past circumstances you were living. Or it could be that you’re grateful that you went through a terrible experience that helped you grow personally. Or it could be that you’re grateful because you no longer do something you didn’t want to do.

When you are grateful for something in your life, you unconsciously bring to your present moment memories and feelings of that past experience that at some moment didn’t feel good.

Remembering those not-feeling-so-good-experiences is what hurts you. This happens because when you think in that past experience you bring forward a bit of those negative feeling emotions you experienced to your present moment, and now they’re staying with you.

Yikes! Who knew we were doing that, right? Actually, we all knew it all along; it’s just that we were not taught to pay attention to that. But now I’m telling you. Try it. Whenever you think of something you’re grateful about, notice how you feel in your gut. And if the feeling is not so good, send that thought back and focus on something that feels better.

Appreciate instead

Now, the act of appreciating, if you pay attention does not have baggage with it. I mean, it is a clean word. No past and no future are implied in it. For instance, when you appreciate a flower, a painting or a baby, you’re not looking at anything in the past, of neither yours nor theirs, that can bring you a bad feeling memory.

Also, if you’re truly appreciating something or someone, you’re not looking at their future, or your future, or your future relationship with them. In fact, if you’re just appreciating their beauty and majesticness your mind has nowhere else to go but to stay present.

As you appreciate, you also cannot have thoughts, and while you don’t have any thoughts you are, as a consequence, being placed in a frictionless flow that connects you to your inner peace.

Do you see the difference? Being grateful implies remembering past baggage and bringing some of those negative emotions to the present. Being appreciative, on the other hand, is just about being here in the present with no thoughts or negative emotions, but only positive emotions present.

We all want to be grateful of the awesome moments we’re now living, in our lives and in this country. But sometimes being grateful, especially in your life, could be hurting you. Read more to understand why.

Begin appreciating more

You might say, ok I get it, but how do I just appreciate and not be grateful? How about begin grateful to people that help me or being grateful of new things coming to my life? You can still be grateful if by begin grateful you don’t bring negative emotions from the past to your present. Otherwise try to become just appreciative.

You can say to someone who helps you “I appreciate your help so much! By doing this for me you’re helping me to do that.” This implies that a better future is coming for you. It’s much better that if you say: “Thank you so much, you have no idea how much you’re helping by doing this.” This implies your past was kind of unpleasant. Do you feel the difference?

And no, I’m not saying don’t be grateful or stop thanking people, experiences and circumstances. I’m just saying start appreciating the good in your life more and more.

Appreciation is the secret of life. Become a person who appreciates and you will thrive; you will fulfill your reason for being.” –Abraham Hicks

So, begin appreciating people, experiences and circumstances more. Begin to see them with a clean and clear point of view and you’ll see how your life begins to change. Now, tell me, what are you appreciative for right now as the holiday’s season begins?

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