A Mindset of Abundance-I have all I need.

I have alluded to an abundance mindset throughout my discussion on gratitude. What is a mindset of abundance? This is the mentality that sees the fullness of everything around us. It is the opposite of a lack/scarcity mentality. An abundance mindset believes that there is enough for all of us in the universe.

Many of us live with a scarcity mentality and it explains a lot of our actions. When we hoard the things we have in life, we are living from scarcity. When we attempt to amass and feel secure only when we have everything in large quantities, we are displaying a scarcity mentality. When greed is the driving force for all our acquisitions, we are at the core of scarcity thinking. When we walk over others on our way to the top, we are operating from scarcity. The very idea of competition is perpetrated by a mentality of scarcity.

An abundance mindset realizes that the universe has more than sufficient for all of us. The thing is-as someone so aptly said-there is enough for all our needs but there will never be enough for all our greed. An abundance mindset does not look so much for what we are missing out on. It is more focused on what we have going for us. It sees our wealth and not our poverty. It focuses on our fullness and not our emptiness. It counts its blessings at every turn and does not forget the good that is happening. Such a mindset sees the opportunity in every difficulty even as others look for the difficulty in every opportunity. With this mindset, you know that there is more where that which has run out comes from.

You do not think that because someone else has been given or received a certain thing your own opportunity is gone. You realize that your own moment will come. Time and chance happen to all. Someone else’s success does not mean you have failed or will fail. It just serves as affirmation that success is possible for you too. It is not a zero sum game where there is nothing left for the others. Don’t allow yourself to be lied to by politicians or any other group into thinking that the winner takes all. Those artificial shortages are just a creation of people’s minds meant to create an ‘us versus them’ tussle.

An abundance mindset will help you see the wealth and provisions available for you left right and center. Only those with this mindset will appreciate their blessedness. To help you develop a mindset of abundance, check out my book Blessed to be a Blessing. You can order by calling/texting +254725832477. You can also enroll for my Signature Course Optimize Your Life to delve deeper into the discussion. 

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Photo at the Head, Courtesy of Project Life Mastery.

GRATITUDE PART 3

Benefits of gratitude.

Why should we bother to be grateful in life?

There are a number of reasons and benefits to be derived from an attitude of gratitude.

Key among them is the fact that gratitude changes your perception of your life’s circumstances. With a thankful attitude, you look at your circumstances challenging or otherwise from the perspective of a blessed one. Gratitude reframes your experiences by showing you the brighter side of all what has happened.

It also opens the door for more to flow into your life. Nobody wants to constantly give to someone who has no sense of appreciation for what is done for them. A little appreciation of what you have received motivates the giver to give more of what they have.

Appreciation fills you with a mindset of abundance. When you practice appreciation, your mind processes it as a sign that you are full and in need of nothing more. A mindset of abundance goes a long way in attracting more into your life according to the law of attraction.

Gratitude separates you from the masses. Many people look at what they have in their lives as a right and give it no thought. With a grateful heart, you belong to the minority who are wowed by the little things.

Gratitude unlocks the miraculous. This is closely linked to the second point. When you have shown gratitude for the small things consistently, then big things which you never thought possible begin to happen. 

Finally it unlocks the wholeness of the blessing. There is a story in the bible about Jesus healing ten people of leprosy. Of the ten only 1 come back to express gratitude when it was done. The story goes on to show that as a result of his gesture, Jesus tells him that he has been made whole. There is a big difference between being healed and being made whole. The nine lepers ended at healing. The one who took that extra step to go back and express gratitude went on to wholeness.

What else can you think of as a benefit of gratitude?

Gratitude by the Moment.

You need to get to a point in your life where gratitude becomes synonymous with breathing. Gratitude must become a lifestyle. It must become second nature to you to express gratitude. As a matter of fact, everywhere we look around us, there are beautiful things surrounding us. There is a lot of life and activity going on around us. We need to get to a point where we learn to acknowledge this things for their awesomeness.

When you start practicing gratitude by the moment, you become alive to the beauty of ordinary things. You learn not to take anything for granted but to deeply appreciate the being of things. You no longer need to set time aside at the end of every day to express gratitude because you have gone beyond that point. For you every moment of everyday is a time for gratitude. At this point, you savor every breath because it is as unique as the last one and the next one.

Gratitude by the moment does not need to be programmed. It flows from a heart that is full of God’s abundance. As you operate from a mindset of abundance there is much to be celebrated at every turn. You never worry that if you celebrate too much there will be nothing more to be celebrated. How can you run out of things to celebrate? As you read this, there are already a number of things you can celebrate. First it means you are alive and awake, secondly you have a device that allows you to read this content and an internet connection to access it. You have eyes that can see and a hand to hold your device in place. You understand English and can therefore grasp what I am going on about. You therefore realize that this is no mean feat. In this little activity of reading this content there is so much going on that you can be grateful for. What this tells you is that every other activity you are going to do today and going forward is full of opportunities for you to give thanks. You need to start practicing gratitude by the moment. Your life will be richer for it.

To help you build on this attitude, I encourage you to get a copy of my book, ‘Blessed to be a Blessing’ where I explore the different endowments bestowed upon us for which we ought to be grateful.

Perception and gratitude

I am sure you have heard this so many times that it is cliché to you. The pessimist sees the glass as half empty while the optimist sees it as half full. This has a lot to do with perception.

Elsewhere it has been said that we see things not as they are but as we are. The lens through which we look is more significant than what is before us. With the right lens, we see the novelty of ordinary things. With the wrong lens, even the extraordinary loses its shine in our eyes.

Perception has a lot of influence on whether we develop an attitude of gratitude or not. If we look at things from a perception of lack and what psychologists call ‘the gap’ we are more concerned with what is missing from the picture. With this mentality we have no room to express gratitude. We are looking for ways to fill ‘the gap’ in our minds. As such we think this would be perfect if it had a, b, c, d added to it. We therefore find ourselves withholding gratitude until our a, b, c, d’s are in place.

When our perception is one of abundance, then we appreciate what is before us for all its worth. We simply revel in the ordinariness of it all without waiting for something more. It doesn’t mean that we make no effort to make it better. If anything our appreciation of what is compels us to make it better. The difference is that we do not wait for the ideal to appreciate. The ideal, the perfect is an illusion we can keep chasing and never attain. If we therefore wait for perfection before we appreciate, our wait might be a long and arduous one-that I can guarantee.

If you want to build an attitude of gratitude, you should begin working on your perception.

Gratitude is the easiest way to appreciate God's Blessing upon your Life. practice it everyday. 

Let me know your thoughts on this week's series in the Comments section below. 

Gratitude Part 2

To continue the gratitude discussion we began on Monday, today we discuss how to express gratitude and some of the things to be grateful for.

Expressing gratitude.

Out of the abundance of the heart, the mouth speaks.

It is almost impossible to teach someone how to express gratitude because it really is an attitude issue. When your heart is full of the right things, they come out effortlessly. The challenge therefore is to watch out for the things which fill our hearts and minds.

When we embrace thoughts of abundance and gratitude. When we learn to live from the optimistic perspective. When we can see even the little water in the glass and appreciate it, expressing gratitude will come naturally to us.

Gratitude can be expressed verbally either through prayer or speaking publicly in acknowledgement of someone’s contribution to your life. When was the last time you publicly appreciated someone for their contribution to your life?

It can also be expressed in writing. This is why thank you notes exist. In today’s world of Social Media a mention of someone appreciating their contribution to your life goes a long way. Everybody loves to be celebrated publicly. Don’t deny them that opportunity in the limelight when it is something you can give for free.

For some people a gift works as a form of expressing gratitude. Small tokens and large tokens are appreciated in equal measure. They say it is the thought that counts. The size of the gift is not the biggest thing in this regard. If you can find out what the person appreciates and gift it to him, you will have done well.

Sometimes gratitude happens by paying it forward. People help you without expecting anything in return except that you are ready to help another person who is in a similar situation in the future. If you have received something from someone, there are times when it makes sense to ensure that you become a similar blessing to those who are in need.

Remember your list of things to be grateful for from the previous post? Revisit it and decide how you are going to express gratitude for each of them.

I am also sure you have many other ways you express gratitude in your own circumstances. Would you like to share some of them with us? You can do so in the comments below so we can get to learn from each other.

Finally remember to get yourself a copy of Blessed to be a Blessing where we share different ways of expressing gratitude for all God has blessed us with.

What to be grateful for.

There is no shortage of things to be grateful in life. You do not need to look far and wide to find things to appreciate about your life.

In my book Blessed to be a Blessing, there is a laundry list of the common things and some uncommon things that we need to be cognizant of and be grateful for as we live our lives. I am sure it would be a great resource for anyone who wants to grasp majority of the blessings we should be thankful for.

Like we have seen before, a lot of the things that matter in life are free in the sense that you cannot put a price on them. Things like the love of your family members and the care they have for you.

Basically anything you see in and around your life whether you see it as good or bad is something you should be thankful for. The Scriptures in 1 Thessalonians 5:18 tell us to be thankful in all things. In Romans 8:28 it says that all thing s work together for good to those who love the Lord and are called according to His Purpose.  This means you shouldn’t be in the business of choosing what to be grateful for. If you look at everything as part of one big, overarching agenda for your life, you will be grateful all through.

Feel free to add to this discussion in the comments section below. 

Image Courtesy of Bible.Org

What is gratitude?

Gratitude means living your life with a grateful attitude.

There are two ways to approach life and the blessings in it. You can look at your life and blessings as your right or as something that other people have played a role in securing you. The approach you take determines your capacity for gratitude.

The so-called self-made men have difficulty expressing gratitude because they believe that everything they have was worked for by them and they therefore owe no one any gratitude. Such people disregard the efforts and contributions of the people they have met on their way to the top. Whether you like it or not, people have been there in one capacity or another to help you make your life what it is today. That word of advice you received when you weren’t too sure which way to turn might look like nothing much today but when that person gave it to you, it changed the trajectory of your life.

The bible has an interesting phrase where St. Paul asks ’what do you have that you did not receive?’ When you think about it, all you have done has been as a result of certain things being aligned in your favor. You would have fallen sick at any time in your rise to the top and the story would have turned out differently. There are other people who have made investments similar to yours but courtesy of wrong timing which you had no way of telling they burnt their fingers. Where does intuition come from? Some of the moves you have made which have yielded significant results in your life did not make logical sense. You therefore cannot claim that you knew where they would lead with certainty yet you still made the move. How different are you from those who attempted and it turned out badly?

Don’t get me wrong, I’m not advocating for people to sit back and do nothing expecting miracles. I am also not belittling the good work you have done to rise to the top. I am cognizant of the sacrifices you have made, the sleepless nights and all. All I am saying is you need to understand that all your wonderful efforts don’t tell the whole story. There are variables you had no way of controlling yet they worked in your favor.  A grateful attitude will help you take note of these things.

Gratitude happens when you know that your circumstances are not all as a result of your action/inaction. You have to realize that there is a lot that has happened behind the scenes to get you to where you are.

It begins with acknowledging the little things that happen in everyday life. It is appreciating all the things we take for granted. With gratitude you walk and work with an abundance mindset and not scarcity.

What do you need to be grateful for in this moment? Pause and enumerate the things you are grateful for in your life right now. Make a habit of noting down things to be grateful for every day.

You are Blessed-A done deal.

Many times we think of blessing as a state of having or possessing. Rarely do we understand that to be blessed is a state of being before it is anything else.

It is imperative that we change our understanding around this issue because our perspective on life will be totally transformed as a result. When our focus is on having, we look for evidence of his blessing to validate our blessedness. When we focus on being we are secure in our hearts and minds concerning our blessedness.

Let me use an example to drive this point home. When you plant a mango tree, when do you consider it a mango tree? Is it as you plant it or after it has borne fruit? If you are honest with yourself, you see it as a mango tree from the moment you choose to plant it. Its fruitfulness just serves to confirm to you that it is a mango tree. It is not the basis for determining what type of tree it is.

In the same way, you need to consider yourself blessed before there is any manifestation whatsoever. You are not waiting to be blessed. Your blessedness is not dependent on the material stuff you can lay your hands on. You are blessed before you see anything physical. The physical manifestation is just but confirmation of your blessedness. It is the fruit of the tree of your blessedness.

This distinction is very significant for your understanding of your blessedness. When you think after this manner, you walk with your head held high even when your physical circumstances dictate that you act otherwise. Blessedness is a mindset you adapt and live with.

When you walk with this mindset, inevitably you begin to see evidence of your conviction. The evidence of your blessedness is all around you when you stop defining it in limited terms. You need to change the lens through which you look at blessedness and I guarantee that what you see will change overnight.

The takeaway from today’s post is that your blessedness is a done deal. Share what your thinking around blessedness has been in the comments below.

Remember to order your copy of my recently launched book Blessed to be a Blessing (pictured above) by sending Kes. 200 for a soft copy and 450 for a Hard copy to Till Number 5198493.

The Losses of an unconscious life.

The Losses of an unconscious life. 

What do you stand to lose by living in the unconscious zone? Or to put it more aptly, what have you lost so far by living unconsciously. 

The greatest loss has to do with the beauty of ordinary life. Unconscious you zoom quickly past all the things that carry beauty in them. Everything has beauty and novelty when you pay attention to it. You miss out on savoring and enjoying all these good things. 

An unconscious life is lived from the periphery and not the core. The greatest tragedy is to live a superficial life. When we fail to connect with our core, we end up living our lives at the periphery of it. We have no time to engage deeply enough and that is to our loss. 

An unconscious life constantly worries about the future. When you find it difficult to focus on this moment, you will inevitably drift into the future you are looking for. When future becomes a primary concern, you have no option but to exhibit worry and fear. 

It is programmed by past experience. Our minds like forming patterns and interpretations from the past to predict the future. These patterns are responsible for the way we think and act around certain situations. They deny us from experiencing the uniqueness of each experience we have in life. Because of them we miss out on the lessons we would have garnered from the present experience. 

There is so much downside to living unconsciously and I am sure you might have a thing or two to say about this. Feel free to add to the conversation in the comments. Learn to look out for the spectacular in your everyday life by getting a copy of Blessed to be a Blessing. To order call/text +254725832477. 

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Benefits of Consciousness/Awareness

Benefits of Consciousness/Awareness

Consciousness guarantees you a rich life no matter your circumstances. When you pay attention to what is around you, you see the wealth in ordinary, mundane things. Life becomes one big sightseeing adventure because everywhere you turn there is novelty. 

A conscious life is a life free of baggage. We are weighed down by the baggage we carry from our past. Our experiences and our reaction to them accompany us wherever we go. The only way to avoid the baggage of those experiences is to live in the here and now. 

It also allows us to live free of worry. When you are concerned about this moment and enjoying it, what room do you have for the worries of tomorrow? What Jesus tells us in Matthew 6:25-33 has huge implications on how we live our lives. He says that no one can add a single hour to his life by worrying. Learn to enjoy what is before you and allow the future to remain in the future.

Consciousness breeds gratitude. When we really take in what is before us, it follows naturally that our hearts will be inclined towards gratitude. When we are rushing through life, gratitude is impossible because we are looking constantly to the next moment. 

It also breeds excellence. By giving one hundred percent concentration to what we are doing, we produce excellent results at it. Mediocre work is more often than not a result of a divided mind. Whatever you do half-heartedly will yield average results. Whatever you do wholeheartedly will guarantee excellent results. It’s that simple. 

It is a foundation for creativity. Creativity is released as we take in every moment in its richness. The more you turn something over in your mind, the more you have the ability to perceive it in different lights. 

What other benefits of conscious living can you think of? Feel free to share in the comments below. 

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