Monday, 11/13/23: Talking about an attitude of gratitude

Happy Monday!

It’s a new week, which means it’s time for your next Monday motivation newsletter.

Read on below for some steps to a happier Monday, a short story and a roundup of positive thoughts to get your week started.

Three Steps to a Happier Monday

Each newsletter starts with three prompts to inspire gratitude and simple intention setting. Take a moment and jot down answers to these three questions. To give an example, I share my answers below.  

Step 1: What are three things I appreciated from the weekend? 

Step 2: What is one thing I can be excited about today?

Step 3: What is my intention for this week? 

GRATITUDE: I’m thankful for sunny weather, having fun decorating for the holidays and having time to plan out the next couple weeks. 

TODAY: Today, I’m most excited to start reading my new book.  

INTENTION: My intention this week is to keep up with my gratitude practice (more below!). 

Okay, your turn! And if you want to share your three steps, I am all ears. 🙂

Meaningful Musings: Attitude of Gratitude

The month of November is synonymous with giving thanks and gratitude.

“Gratitude lists” are a fairly mainstream idea – and for good reason – expressing what you’re thankful for is a powerful tool for reminding you of the good and encouraging you to look for what’s going right, even when things are though.

Recently, I came across a new-to-me approach for a gratitude list, which I’m really excited to share this morning. The idea comes from the book I’m reading right now: Build the Life You Want by Arthur Brooks (Harvard Business School Professor and columnist for The Atlantic) and Oprah Winfrey.

In a chapter focused on gratitude, here is the exercise recommended:

From Build the Life You Want, pg. 57:

1. “On Sunday night, take thirty minutes and write down the five things in your life for which you are authentically grateful for. It’s all right if they seem trivial or silly. Almost everyone else has ridiculous things on their gratitude lists, too. Make sure one or two, though, involve people you love.
2. Each evening during the week, take out your list and study it for five minutes, one minute for each item. Do it also in the morning if you have time.
3. Update your list each Sunday by adding one or two items.”

I tried this exercise last week, and while I made a few adjustments (for example, I wasn’t as stringent with timing as prescribed above… though I did try to move slowly and reflectively), what really made it impactful for me was the second step. I’ve made gratitude lists before. But going back to look at and study my list daily? That was something new to me and I loved it.

I kept my gratitude list next to my bed to look at before bed. On my list I had things like living in Lincoln Park during the fall; something specific about my relationship with Matt; finding communities at places near me such as St. Teresa’s, CorePower, Barry’s; working on projects with a certain co-worker who makes everything more enjoyable/easier; texts from my mom and dad.

When I re-read these things at the end of the day, they served as wonderful reminders that helped to change my perspective.

For example, if I was going to bed stressed about something work-related, when I read my list and reflected on the co-worker, I was thankful for, things felt more manageable (“it’s not all bad!”). Or, when I wasn’t looking forward to getting up early for a workout class the next morning, I read my list and reminded myself of how much I enjoyed feeling a sense of community, increasing my motivation to set the alarm early.

It was a really nice way to unwind. While expressing gratitude magically fix everything or erase the hard stuff, it does helps remind us of the good that is happening and raises our emotions.  

This exercise also made my gratitude list feel like it had more “staying power.” Often times, I’ll jot down things I’m grateful for and express thanks in that moment – but then turn the page and be onto the next thing. I don’t often reflect back.

But by looking back on what we’re grateful for regularly to remember, we’re not only giving thanks all over again, but we’re also training our minds to do it automatically in difficult moments.

I’ve already made another list for this week and can’t wait to reflect back on it each night.

What do you think? If you are looking for a boost this Monday, maybe give this exercise a try. Write down a quick list of things you’re grateful for and then glance back at the list throughout the rest of this week.

I hope you find it as helpful as I did  have a great week!

On My Monday Radar

Sometimes we just aren’t ready to jump into our Monday to-do list right away. In case you want some content to procrastinate with, here is a roundup of a few positive things on my radar:  

• It felt like quite the accomplishment to finish this book this weekend. At 600+ pages, saying Wellness by Nathan Hill is long is an understatement. Set in 2015, the story follows married couple Jack and Elizabeth as they navigate suburban married life, going back and forth between the present and the past – of them meeting and falling in love in Chicago (!) in the 90s and their own childhoods. The writing is really captivating, re-examining the stories we tell ourselves about our life. It reminded me a lot of Fleishman Is in Trouble. Personally, I loved that the book was based in Chicago and really liked the writing… it was just a little long for my taste 🙂    
• Needed this podcast episode about “how to make the rest of 2023 easier”. Listened to this one with a notebook and pen and was able to get my head around the next couple of weeks. Lots to look forward to!
• The best thing to text a friend. Loved this!
• Trying to talk myself out of buying this red puffer coat. I don’t neeeed it, but how great would it be for the holiday season?!

Picture of the Week

That’s all for today! I hope you found something in today’s newsletter that sparked motivation, made you smile or inspired a positive Monday thought. Don’t underestimate the power of starting small… a fulfilling week starts with just one fulfilling day. You’ve got this! 

Let’s make it a great Monday!
Megan