Tag Archives: Gratitude Jar

Welcome to Day One of Hate Loss 2013

  January 1, 2013 - 9:38 AM |
19 Comments

Happy New Year, everyone – and WELCOME to Day One of the Annual Hate Loss Challenge. I am so glad you’re here!  Taking this first step to being attentive of the way you treat the most valuable person you know – YOU – is one of the most important things you can do for yourself. It is my hope that by the end of this month you’ll be well on your way to:

Being mindful, which will allow you to meet each moment with full awareness. 

Becoming more compassionate with yourself.   

Eliminating insecurities that are weighing you down by giving yourself the love and respect you deserve.

These may seem like trivial exercises at first but if you aren’t used to reinforcing the goodness within, they can be quite tricky to downright difficult to do.  Pick up any self help book or simply Google the words self-esteem and you’ll find study after study which proves that having a non-judgmental, appreciative opinion of yourself is crucial to your overall well being. 

To show my appreciation to everyone who completes the 31 Days of Gratitude and attends all of our group therapy Thursday sessions, you will be entered into a drawing to win an 8×10 print from one of my paintings:

 

I wrote a quote which reads: “I am both imperfect yet, perfect. My branches may bend and twist, but I am beautiful, still.”  I think this is a perfect reminder of what this challenge is all about.  If you’d like more information on this print, head over to my Etsy shop.  Please note that if you are interested in this drawing, you’ll need to officially enter your intention of committing to the challenge in the comments section of this post to be considered. It’s my way of keeping track of everyone Smile 

 

Thirty One Days of Gratitude begins today!

By now you should have your Gratitude Jar in place; by bedtime tonight you should have a slip of paper in your jar or container with a sentence or two about what you were thankful or grateful for today.  

For my gratitude container I decided to use a large flower vase I had in storage.  I dressed it up a bit with ribbon and a pine cone, and put it on my night stand, complete with a pen and note pad:

 

gratitudejar

There is only one rule for this exercise: Please try to remember to add to your gratitude jar daily. If you forget a day, no worries – just add when you can so that you get the most of what this challenge has to offer. Remember, you’re attempting to create a habit with the intention of enriching your life!   What you write this month is completely up to you, and there is no wrong answer.

What if you should have a day when nothing goes right and it’s been a completely awful, terrible, horrible I hope to never, ever have another day like this again! kind of day and you’re in such a state that you simply can’t get past it to be grateful for anything? Well, I have an answer for that, too!  Ask yourself this question before you write your moment of gratitude: 

What didn’t happen to me today? 

Answering that question will provide you with a moment of gratitude.  Right now I’ve got three things in mind that I could put into my gratitude jar:  a) I didn’t have to bathe my dogs today.  b) I didn’t spill any tea on my clean shirt today (something I do ALL of the time!) c) I didn’t come down with the cold that’s been going around today.  ALL things to be grateful/thankful for. 

Need more inspiration?  Here are some wonderful quotes on gratitude that I found which should totally put you in the mood for this exercise:

 

“He is a wise man who does not grieve for the things which he has not, but rejoices for those which he has.” – Epictetus

“Feeling gratitude and not expressing it is like wrapping a present and not giving it.”

- William Arthur Ward

“To speak gratitude is courteous and pleasant. To enact gratitude is generous and noble, but to live gratitude is to touch heaven.”  Johannes A. Gaertner

 

In addition to doing 31 Days of Gratitude, we will be working on self esteem throughout the month.  On Thursday, January 3rd, I’ll be posting information about our next exercise.   Don’t miss it! 

XO,

~Ellen

Thirty-One Days Of Gratitude: Hate Loss Challenge

  December 28, 2012 - 9:01 AM |
24 Comments

HLC2013

 

Welcome to the official Introduction Page of our first Hate-Loss Challenge of 2013 exercise!

Above all else it is my pledge to you that by providing support and encouragement in a non-judgmental and loving environment will give you the desire to put positive energy in motion; build healthy habits; live a happier life. 

Lets make sure you’re all ready to begin:  If you are participating in the Challenge:

~ Please make your intention known in the comments section below.  This is a great way of introducing yourselves to each other; it also gives me the opportunity to welcome each of you!  (Anyone can join this challenge at ANY time, however if you participate for the entire month, you’ll be entered into a special drawing for my giveaway). 

~ On January 1st, briefly mention your involvement in the challenge and your commitment to doing the Thirty-One Days of Gratitude. 

~ Come back to Fat Girl Wearing Thin on Thursday, January 10th for your first Group Therapy Thursday. 

 

What is Thirty-One Days of Gratitude?

Thirty-One Days of Gratitude

Beginning Tuesday the 1st, write down a moment of gratitude at the end of each day and slip your thought into the jar.  Continue this practice of gratitude for 31 days (the entire month of January). Your vessel should be something visually appealing or sentimental that you don’t mind using solely for this exercise. Place it in a location where you will be reminded of it daily. A good location would be by your bedside table so you can reflect on the day’s events, then add your memory to the jar before settling into bed for the evening.

It might benefit you to have slips of blank paper and a pen alongside your Gratitude Jar as well, just to make things run more smoothly. Having everything easily accessible will make this exercise much easier and more fun to do. 

Why this exercise is important

Studies are constantly being done which prove that by routinely acknowledging things we are grateful for, we can shift our focus from what is missing in our lives to the riches we already possess. In return, we reap a host of benefits:  we become more confident, are less lonely, suffer less stress and anxiety.  In essence, by practicing gratitude we have the power to live a happier, more fulfilling life. 

What do I need to do for Group Therapy Thursday?

If you are a participant who also runs a blog: Write a post on your blog, sharing with your readers about your involvement in the Hate Loss Challenge and describe your thoughts on how the Gratitude Jar has been working for you since January 1st. 

 If you are participating but do not run a blog: Simply submit a progress report in the comment section of my blog.

Topic Ideas for Group Therapy Thursday:

What does gratitude mean to you?  Has it been difficult to add to the jar every day?  How do you feel about this exercise?  Are you forgetting to do it or eagerly remembering? Were you excited about this challenge or did you find it intimidating?  Do you feel a change in your attitude since beginning the exercise?

This would also be a great time to show photos of, or describe your Gratitude Jar and where you have it located. Any advice you can share with your fellow participants to encourage them through this challenge would be greatly appreciated here as well.

~After you post your update for the week, you’ll then visit my blog and leave a comment with a link back to your progress post so that other participants can read, visit, and connect with you on your blog.

You may write about the challenge on your blog as often as you’d like; just remember that everyone will meet back here at Fat Girl Wearing Thin every Thursday to ‘check-in’ with your Group Therapy Thursday Post.

Come back here this Tuesday and I’ll have some uplifting quotes, a beautiful writing about gratitude and some other goodies to help get you all started on the right foot – including more info on my giveaway.  Until then, get your Gratitude Jars in place and I’ll see you back here next week!

 

xo,

~Ellen