Energy! Drive! Passion!

As we approach the half way mark through winter, you may be hanging out for the summer sun, I know I am! We tend to hibernate a bit in the winter months, perhaps being less adventurous and active than through the warmer and more inviting months of the year. You must find ways to keep your energy, drive and passion alive through the winter!

Have you ever noticed that when you are happy and content, it is easier to find that energy, drive and passion? Or conversely, when you are less happy and somewhat out of sorts, it can seem so much harder to find it and life can seem to throw you more than your fair share of snowballs? The outlook and perspective we carry with us shapes our experiences and has the power to create a rippling echo in our lives. Sculpting our outlook and perspective in a particular way can influence our energy, drive and passion. For example, I know when I am happy and content, I naturally experience more energy, drive and passion.

Cultivating an outlook and perspective that aligns with the way you want to experience life may come more naturally when the summer sun shines and less naturally in the brisk winter. The key is that at any moment and in any situation, you choose your outlook and perspective which in turn can shape your experiences. For example, do roses have thorns? Or do thorns have roses?

Practicing gratitude is one way you can influence your outlook and perspective. Notice the word “practice”. Having gratitude takes practice. When was the last time you took some time to be consciously grateful for something in your life? Like truly grateful? I’ll just leave that one for you to ponder.

Practicing gratitude can seem like one more thing to add to your to do list, which you already struggle to get through in a day. However, the benefits may just make it truly worth the time in your day. Practicing gratitude brings focus to what is really important to you. If you know what you are grateful for, you will know the things you want to make more space for in your life. It can bring calmness and reduce stress. In relation to our discussion here, practicing gratitude can positively enhance your outlook and perspective and shape the way you show up each day and how you experience life.

There are many ways to adopt a gratitude practice. It can be formal, or not. You can write it down, or not. The advantage of writing it down means you can revisit it in the future and remember what you have been grateful for in the past. The key is making conscious space in your day to practice gratitude. Setting a daily recurring alarm can be helpful. There are some awesome apps you can explore which can make adopting a gratitude practice easy and convenient.

I hope this ignites sparks of energy, drive and passion inside you to practice gratitude. Wrap up in warm clothes, a scarf, hat and gloves, and keep active and healthy this winter!