Let’s face it. The role and responsibility of running a business isn’t always a walk in the park. With today’s depressed prices, frustrating weather, complex family dynamics, etc., it can feel more like a traipse through an uninhabited jungle.
How can you keep your own chin up, much less inspire and lead others?
Take a gratitude walk, suggests Dave Gordon, an author and motivational coach. For five minutes each day, walk around your farm and clear your mind of everything stressing you out.
“I started this practice 15 years ago, and it changed my life,” he explains. “Say out loud what you are thankful for. This will set you up for a positive day.”
Your Choice
Every day you have a choice, Gordon points out. You can focus on the negative or the positive.
“We all have a positive and a negative dog inside of us,” Gordon says. “It’s part of our human nature. The one that wins is the one you feed the most. If you feed a negative dog, it will grow stronger. If you feed the positive dog it will grow stronger and the negative dog will weaken.”
Gordon’s message really rings true, especially as we near Thanksgiving. Amid many of our big-time struggles, we can easily find reasons and moments of gratitude.
“You cannot be stressed and blessed at the same time.”
Build Your Muscle
Gratitude is like muscle, Gordon says, the more you exercise it the stronger it becomes. You can condition and build this muscle in simple ways.
First, change your business focus from “have to” to a “get to.”
“When you have to do something, that’s not purpose,” he says. “Look at it as, ‘I get to make a difference in the world.’”
Read uplifting books or devotionals. Find reasons to spend time with positive people. Reflect on someone who has made a difference in your life and reach out to thank them.
Why do these small actions work? “You cannot be stressed and blessed at the same time,” Gordon says.
