Make Gratitude the Way of Life for Fulfilling Relationships

“Gratitude is an art of painting an adversity into a lovely picture.” – Kak Sri

Would you take a moment and acknowledge how blessed you are? Yes, you are blessed no matter how bad the situation you are in now. Do you realize that being able to walk upright, to breathe, to see the world with your eyes, to hear, to speak is a blessing. There are those who can't perform simple day-to-day activities because of their disability.

You may say, “So what, I have a lot of other problems. My husband takes me for granted, my boss doesn't like me, I am underpaid….” But have you ever paid attention to what you have. The same old saying- it depends whether you see the glass as half full or half empty. 

Life can't be fabulous all the time. You need to be grateful for what you have. Gratitude is something we take for granted. We expect a lot from others yet we hardly take time to appreciate and express gratitude for what we get.  

Gratitude enables you to focus on what you have rather than what lacks in your life. Gratitude means being thankful, and counting your blessings. Learn to enjoy the simple pleasures of life. Take each day as if it is a blessing. Express your thanks to everyone who help you even if it is the smallest of actions. It makes people happier and strengthens love relationships as well as relationships with your colleagues.             

Relationship tip: Be grateful for all the positive aspects of marriage

In fact the best relationship advice to experience wonderful relationships is to be grateful for everything good your spouse does for you. However it is observed that in marriage relationships, keeping an attitude of gratitude is difficult. Most often, we tend to see all the negative things in a marriage rather than the positive aspects.

Instead of cribbing about how your partner doesn't listen to you or keeps home untidy; try to see the positives in him. When you will begin to feel grateful for what you have in your marriage relationship; you will begin to experience more love, happiness and feel more connected to your spouse. 

“I would maintain that thanks are the highest form of thought; and that gratitude is happiness doubled by wonder.” – G.K. Chesterton

Even in a relationship with your friends, be grateful for the time your friends stood by you. Being grateful doesn't only mean saying 'thank you'. It means being there for each other and supporting your buddies. Even if you had a friends who took you for granted, you don't let disappointments change you. To have a friend, you need to be a friend first. 

There are many people who get in touch with others only when they need help. That is selfishness. Such shallowness is rewarded by misery only sooner or later. Stay true to your friends and be with them in their times good and bad.

Make a mental note of the all the people who have been good to you and who have helped you in your life in some way or the other. And acknowledge them for their support and love.

The next time, you feel low, try to look at the positive things in your life. In fact, make it a habit to acknowledge all the good things in your life everyday.  And soon you will see changes taking place for the better. 

“Cultivate the habit of being grateful for every good thing that comes to you, and to give thanks continuously. And because all things have contributed to your advancement, you should include all things in your gratitude.” ― Ralph Waldo Emerson

Success is Short-lived -Don't Let It Get to your Head

"Never let success get to your head, and never let failure get to your heart".
- Anonymous

Lucrative job, fat paycheck, swanky apartment, big car – all this and more can get too heady to handle early in age.

Early success has its pitfalls. People who achieve some degree of good fortune and success in early life, tend to lose their humility. Achieving success is tough and handling it is even more difficult. Every other day, we get to read in newspapers, stories about sports persons, movie stars being arrested, rehabilitated, found in a drunken state and so on.

Early success can get dangerous. All that money, glitz, and attention appear tempting for a certain period of time. But if you take all this too seriously, you are headed for a downfall. SUCCESS IS TRANSIENT. Don't mistake it as something permanent.

Wisdom for success is to take it with a pinch of salt

It will be foolish to turn success into vanity. Many successful people lack gratitude and behave with an attitude, “It is all about me. I am above everyone else.” When you let success get to your head, your quality of life degrades, you lose your friends, you lose your peace of mind and you naturally feel more stressed.

What is the point of achieving success, when you can't enjoy life. What is the point of making loads of money when you don't have your dear ones around. In the pursuit of success, people often ignore their family and health.

The mantra for personal success and self improvement is to celebrate your accomplishments but don't let success get to your head. After all, what goes up, comes down. Learn to take success with a pinch of salt.

Be humble, show gratitude

Be grateful to everyone who has helped you in turning your dreams into reality. Having an attitude that, “I did it all by myself” is wrong. Just think for once - could you have reached where you are if your father and your Mum had not supported you? Could you have become a champion if your coach or trainer had not mentored you? Could you have grabbed the top post if your superiors hadn’t helped you when you began your career.

Remember to be grateful to all those who helped you achieve success and acknowledge your parents, friends, family, coach and mentor who helped you in your journey towards your goals.
 

Stay humble

Humility is the virtue that defines a successful person. No matter how high you have reached, stay humble. People will appreciate you even more. Being pompous and arrogant won't take you anywhere. Be nice to people.

Don't look at your juniors with disdain. As these are the people you will meet on your way down. Hence treat everyone with respect. As Dwight Moody once said, “Be humble or you'll stumble.”


Stay connected with your roots
Don't forget your roots. As we advance in our careers, quite often we turn our backs on what made us successful in the first place. Never forget where you came from. Rather embrace and rejoice in your individuality and your roots. This is what makes you what you are.
 

Devote time to your family

How many times has it happened that you have gone to another town but could not meet your friends there because of a business meeting? How many times has it happened that you missed your wife's birthday or your daughter's function in the school because you were busy in conference phone calls?

You may feel you are entitled to do so because you are a highly successful person and you are doing all this for others. In reality, you are distancing yourself from the people who love you the most. Pay attention to your family and close friends. Sharing some good moments with your dear ones are more important than fame and money.
 

Keep improving yourself

No matter how successful you are, don't let go of professionalism. Come to your meetings on time. And stay disciplined. Quite often, sports persons their lose sense of direction after they have achieved a heroic status and start ignoring their health. They become flabby and lose stamina.

At other times, sports persons take success too seriously and want to cling onto it forever. They totally burn out and keep on playing games in a row and ignore their health. The key to success is to maintain a balance. Keep working hard, maintain discipline, take good care of your health, spend time with your family and friends and respect others.

Enjoy your achievements but don't make the mistake of letting success go to your head! Else it can be deadly.