Terri's Tuesday Tip of the Week - November 28th

The journey is the reward. – Steve Jobs

When life gives you a hundred reasons to cry, show life that you have a thousand reasons to smile. – Unknown

WOW, this year has gone fast!  We are about 33 days away from 2018. 

As we are preparing to end one year and go into the next, it is a great time to review the year, learn from experiences and decide what changes to make going into the next year.  Hal Borland summarized the transition from one year to the next by saying:

Year’s end is neither an end nor a beginning, but a going on, with all the wisdom that experience can instill in us.

As most of us are usually busy and move from one thing to the next throughout a year, we often forget to take time to learn from our experiences.  Now is a great time to start reviewing 2017 and gain knowledge from the year.  Below are some questions to help review 2017. 

1.       Review what happened in your life this year.

2.       What accomplishments or milestones did you have in 2017?

3.       What lessons did you learn this year?

4.       What do you want to change going into 2018?

CHALLENGE: Write down answers to questions 2, 3 and 4 to help review 2017.

Terri's Tuesday Tip of the Week - November 21st

Gratitude unlocks the fullness of life. – Melody Beattie

The real gift of gratitude is that the more grateful you are, the more present you become.  – Robert Holden

Thanksgiving

For each new morning with its light,

For rest and shelter of the night,

For health and food,

For love and friends,

For everything Thy goodness sends.

-         Ralph Waldo Emerson (1803-1882)

Happy Thanksgiving!

To learn some interesting insights about the history of Thanksgiving, check out history.com: http://www.history.com/topics/thanksgiving/history-of-thanksgiving.

Terri's Tuesday Tip of the Week - November 14th

Feeling gratitude and not expressing it is like wrapping a present and not giving it. – William Arthur Ward

Gratitude is the single most important ingredient to living a successful and fulfilled life. - Jack Canfield

A grateful heart is a magnet for miracles. – Unknown

As we are approaching Thanksgiving, I hope many people have started thinking about what they are thankful for.  Researching gratitude, I discovered that the University of California, Davis has conducted a ten (10) year study on gratitude journals.  According to Dr. Robert Emmons, people that regularly write down what they are grateful for in their gratitude journals have improved health (emotional and physical) and better relationships and communities.

2017 has not been the year I expected.  A habit I have continued is daily finding something to be thankful for.  There have been times that I write something down when it immediately happens and other times I will recap my day before I go to bed and write in my gratitude journal.  By creating a gratitude mindset, this unexpected year has had me finding the good things in life instead of looking at my current circumstances negatively.   

Be thankful for what you have; you’ll end up having more.  If you concentrate on what you don’t have, you will never, ever have enough. – Oprah Winfrey

CHALLENGE: For the next 45 days, finish out the year daily writing down at least one thing you are grateful for.  Once you daily start looking for one thing to be grateful for, you will discover that it becomes easier to daily find many things to be thankful for. 

To read more about gratitude journals, review the resources listed below:

http://ggia.berkeley.edu/practice/gratitude_journal

https://greatergood.berkeley.edu/article/item/tips_for_keeping_a_gratitude_journal

https://ggsc.berkeley.edu/what_we_do/major_initiatives/expanding_gratitude

Terri's Tuesday Tip of the Week - November 7th

Honoring the sacrifices many have made for our country in the name of freedom and democracy is the very foundation of Veterans Day.   - Charles B. Rangel

Some people live an entire lifetime and wonder if they have ever made a difference in the world, but the Marines don’t have that problem. – Ronald Reagan

Our veterans accepted the responsibility to defend America and uphold our values when duty called. – Bill Shuster

On Friday, we will celebrate the amazing men and women that have served our great country on Veterans Day.  Living about a mile from the Pentagon, I have had the opportunity to interact with many military personnel that currently serve and those who have served our country and my respect for our military has grown.  My deep respect for our military came from my amazing and ornery grandfather, which served in the United States Army Air Corps, and a grandmother who was very patriotic. 

As I have been trying to determine what I will be doing on Friday to honor these great men and women, I decided to do a little research to discover why we celebrate these individuals who have served our country on November 11^th.

In 1918, President Woodrow Wilson declared November 11^th as Armistice Day, which commemorated the end of World War I.  In 1954, the country had been through World II and the Korean and the 83^rd Congress amended the legislation that had been passed in 1938 declaring November 11^th “Armistice Day” to “Veterans Day” allowing the country to honor all men and women who have served in the United States Armed Forces.

CHALLENGE: On Friday, find an opportunity to thank a veteran for their service to our country.

We are the 'Home of the Free' because of the Brave! - Unknown

Resource:

http://www.presidency.ucsb.edu/ws/?pid=9511

http://www.military.com/veterans-day/history-of-veterans-day.html