Do You Have A Plan for 2010?

Are you looking for more ease in your life? Do you wish things flowed better? I don’t have a magic solution for you, but I do know a simple tool that, when leveraged, makes life smoother and more pleasantand it’s free and at your fingertips. How about serving up a bit more gratitude?

We all know that gratitude is a good thing. By gratitude, I’m talking about that deep peaceful sense of appreciation and thankfulness we feel for certain realities and people in our lives. Liberally and authentically applied, gratitude has the ability to work wonders. We don’t just give thanks and gratitude. Our ability to connect with our sense of gratitude has the power to profoundly affect who and how we are in the world.

Here are three ways that gratitude can make your life flow better:

Create more happiness: Taking time out to identify and name the things and people that we are grateful for on a regular basis increases our feelings of well-being and contentment. The simple act of noting three things we are thankful for on a daily basis has been shown to increase feelings of happiness, decrease feelings of depression, and be such a positive experience that subjects in one study continued doing it long after the study was over.

Create more positive relationships: We all love to be appreciated. Expressing our gratitude obviously creates good willand increases the odds that we’ll see more of the qualities we expressed appreciation for. Expressing genuine gratitude is a way (albeit after the fact) of expressing what we want and need. When we let someone know that we are truly thankful for something they say or do or convey, we are also letting them know something about how they can and do help and support usand they’ll know that going forward. Expressing gratitude to another is also a mood enhancer. It’s not only kind, it makes us feel good to express gratitude.

Create a mindshift: We tend to see what we are focused on and miss the things we aren’t looking for. Let’s face it. When we are too busy or too stressed, we often get focused on theun-done,the not-working and the negative aspects of our life. It’s an unpleasant, energy-depleting cycle. We don’t tend to see what we’ve crossed off our to-do list as clearly as we see the things we didn’t get to. Increasing the focus on gratitude shifts our focus. When we start to look more closely for the things that we appreciate, we start to notice more of them. Looking for, noticing, and expressing thankfulness can create a mindshift which leads to an increasingly positive feedback loop of identifying and creating more gratifying experiences.

Here’s a tip about gratitudeleverage it. As you identify what you are thankful for, don’t simply acknowledge it. Find ways to lean into your gratitude. Are you spending enough time with the people who you really truly feel grateful for having in your life? Do you share your appreciation? Are you savoring the things or the qualities of your life that fill you up and leave you thankful? Are you allowing yourself to thoroughly soak up the experiences that make up yourthings I am grateful for list each day? Allowing yourself to be present with your gratitude is one of the most inspiring gifts you can give yourself.

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Melissa McCreery, PhD, ACC, is a Psychologist, ICF Certified Life Coach,and emotional eating coach who specializes in providing smart resources to busy women struggling with food, weight and overwhelm. Do You Have A Plan for 2010?18148Do You Have A Plan for 2010?I recently had a consultation with a women business owner who wanted to move her business from frustrating 5-figures and into the 6-figure mark. She was pretty clear in her money goal and seemed very determined to make it happen. I had to ask myself

Is it Doable?

Absolutely!

Is it doable with the plan she had?

Absolutely not.

So many business owners create good solid goals and then take haphazard action, constantly led astray by another bright idea or strategy that someone dangles in front of them. Or possibly they sit back and think that byusing the Law of Attraction it will miraculously be delivered to themplop right into their lap.

Here is the truth:

You must take the RIGHT action in the RIGHT way at the RIGHT time while keeping a clear and positive mindset about what you want to achieve. This combination will catapult you forward to your goals and nothing else!

Sound tough? Well imagine having to go and work for someone else again in a JOBugh the very thought makes me cringe! You have already invested time, resources and your sanity to making your business work. So how do you make it happen and stick to the plan you developed?

My Coaches Request:

1. Sit down and revisit your goals for 2010. Haven’t developed any? Well get cracking on that task.

2. Determine if your goals are realistic given where you are currently and your action steps. For example, consider how you plan on bringing in revenue for the year, what program, services or products are you launching in 2010 and what marketing strategies are you planning on implementing in the year?

3. Next revise your goals or the plan to achieve them or maybe both so that they are in total alignment with your visionoh, and make sure they are doable. I like to tell my clients that when developing goals you need to feel the friction between too hard and too easythat place in between. When you find it,that is where your goal should be.

4. Take action right now! Want to make sure that you are formulating the RIGHT goals, at the RIGHT time, in the RIGHT order? Call me at 978-794-4991 or email me at maureen@daretobephenomenal.com for a strategy session to see if I can help you formulate the right plan! It’s a simple, easy and cost effective way to make sure you are on the right track!

Maureen Campaiola, known by her clients, asthe DARE Coach is President of DARE To Be Phenomenal. As an accomplished business coach, author, speaker and entrepreneur Maureen spends her time in the trenches working on solving the unique problems of women business owners and entrepreneurs. She can always be counted on to deliver smart , innovative solutions to turn a hectic and draining business into a thriving, highly lucrative, smooth running, and fun money making reality. In addition, she is the founder of the wildly successfulSuccess Minded Women’s Business Network where like-minded and highly motivated women connect, support and engage in joint ventures. To learn more about how you can step into your greatness, accelerate your business, AND achieve all the personal and business success you desire visit: www.daretobephenomenal.com or email: maureen@daretobephenomenal.com