Category: Feeling Fulfilled

Today while playing basketball, three of the people I was with got injured.

One was feeling pain in his Achilles tendon. Another tweaked his knee. And another took a hit in the ribs and groin. They each sat out the rest of the game.

Injuries happen. Especially when participating in intense exercise that involves sprinting, jumping, and physical contact. And when they do, all we tend to think about is, “Why me?” “Why now?” “How long will this last?” “When will I be healed?” “When will I be back to normal?”

…When we get injured, sick, or experience grief, suddenly our vast array of life interests, excitements, and focuses become one—getting back to feeling normal.

And today, I’m thankful that, all things considered, I’m feeling pretty normal. No serious injuries; no serious sicknesses; no imminent grief looming in the background of my life.

Feeling normal isn’t something I think many of us remember to show gratitude for—mostly because it’s precisely when we’re feeling normal that we’re able to fan our attention out to everything else in the world—and so we do. And if that’s you, I hope you can take a few minutes to come back and feel the full gratitude of normality in this moment.

Because right now, I know those three people I played ball with are probably only thinking one thing and it might be something you don’t even realize you’re so fortunate to have.

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P.s. In case you missed it, you can read the best of what I posted to MoveMe Quotes last week, here.

Hardship is a necessary ingredient for deep gratitude.

Without hardship, beautiful things get taken for granted and a sense of entitlement can develop.

With hardship, beautiful things are seen as gifts that could be lost at any moment and that sense of deep appreciation emerges.

The greater the hardship, the deeper the appreciation potential. For example:

• The person who has always had running water doesn’t have the same appreciation potential as the person who hasn’t, who has spent most of their life thirsty, and who is suddenly given access.
• The person who has always had many friends doesn’t have the same appreciation potential as the person who has always struggled to make friends and suddenly has a great one.
• The person who has always had access to money doesn’t have the same appreciation potential as the person who grew up poor, with no alternative sources or connections, and is suddenly making a bunch of money on their own.

This is all to say, don’t curse your hardships—understand that your roots for appreciation are growing deeper with each passing day. And what’s really happening is you’re setting yourself up to be able to fully receive the blessings that come on the other side.

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P.s. In case you missed it, you can read the best of what I posted to MoveMe Quotes last week, here.

The more specific you can be with your gratitude, the more impactful it will be.

Specificity requires a more careful, deep thought process which naturally challenges you to spend more time and pull from deeper parts inside of yourself. General gratitude happens in less time and from a more peripheral area which naturally makes it less impactful and more fleeting.

“I’m thankful for my spouse,” for example, is not the same as “I’m thankful for the effort my spouse puts into making me feel seen and heard—from the way they lock eye contact to the way they silently nod and let me finish my complete train of thought to the way they respond deliberately and elegantly.”

There’s no denying the impact of any and all practiced gratitude.

Specificity, however, is how you unleash the power of gratitude in full.

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P.s. I’m so incredibly grateful for the support I received in the launch of my first ever digital product—from the purchases, to the shares, to the reviews, to the comments, to the just plain great vibes… it was an overwhelmingly positive day and I am deeply grateful for each of you who contributed to it. You know who you are. Thank you :)

There’s no universal answer. But, if you’re able to:

• Flip a switch for instant electric
• Turn a knob for instant fresh water
• Call loved ones and chat for no reason
• Big toe a pedal for traveling speeds of 70+mph
• Tap a phone for instant connection to unlimited knowledge

I’d say you’re doing pretty damn well.

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P.s. My first digital product is DONE. I will be releasing it this Thursday (1/12) at 10am. I’m ecstatic. Stay tuned. 😬