Daily Gratitude: Short and sweet! So often you hear people talking about what they are going to do. Then a year later you hear the same boast. They are still “going” to do it. But they never get started. When you make up your mind about something, don’t announce it to the world, just do it. I know people talk about it being an accountability thing but is it really? Do you require the mere words of others to push you to start doing something? No. It has to come from within. Do you think I first decided I wanted to try to walk across Tennessee because someone said “oh that’s a great idea, Terrie, go for it”? Heck no. Does the encouragement help once you’ve started? Sure it does but it I relied on x number of people telling me “you can do it” to keep my tired butt moving, I’d be in sad shape. You cannot rely on these “externals” to motivate you to do anything. It has to come from within. Just start and then continue.

Daily Gratitude: Remember “Don’t Worry, Be Happy”? This quote encapsulates the essence of life that we should be striving for. When you read it, you’ll smack your forehead and say “duh, of course”. if trouble comes, you’ll have plenty of time to be miserable (if that’s what you choose). So why steal some of that misery ahead of time? You certainly don’t need to “practice” being miserable, do you? Why not just go on about today’s business and deal with whatever is coming (if it is coming) when it gets here?

Daily Gratitude: I think that if we all could remember this simple saying, we’d feel more satisfied in our daily lives. You never know what will come from some action you take today. And that could be something good or not so good. Let’s say you cut someone off in traffic because you were late to work but just “had” to get to Starbucks to get your coffee first. How do you know that cutting that person off just wasn’t the last straw for that person. Maybe they are now falling off the deep end in their life. You’re probably thinking “oh Terrie, that’s BS. No one could be that affected by such a simple thing”. No? Do you think that all road rage is pre-planned? What, too, if that person has depression? Could that one act make them more suicidal? The point here is that not only can good acts turn people’s lives around but any act or words can change someone’s life. It’s not your job to figure out if or how. Your job is just to be kind and think about what you’re doing or saying because in just a second or two you may have planted a tree.