Tuesday Digest: November 22, 2022
Gratitude for Writers, 8 Books to Add to Your Pile of Shame and a #QOTD
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4 Ways Writers Can Practice Gratitude Every Day
As a writer, it's easy to get caught up in the daily grind of “content creation.” Whether you're a full-time freelancer, a part-time blogger or you just spend your lunch break posting to Tumblr, it's important to reflect upon the things that bring you joy.
Gratitude can be a powerful tool. Practicing gratitude doesn't just make you feel better about yourself; it makes you more aware of what's going well in your life, which means you'll be more likely to notice and take advantage of opportunities when they arise.
And isn't that exactly what most freelance writers want: more opportunities?!
Here are four ways you can practice gratitude every day:
Make a conscious attempt to appreciate what you have.
Gratitude is all about appreciating what we already have in our lives. I’m not just talking about material possessions, but also time spent with friends and family or quiet moments when we can relax and let our minds wander freely.
The more grateful we feel, the more likely we are to consider ourselves lucky when good things do happen (like winning an award or a writing contest). This may not seem like much, but it does help us recognize that good things can come out of bad situations.
Every morning, I list the three things that I am most grateful for in my 5-Second Journal. I try to repeat the exercise again in the evening reflecting on what happened that day that made me feel especially blessed. Some days are harder than others, but I can almost always come up with at least ONE good thing that happened even if it was a less-than-stellar day.
Celebrate more than just your successes.
This means celebrating what you have accomplished, even if it isn't perfect. I don't know a single writer who doesn't feel imposter syndrome from time to time. While it certainly doesn’t feel good when we are in the moment, if we can learn to celebrate our failures as building blocks toward success, we can flip the script on our inner critic.
In her book, Grit: The Power of Passion & Perseverance, Angela Duckworth says: “Success is never final; failure is never fatal. It's courage that counts.”So you got another rejection letter. Instead of focusing on the negative, celebrate the courage it took you to submit something. Maybe your last newsletter didn't get any engagement or drive any paid subscriptions; instead of feeling down, celebrate the subscribers you already have or the fact that no one unsubscribed.
Duckworth also says, “When it comes to how we fare in the marathon of life, effort counts tremendously.” So, instead of beating yourself up over your failures, congratulate yourself for having the courage to keep trying.
Look back on past challenges with a grateful heart.
Steve Jobs said, "You can't connect the dots looking forward; you can only connect them looking backward. So you have to trust that the dots will somehow connect in your future.”
When our lives are filled with struggle, it can be hard to see how far we've come or how much strength we've gained. But when you do this, you'll find that your past challenges have been an integral part of your journey and have made you who you are today. Maybe they taught you something about yourself that was new or forced a change in your perspective—or maybe they just gave rise to the resilience you needed to keep moving forward.
Say "thank you" out loud and in writing.
Writing down what we are grateful for each day and reflecting on it when we are feeling down can help us to be more thankful. Likewise, saying "thank you" to the people who have helped us along the way, whether it was a friend or a family member, a mentor, a fellow writer, a teacher, or our partner can have a positive effect on those around us.
Sometimes, these people have no idea that they were so instrumental in our lives, and telling them so could be enough to make their day.
This happened to me in 2020 when a childhood friend reached out to me out of the blue on Facebook to tell me how much my posts helped him get through a rough time. I had no idea, and I never would have known had he not thought to tell me.
Julia Cameron, author of The Artist’s Way says to “list three old champions of your creative self-worth. This is your hall of champions, those who wish you and your creativity well.”
These are definitely the people you should thank first but don’t forget about the people who thought you were crazy to want to be a writer too.
Cameron also advises listing three old enemies of your creative self-worth because “your historic monsters are the building blocks of your core negative beliefs…It is always necessary to acknowledge your creative injuries and grieve them. Otherwise, they become creative scar tissue and block your growth.”
I acknowledge those monsters by saying thank you to them as well because sometimes our creative enemies can contribute to our growth as a writer in positive ways.
Key Takeaways:
Practice gratitude by:
keeping a gratitude journal and reading it when you're feeling down;
sharing your writing with the people who have supported you; and,
making sure to say “thank you” to the ones who continue to support you today
Take the time each day to count your blessings, acknowledge the people who helped you along the way, and mindfully appreciate what you have right now instead of focusing on what you don't have. This can go a long way toward squashing that inner voice that loves to tell you how much you suck.
When you cultivate an “attitude of gratitude,” not only will you be a better writer, but you’ll be more in tune with the Universe and more open to opportunity when it comes knocking.
8 Books About Gratitude to Add to Your Pile of Shame
The Power of Moments: Why Certain Experiences Have an Extraordinary Impact - Chip Heath and Dan Heath
Favorite Quote: “Our lives are measured in moments, and defining moments are the ones that endure in our memories.”
Be Here Now - Ram Dass
Favorite Quote: “Don’t think about the past. Just be here now. Don’t think about the future. Just be here now."
The Thank-You Project: Cultivating Gratitude One Thank-You Letter at a Time - Nancy Davis Kho
Favorite Quote: “Gratitude and forgiveness are deeply intertwined. Forgiveness liberates us from dwelling over past hurts, so we can spend more time seeing the good around us and allow ourselves to feel grateful.”
Art Matters: Because Your Imagination Can Change the World - Neil Gaiman & Chris Riddell
Favorite Quote: “The world always seems brighter when you’ve just made something that wasn’t there before.”
Writing Down the Bones: Freeing the Writer Within - Natalia Goldberg
Favorite Quotes: “Play around. Dive into absurdity and write. Take chances. You will succeed if you are fearless of failure.”
“We walk through so many myths of each other and ourselves; we are so thankful when someone sees us for who we are and accepts us.”
The Gratitude Diaries: How a Year Looking On the Bright Side Can Transform Your Life - Janice Kaplan
Favorite Quote: “The more hardship people have suffered, in my experience, the easier it is for them to be grateful for the little things—which, of course, are the things that, added up, comprise our whole”
The Gifts of Imperfection - Brene Brown
Favorite Quotes: “Staying vulnerable is a risk we have to take if we want to experience connection.”
“We're a nation hungry for more joy: Because we're starving from a lack of gratitude.”
Wake Up Grateful: The Transformative Practice of Taking Nothing for Granted - Kristi Nelson
Favorite Quote: “Grateful perspectives do not protect us from the challenges of life, but they do offer us the means to navigate them.”
#QOTD: What are you most grateful for right now?
The Roman philosopher Cicero said, “Gratitude is not only the greatest of virtues but the parent of all others.”
Take a beat. Take a break from your daily routine and tell me what you are most grateful for RIGHT NOW - at this very moment.
Janice Kaplan, the author of The Gratitude Diaries, says that because gratitude is “not dependent on specific events, it [gratitude] is long-lasting and impervious to change or adversity. It requires an active emotional involvement—you can’t be passively grateful, you actually have to stop and feel it, experience the emotion. So it creates an inner richness that’s sustaining in difficult times as well as good ones.”
How might cultivating an “attitude of gratitude” benefit you in all areas of your life?
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