I wish I could remember where I heard or read this statement, “gratitude turns what you have into enough.”

I had the opportunity to have a speaking engagement with underprivileged women. Women who receive food from their children’s school to have something to feed them during the vacation… that kind of underprivileged.

What does one share with women who has less than nothing, sometimes not even a shred of dignity?

I have no idea how it feels to be dependent on other people for food and clothes. I was taunted by this question, how am I going to influence the lives of these women?

I did my Leadership Development Coaching Certification through the Leadership Academy. Our coach taught us the value of gratitude.

So that was exactly where I began my topic of conversation… what are you grateful for today? They had to share within their groups what they were grateful for on that day.

Did you know that when you practice gratitude, 3 times a day for 28 days, that you can rewire your brain?

Gratitude is defined in the following way: the quality of being thankful, readiness to show appreciation and to return kindness.

Anthony Robbins said, when you are grateful, fear disappears and abundance appears.

I was amazed at the gratitude of these women, who had nothing, and how grateful they were for the opportunity to be spoilt.

What then is gratitude? I believe it is a thing of mindset. It is a state of being. Jen Sincero describes it beautifully in her book, You are a badass. Truly being in a state of gratitude is about having an awareness of, and a deep appreciation for, the many miracles in your life.

It feels good to feel good. And gratitude is a feel-good feeling.

Let us try it together. I am sharing 10 things which I am grateful for today:

1. Always on the top of my list, my family. I love them so much and I feel so honored to be the mom and wife of our home.
2. My business, Flourish* by Sonika. I love what it stands for and the way it inspires and influence.
3. Awareness. I love how awareness has allowed me to change my perspective and my life.
4. My clients. I love how the coaching process has allowed my clients to change their lives and live a life of beauty and creativity.
5. My physical abilities, because having a healthy body is allowing me to love my family, to build my business and to influence the people around me.
6. This journey called life. Yes, it has downs, but many ups. Yes, there are difficult times, but more times to celebrate. I love the vision and the dream I have for my life and I am excited about all the possibilities and all that is waiting to happen.
7. Coddiwomple. I love this word because it is such an accurate description of my life… I am walking in a purposeful way to a vague destination. Just saying the word, coddiwomple makes me feel good.
8. Friends, family and my tribe. I love how they show up daily to show love, appreciation, and support for my dreams and desires.
9. My future self. I love her because she is everything I am working to. I am excited for myself and for the manifesting of my vision.
10. For being a woman in business. Yes, it may be hard, but I am laying the foundation for those who will be coming after me!

My dearest friend, what are you grateful for today?

I have done some research on vibrational frequency or the energy I bring to this life.. You can either be a high vibrational human by having high and feel good vibes or you could be a low vibrational human by having low and dense vibes.

You can change your frequency by changing your mindset, your diet, your environment and drinking more water. But this takes times and dedication. Or you can extend your gratitude to the Universe and feel in a moment better. When you extend gratitude, you are raising your vibes. It only takes a moment.

It feels good to feel good!

Maybe you are finding yourself in less than ideal circumstances. Maybe you are broken and hurt, on the verge of hitting rock bottom. Maybe your relationship is in turmoil and you can see your children facing challenges. And these things cannot be changed in a moment or even over time. But your mindset around it can change.

Just like the women who I engaged with cannot get out of extreme poverty in a moment, they can have a change in perspective and extend gratitude toward what they currently do have.

Life is hard. Life is messy. But in any given moment you can be grateful for what you have.

My key take-aways:

1. Gratitude turns what you have into enough
2. Gratitude can rewire your brain
3. It feels good to feel good
4. You can change your vibes, from low to high, when you extend gratitude

Share with me in the comments, what are you grateful for today?