Tool Tuesday

May I introduce to you: “Tool Tuesday”! Every Tuesday I will talk about another  tool or  technique to get you (eh… me) a little closer to the life of our dreams.

Obviously, I introduce this exciting new weekly item (insert hint of sarcasm) so at least I will have something to write about.

But my motivation is twofold. The real reason is: I need to work on my willpower. What, that surprises you, after reading this?

See, when God was allocating the attributes that would later form my character, she was really generous with the daydreaming, but extremely frugal on the determination.

For example: I have shelves and shelves full of motivational books of some kind. With every new book I purchase, I can just feel the excitement and the promise of better things ahead! More creativity, greater abundance, learning to love myself better, be a more spiritual parent, be healthier, books on the law of attraction and Zen books on how to just appreciate ‘the now’. I pretty much own the entire “self help” section of Barnes and Nobles.

And that’s not all.

I also have an impressive stack of inspirational CD’s, from affirmations to subliminal messages and from Joel Osteen to Abraham Hicks. By now I should be a very wise person. Very wealthy too. But I am not. Yet.

Few of those books I read from cover to cover. Only some of the CD’s I listen to over and over again (like any and all of Mike Dooley’s tapes). But mostly I read my books half way. Seriously. I never finish them. I'll just switch to another book that promises me even better results, faster. It’s not that I am bored with the book, or the CD’s (although, listening to the same affirmations night after night after night before bed time, really does get a little tiring, not to mention my husband rolling his eyes). No, I stop listening to tapes, I stop reading the motivational books, because I have a lack of willpower.

That’s right…willpower. Strength of will. Strength of mind. Discipline, if you will. I just don’t have it… I remember, when was older and still living at home, my dad would laugh at my mother and me. Pretty much every Sunday night we would announce that tomorrow would be the start of our new diet. This time for real. “You two don’t want it enough” he would always mumble from behind his newspaper, unmoved by our news, “you just don’t have enough discipline”. How true. Apparently I inherited it from my mom. We're both lovely people though. And so is my dad, by the way.

See, I don’t really NEED hundreds of books and tapes on how to live a better life. At the end of the day, all these books more or less preach the same message:

1. Make an inventory of your life;
2. Identify what elements don’t work for you;
3. Write down what it is that you DO want;
4. Set goals and intentions to improve these parts of life;
5. Make baby steps towards reaching those goal;
6. Don’t give up. Stay motivated. (This is were I always get side tracked…);
7. And most importantly: see and feel the end result as if it were already true;
8. The Universe (God, if you will) should do the rest.

It all boils down to this: personal improvement is hard work! You actually have to invest time and energy, even it is only 5 minutes a day for visualizing. And that’s the crux right there, dear internet.
Sure I have the desire to improve myself. Who doesn’t? But I also have the desire to sleep 30 minutes longer, instead of setting my alarm at 6.30 so I can write my morning pages each day and meditate. I know both would help me towards greater happiness, but waking up earlier is not that easy for a person without discipline.

Tool Tuesday will be my discipline. You keep checking in with me, will you? It's like going to the Weight Watchers... if I know you're watching, I will be more motivated. For now, that should do. Fear, embarrassment, shame... all great motivators for people who lack the willpower on their own.

So, this 'Tool Tuesday' I want to start very simple so I can't mess it up, with something small I really love.It's the little application on my iPhone called gratitude journal. It is sweet, pretty and easy to use. Write down five things each day that you are grateful for. Do this for at least a month and your life will change forever.

It is pretty much effortless (especially because it's on my phone; I don't have to remember any special moments until I am home to jot it down). But will you believe that despite the user-friendliness I stopped using this app after 17 days of faithfully typing in my thank full moments. Don't ask.

Oh... you DO want to know? Well, I was in the Berkshires 2 weeks ago, with dear friends. I wanted to write down how grateful I was for the snow, the friendship, the trip. But my phone had no reach out there in the mountains. And just like that… I lost the momentum.
Four days later, back to where I had a signal, I just couldn't get back into the habit. Just like that, I had quite again. I couldn't even finish that one month to see what great change was coming to my life...

But today I will re-introduce the gratitude journal into my life. It’s one of the easiest things you can do to quickly change your outlook on life.  

Who’s with me? You don’t need an iPhone to start a gratitude journal. An old fashioned notebook and pen will do. Keep it in your pocketbook; jot down every little thing that makes you smile. In the beginning it might feel awkward (just write down the basics, like your health, American Idols or your husband taking out the trash). Your list will get longer and longer and better and better.

When we start focusing on all the good stuff, more good stuff will follow. It’s the law! The law of attraction.