Act as if…

And if you don’t think you have anything to be grateful for, keep looking. Because you don’t just receive optimism. You can’t wait for things to be great and then be grateful for that. You’ve got to behave in a way that promotes that.

Michael J. Fox

I came across this quote the other day and loved it, especially the last line. It reminded me right away of a practice that I’ve learned that works beautifully with this thought. If I act as if I am grateful, then I can engage grateful energy so that it starts to move through me, affecting me and my environment. Our thoughts create our reality, so why not purposely tweak them for our good?

This concept takes practice. Since we’ve been most likely following different kinds of programming for much of our lives, we have to learn to artfully manage this new approach to gain some traction. We have to work towards being consistent, catching and forgiving ourselves when we slip up. It’s not easy to break through old habits, but it will be well worth our time to see this through.

We can become very robotic in this life, reacting to old patterns as we go along, but if we can throw a wrench into that unconscious messaging, we can change the outcome. Choose something like gratitude and act as if it provides you with endless possibilities. Build that muscle. Do lots of reps. Watch yourself become more fit. Feel the benefits and then choose what you want to consciously promote next. Keep looking!