My Favorite Self-Help Stuff

Okay, so the fireworks have come and gone, but the spirit of July 4 is still with me.

It will always be very special to me — as an immigrant I sometimes still have to pinch myself. I’m really here. I really do get to live in this amazing country!

When I came here as a graduate student, I was absolutely blown away by that sense of “can do” spirit, and the idea that achievement is something everybody was not only allowed but expected to go after.

That kind of attitude didn’t fit in quite as well where I grew up — I was supposed to be a lot more modest in my goals than I was, and stick to my place so to speak.

Here, though, it’s “Be all you can be” and it’s not just a slogan for the army but people really believe it. I love it.

So here I am, striving to be all I can be. And celebrating that I’m in a country where this is appreciated and even expected. Sure, there can be a lot of pressure at times, but the rewards are great as well.

And yes, getting that Green Card wasn’t easy. For years I wasn’t even sure I’d be able to get one. But I did, and when I drove myself across the country in a huge Hertz truck to get to my new job, I was suddenly finding myself driving past cities and towns that I had read about in my youth back in Germany. It was a major goosebumps moment when I realized that. How’d that happen!

So as I was watching the Fourth of July fireworks the other day, as I do every year, I got seriously choked up, as I do every year as well.

I hope you had a great July 4th too.

Thank you.

Elisabeth

When you’re stressed, you’re probably focused on everything that’s wrong in your life. And from the Law of Attraction, we know that this is likely to attract more of the same.

And yet, there’s one thing we can do that can easily turn it all around. It will lower your stress levels like you won’t believe, and it will also attract better things into your life. It’s like attracting instant good karma.

And that magic thing is gratitude.

I’ve written about this before, though not lately. But I am inspired to write about it right now because a) I’m grateful for so many things right now, and b) one of my new Twitter friends, Daniel Brenton, is putting on this really cool gratitude watch event every week.

You can see what he’s doing right here: gratitude watch

It’s a seriously uplifting site, featuring videos and links to articles, plus, well, just go and check it out.

There are also links to two articles I wrote for ezinearticles.com a while ago…

I realize it can be hard to think of things to be grateful for especially when things don’t seem to be going your way. But try it anyway.

My favorite way to do it: I just go outside. Usually, just the sunshine and the fresh air will instantly remind me of a LOT I’m grateful for. And as I walk to my car, hey, there’s another reason. I’ve got a car. And it’s running. Plus I can walk, I can see, there’s so much I can do to change my life for the better, and it’s unbelievable how quickly I feel in a MUCH better mood, and miraculously, things start to go better as well almost instantly.

Often, I come back to my computer to find a new order or some other kind of good news. It’s almost as if the Universe had held off giving it to me until I changed to a more positive state of mind.

Try it, and let me know how it goes…

Oh, but what if it’s raining? Oh puh-leeeze! Think about how wonderful this rain is for all the plants and vegetation. And besides, we need it too — what would happen to our water supply if it stopped raining. Our earth wouldn’t function without that steady dose of water. Also remember to enjoy the clean smell of the air when the rain stops, or the fact that you can feel the rain drops on your face.

Or stay indoors and look around for things you’re grateful for. A favorite book. The fact that there’s food in your fridge. The fact that you HAVE a fridge. And so on…

In gratitude,

Elisabeth

P.S.: Here’s that link again: gratitude watch

P.S.: Please follow me on Twitter: http://twitter.com/ElisabethKuhn and on Facebook too: http://facebook.com/elisabethkuhn

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I know it’s after Thanksgiving already, but to me, the whole weekend feels like Thanksgiving, and I want to take the opportunity to thank you for being here, for reading my posts, and for being part of my community.

I hope you had a wonderful Thanksgiving Day, and I hope that the spirit of Thanksgiving will stay with you for days, weeks, months to come.

Last year, I wrote an article for ezinearticles.com about gratitude and how to make sure to remember what we’re grateful for, and also about keeping a gratitude journal.

You can find it here:

http://www.tinyurl.com/gratitudearticle

I hope you’ll enjoy it!

I also have a special treat for you.  More on that later tonight, but just to give you a heads up:

I’ll be holding a teleseminar tomorrow evening, at 9 p.m. EST (it won’t be too long, maybe about 45 minutes to an hour max).

About what?

About how to keep the holiday spirit going and dissolve all that holiday preparation stress.

If your to-do list is way too long, you might find it helpful.

You can even ask me questions and I’ll do my best to answer them tomorrow:

send them to “ask AT myfavoriteselfhelpstuff.com”

If you ask me a question, I’ll also send you the teleseminar invitation personally!

So thank you, enjoy the article, and put Sunday evening’s teleseminar on your calendar. And check back here for more details and the number.

Have a great Thanksgiving weekend!

Elisabeth