Do you enjoy your life? Do you work hard to meet some unattainable goal? Do you ever wonder why you try so hard, and whether you are missing out on some other aspect of your life in the process?

I woke up this morning (of course not wanting to get out of bed), with an immense amount of gratitude and appreciation for what I have today. It is so easy to look forward at what is next, to anticipate that x or y will happen, and in doing so we lose sight of what is NOW, what is today. What if you were able to only look at what you had to accomplish today? What if we had no capacity to wonder how we will ever accomplish what is on our ongoing plate of to-dos, and we could only do what was possible today?

For those of you that know me well, or who have been following my blog for a while know that I have an interest in personal finance. As I have grown up, I’ve been in situations where life has forced me to understand the steps to take regarding wills, estates, living wills, life insurance, etc. This has led me to want to know more and understand what we can do to set up our financial future for ourselves and family (or future family).

Due to my interest in personal finance, I follow the LearnVest newsletter each day. Recently I found a newsletter I saved from January that really spoke to me about gratitude. While I do not think I have Money Comparisonitis, this newsletter on “Money Comparisonitis” (specifically the 4th bullet) can cross over to any area of our life. I also think the following points in their newsletter are good reminders:

“Be grateful for the things you already have, whether that means your health, close friendships, the love of your family or your fulfilling career.”

Later it says:

“One way to better appreciate the good things is to make a gratitude list every day, which will remind you of everything in your life you’re already grateful for. And, ultimately, that’s the best way to keep comparisonitis at bay.”

What if we lived in present gratitude instead of moments of anticipation? What is on my gratitude list will be different from what is on yours, but nevertheless we all have a lot to be grateful for.

It is almost time for the weekend. What if we focused on gratitude and appreciation for the next few days?!