[Money Mondays - 21 Ways to Express Gratitude in January] – The First Six Ideas

Embracing gratitude to create more abundance and clarity in January will require creating new habits, commitment, and focus.

Here are the first six ideas for maximizing your efforts, to make your new lifestyle as joyful and stress-free as possible.

1. Surround Yourself with Beauty

Look for ways to add visual beauty in your surroundings. Treat yourself to fresh flowers every week. Get rid of clutter. Find ways to incorporate images that bring you peace into every day items such as your coffee mug, your mouse, your pens, inspirational posters—even your yoga mat!

2. Dress for Success

No, this doesn’t mean wearing a power-suit, or whatever is most fashionable in women’s business wear today. We’re talking specifically about Yoga clothing!

Everyone will tell you, “wear comfortable clothing”. What they don’t seem to do is remind you that you are going to be trying out a variety of different poses, and—contrary to all those elegant yoga site photos—probably working up a visible sweat, if you’re brand new to it.

DO wear moisture-wicking, breathable clothes (PARTICULARLY sensible, cotton underwear—no lacy nylon); and if you wear shorts, make sure they are neither too tight/short, nor so loose that your mat-mates behind you get treated to more than they wanted to see!

Ditto tops. If you wear open back or loose tops, make sure that you have a well-fitting, no-nonsense Sports bra on underneath.

3. Incorporate Color Therapy

Color has been shown to enhance mood … or knock it down. If you’re most comfortable hiding in dark, dull colors, that’s okay … but now is your perfect opportunity to step out of your comfort zone and wear gorgeous, rich and vibrant colors to boost your mood.

This is especially relevant to yoga clothing! Light colors or whites show sweat—as do dull colors. Go neon, even. Rich magenta; energizing, jewel-toned turquoise; bright, playful purple; happy orange—whatever color speaks to you the most, dare to wear it. Embrace your joyful side.

And see where else in your life you can use color for mood-boosting and gratitude enhancement too.

4. Practice Gratitude Waking and Falling Asleep

The quickest way to get into the habit of gratitude: Find three things to be grateful for, first thing in the morning—before even opening your eyes. And when your head hits the pillow, think of three things you were grateful for that happened during the day. (And feel free to add more, if you like!)

5. Heal Relationships with Gratitude

No matter how angry you are with someone, don’t go to bed without thinking about, finding and telling them something you love about them.

6. Find Small Things You Take for Granted

Sometimes the things we should be most grateful for, we miss. Instead, we take them for granted.

Gratitude has a habit of spilling over into every aspect of your life—especially when you honor your body and mind with exercise, good food, rest and mindfulness. It’s like sunshine on a dark day, when it is genuine and really lived.

And pretty soon you will find that people are grateful for you!

Kae Wagner