- Dr. Eric Rooker
A St. Nicholas Gift for OTO'ers!
Today is St. Nick's Day, and one of the best gifts you can give yourself is a mind filled with positive thought!
St. Nick, while a fictional character today, is based around the Catholic Saint, Nicholas of Myra, and lived at the peak of the Roman Empire. While many far fetching claims are made of him, one thing everyone agrees upon is that he was known for giving secret gifts to people. Gifts that would improve the quality of the person's life in a difficult time.
This year let St. Nick bring you a present that will improve the quality of your life; a gratitude routine!
Gratitude routines are a great way to set your brain to positive thought at the beginning and end of a day.
Some of the most successful people in the world, such as Oprah, have a daily gratitude routine. Oprah Winfrey has even stated that she records every grateful moment she experiences in a day!
A gratitude routine is not as much about listing every single thing we have or want; gratitude routines encourage you to identify and recognize all the positive things in your life.
Once you begin listing these positive events, people or opportunities you will notice that life is pretty good. You will notice that there are many things going for you and that many people are here to help you.
This feeling of abundance and value feeds into your mindset. In fact, Harvard Health Publication's research into positive psychology has shown that;
"Gratitude is strongly and consistently associated with greater happiness."
Taking time to mentally recognize, visualize or write down all the things we are grateful for can cause us to pause our day and center our thoughts as well. This helps us to remove ourselves from our current circumstances and concerns, resulting in the breaking of any negative thought patterns, and the growth of positive mental thoughts.
So how do you start a gratitude routine? Simply, grab a notepad or journal and begin to record 3 to 5 things you're grateful for today OR take a few minutes and meditate about 3 to 5 things you appreciate in your life and record them afterwards on a document on your phone or computer where you can view your gratitude list during challenging times of the day.
Where or how you practice gratitude matters little. The important part is recognizing you live a life of abundance and that no matter what terrible call or negative event happens to you today your life is still filled with opportunity!
So start your gratitude routine today! You could start with something as simple as; "I'm thankful I have a place to live," or "I'm thankful I have clients to serve." What you're grateful for does not have to be grand just a simple small thing that you appreciate in the moment.
I would like to add that every day I am grateful for you OTO'ers! Having people with similar attitudes and goals and being able to share my learning and knowledge with you is a blessing I truly enjoy.
Happy St Nick day OTO'ers and Carry on!
Dr. Eric
Ps. If you’re struggling to find positive and creative content sources please checkout my knowledge HOTLIST!
Primer Websites:
Forbes.com - leadership tab
Journals/Publications:
Journal of Dairy Science
Hoards Dairyman
Dairy Herd Management
The last 5 books I’ve consumed and recommend:
The 4 Agreements
Make Today Count
How Successful People Think
The Coffee Bean
Make Your Bed
Reddits:
r/entrepreneur
r/EntrepreneurRideAlong
r/smallbusiness
r/staartups
Top 5 Podcasts:
The MFCEO Project
Entrepreneurs on Fire
The Brendon Show
The Gary Vee Audio Experience
The Marketing Secrets Show