You can change your life with a single thought.

This one thought can:
• Create great wealth
• Restore health and even cure disease
• Unlock your greatest potential
• Forge and fortify deep abiding love
• Inspire great joy to the point of bliss

You’ve heard me explain before how the creation process produces every outcome in our lives:

roseglassesWe get out of LIFE what we CREATE. Simple enough, right? We are all creative beings. We all arrive the same – naked, scared and ignorant. What becomes of our lives from that point forward is what we create (or don’t create).

So what drives and determines our creation process?

EXPECTATION. You’ve heard the saying, “Expectation manifests into creation.” Thus, expectation determines what we create in our lives.

So what are we expecting? Why does one person have a different expectation than another? Our THOUGHTS drive our expectation. Whatever we’re thinking about becomes what we expect to happen. This is why the great self-improvement books have focused on the power of thoughts: THINK and Grow Rich, The Power of Positive THINKING, As a Man THINKeth, The Magic of THINKING Big, etc.

Of all the thoughts you experience and control, there is one that can profoundly transform your life on a daily basis. What is it? Gratitude.


How does gratitude transform our lives?

Our mind is an auditing device that seeks to find what is wrong, lacking or missing in our environment. Its job is to avoid danger and ensure our survival with threat-assessment emotions like fear, hesitation and suspicion. If we allow these negative thoughts to dominate our mind and become our expectations they will determine the direction of our creation process. The ultimate result: a lifetime of disappointing and unfulfilling experiences and outcomes.

However, we CAN stop the natural negative tendency of our mind by redirecting it towards abundance and what’s positively possible by focusing it on what we’re grateful for. Almost instantly your life can change its trajectory.

This simple shift can change your world and all that you can create in it.

There are many “woo woo” theories about this phenomenon from “magnetic vibrations,” to the “Law of Attraction” (click here for the real explanation of this law), to a “Universal Consciousness.” But the explanation is far simpler:

You see and experience what you look for. That’s it.

Take this simple test: In the room where you’re sitting now, count the number of red items you see. Note as many as you can. How many items did you count? Now without looking again–eyes closed– how many items in the room do you remember were blue? You probably can’t recall many at all. When you open your eyes and focus on the blue items, you’ll probably see many more than you remembered. Why? Because the first time you weren’t looking for them, thus you didn’t see them. In your first reality they did really exist at all.

An attitude of gratitude adjusts the aperture of your mind to focus on the positive. Thus, you’ll see, discover and create more of the same, experiencing more abundance, prosperity, well-being, love, joy and happiness.

The Tangible Benefits of Gratitude

Health – Research has proven that practicing gratitude improves our emotional and physical well-being, reduces stress, worry, fear, anxiety and the conditions closely associated with these emotions such as high blood pressure, depression, heart disease, and immune system deficiencies.

Relationships – I loved what Joel Osteen said in my interview with him. Our partners usually fulfill only about 80% of our needs. Most people, however, focus on the 20% that’s missing. Thus, they ultimately become unhappy and unfulfilled. Sadly, many people will leave the relationship to find that 20% in someone else. What they find is that “new” person will also fulfill only about 80% of their needs as well—their just different needs and expectations from their last partner.

The key is to focus on the 80% of what is right, wonderful and beautiful about your partner and your relationship. Your positive perspective will change how you appreciate, interact and support your partner, thus garnering a much different response and engagement from them.

Wealth – When you see the glass half-full versus half-empty, you will start to see the abundance of water all around you. When you attune your mind to abundance you will start to develop new ideas, and see the opportunity and potential all around you. Your positive outlook will change how you walk, talk and interact in the world. Other influential and resourceful “birds of a feather” will also see the commonality and want to connect with you.

Put on your rose colored glasses.

Gratitude is a choice. It can become a positive habit—but only with discipline. With continued exercise and practice, it will create more abundance, prosperity, well-being, joy and happiness than you ever thought possible.

In the spirit of Thanksgiving—my favorite holiday and expression of my favorite success principle—I want to thank YOU – all of you who have read and followed me through this blog, on Twitter, Facebook and through everything we do at SUCCESS magazine and SUCCESS Media.

My mentor, Jim Rohn, taught me the greatest gift of all is the gift of personal development—so that is what I want to give you. The program that had the most impact on my development and good fortune has been Jim’s Challenge to Succeed program. I’ve listened to it over 60+ times and have given away many dozens of copies to people I care about.

As a further expression of my gratitude, I asked my SUCCESS Store staff to make the program available at the lowest price ever offered so anyone could afford to buy it—and buy several copies to give as gifts to others you might want to thank as well.

In addition, I asked if they could throw in a premium bonus on top. They did!
Go here to receive.

In what ways will you express your gratitude over the next week?
What is your favorite gratitude practice?
Please share your comments below and I hope you and your loved ones have a wonderful holiday!