When I was growing up, I remember our mom singing this song over and over:
Count your blessings, name them one by one
Count your blessings, see what God hath done!
(Click the link if you’ve never heard the song…)
I have to admit, I got rather sick of the song, and of my mom reminding me to count my blessings. But this song has a deep lesson for those of us living, working and teambuilding in the desert, whether it is the Nubian desert or the proverbial concrete desert.
It’s often discouraging here in the desert (wherever that may be for you).
Count your blessings. Jim Wilder, in his book Rare Leadership in the workplace writes about starting your day with an appreciation exercise. An appreciation exercise means focusing on something or someone you feel thankful for, and settling into those things about it, him or her that you appreciate. If you are a person of faith, you can do this in prayer. Or you can just enter a reflective, calm state and reflect on those things you’re thankful for. Gigi often writes down a list of things she appreciates in her journal.
Appreciation works for us in the desert because it has a direct impact on our brains. Appreciation boosts neurotransmitter production, regulates stress hormones; it actually restructures our cognitive processes, enhances neural connectivity and activates several critical areas of the brain.
What’s amazing is that even when a person is so discouraged that they can’t think of anything they are thankful for, the simple act of trying to be thankful for something actually triggers all of these responses in their brain. When I read about that in Jim Wilder’s book, it blew my mind (no pun intended).
But enough talking. Let’s try it. Set aside 10-15 minutes today to be thankful. It will make such a difference that you’ll be anxious to do it tomorrow too. Exercising appreciation will make you a better leader, a better person and it will combat discouragement in your life. Another favorite song from my early years contains the line, “Don’t try to drive the darkness out, you just turn on the light!” Turn on the light of appreciation today; you may need your sunglasses.
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