A Pre-Thanksgiving Reminder to Give...

My little boy, Tyler, and his preschool Thanksgiving creation.
How grateful I am for Ty guy and all the time I get to spend with him!

This blog is a special Pre-Thanksgiving reminder to GIVE...

Give what, you ask?  

First, it is a reminder to give THANKS.

Even in the best of circumstances, life can still be incredibly challenging—for everyone. In the midst of so many varied trials that we experience as human beings, it is not always easy to be grateful. When things are especially difficult, it may take a conscious act of sheer willpower to shift your focus away from your problems and toward your blessings. 

But for self-action leaders, it is always worth the effort! 

Those who persist in focusing on their blessings instead of their troubles discover that their troubles don't seem as bad as they previously thought. 

Moreover, since the human brain can only think about one thing at a time, filling one's mind with positivity is a powerful antidote to eliminating negativity. In so doing, I am not suggesting that you ignore your problems or pretend they don't exist. I am merely inviting you to consciously remember to devote a healthy amount of time to dwelling on what is good in your life—and what could yet be—rather than constantly drowning in a sea of worry about what hasn't gone right, or what isn't working out (yet) in your life.

Despite the tremendous challenges I have faced in my life with my MENTAL HEALTH, RELATIONSHIPS, and CAREER, it never ceases to amaze me how often I have been blessed and how varied my blessings have been all along the way. After all, the vast majority of my mental issues are now behind me, my romantic woes are way, way behind me (thank you, Lina!), and while my career remains stalled in some senses, am I not—in the very moment of writing this article—living my dream career right now?  

The answer to this question is a resounding YES! 

          And I am so grateful for it. 

It never ceases to amaze me how many and varied my blessings are
—even, and perhaps especially at the most difficult times in my life. At this Thanksgiving season, I invite you to give THANKS a little more than you have in the past. Dig deep to fill your mind with all the macro and micro fortunes that have flooded into your life over the years. Then express your gratitude to anyone and everyone you come across that played a role in bringing those blessings your way.  

SECOND, this article is a reminder to GIVE something tangible to someone else in need. Chances are good that most (if not all) of my readers will be sitting down to a bounteous feast next Thursday. Before you dine on that sumptuous Thanksgiving banquet, I invite you to do something that requires some action and effort on your part that will, in some small way, enable someone else to have a nicer, fuller, and more bounteous holiday themselves. It won't take much effort on your part to accomplish this task, but it will require you to consciously and proactively take an action that you might not otherwise take.

Most people are decent folks with good intentions. Unfortunately, it is a much smaller percentage of people who routinely take action on those good intentions. I invite you this Thanksgiving to count yourself among this smaller percentage of DOERS. I'm not asking you to do something overly difficult, creative, or time-consuming. I'm merely inviting you to do something above and beyond what you would have done had you not read this article today.  

For example, in the process of living my own routine schedule, I learned about two food drives that were taking place at my son's preschool and a local doctor's office. 

Now I want to be honest about something....

When I first heard about these food drives, my mind began making excuses why it really wouldn't make much of a difference if I just let other people contribute. After all, I already give money to my Church to help the poor. I have also personally provided food, water, and/or clothing to individual homeless persons on many occasions in many locations throughout my life.

But then I remembered something about self-action leaders: they don't make excuses and they don't wait for other people to jump in and help when they are entirely fit, capable, and available to help themselves. They also don't content themselves on what they did yesterday, yestermonth, or yesteryear. They continually concern themselves about and are focused on TODAY. 

"What am I doing TODAY to make the world a better place?" That's the daily question that self-action leaders are always asking themselves. 

Shopping with Tyler for two food drives
in my community

Suffice it to say, that little self-reminder put an end to my excuse-making. A few days later, my little son (Tyler) and I went to the grocery store and bought a cart full of groceries to split between the two food drives. 

It felt very good!  

Isn't that amazing? I went to work to do something that I initially didn't want to do to help somebody else, and I am the one who ends up feeling great. What a deal!  

So... 

          What are you waiting for? 

Sometime in the next six days, make an extra effort to help somebody else by going out of your way to serve, lift, love, encourage, etc.  I promise you that if you will accept this simple challenge, this Thanksgiving will be one of the best you've ever had, and you'll enjoy your own fabulous feast even more.  

HAPPY THANKSGIVING everyone!

-Dr. JJ

November 18, 2021

Palm Beach Gardens, Florida, USA

Author's Note: This is the 240th Blog Post Published by Freedom Focused LLC since November 2013. 

Click HERE for a compete listing of the other 239 FF Blog Articles.  

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