As we approach the end of a tough, tough year, what keeps you motivated? Maybe it takes a bit of daydreaming, daydreaming about a better life? Did you know that your view of the future determines your future success? It’s true. Your view of the future shapes your current behavior, which in turn drives your future results.

Years ago, whenever a business colleague and I got stuck on a complicated problem, he would say, let’s pursue the art of the possible.

I love that phrase because creative thinking is art, and thinking about the future is to think about the possible. …

I’m addicted. I’m hooked. No, I’m not talking about anything villainous; I’m referring to the morning fix with my gratitude journal.

I’ve journaled for 20+ years but didn’t start the affair with my gratitude journal until March 6, 2019. It began as a 40-day practice and grew into a daily ritual that kickstarts my day. No matter where I am in the world, regardless of the time zone, nothing stands in the way of my gratitude journal. It sets the tone for my day and has changed my life.

Keeping a gratitude journal helps me focus on the good in my life, feel closer to everyone around me, be more optimistic, and appreciate the grandness of creation and everything in it. It’s one of the most impactful habits I’ve ever developed. …

How can you be grateful and happy if you’re just not feeling it? Maybe you‘re down because of the pandemic, or perhaps you’ve been through an all-around awful year. So, do you want to know how to boost your mental health during a difficult holiday season?

Fortunately, research shows that you can improve your mental health by exercising gratefulness and thankfulness. One particular strategy shows that it will not only increase your optimism but can decrease depression.

A happy heart is like good medicine, but a broken spirit drains your strength. (Proverbs 17:22, NCV)

Maybe you would never watch a Hallmark movie to study the science of gratitude, but that’s how I stumbled upon the idea for this post. I’ll set the stage for you. In the movie About Write Before Christmas, our heroine Jessica is at a romantic dinner with her boyfriend. It’s right before Christmas, and she’s sure her dreamy beau is going to pop the question. …

Given that we celebrate Thanksgiving this week, I want to share with you the most valuable piece of advice I’ve ever received.

The advice I am sharing is THE secret weapon to help you live a healthier, happier, and more successful life. Here it is:

“Every day, cultivate an attitude of gratitude.” — Rick Warren

Gratitude, an antidote for stress

When I first heard this advice three years ago, I was in hand-to-hand combat with my arch enemy — stress. I longed for a sense of peace and ease, and I needed to reorient my inner compass. So I gave Rick’s advice a shot.

I rose early one morning with the goal of being grateful for my life. To welcome in the good and to focus on the positives. …

Agency refers to the feeling of control over actions and their consequences. It’s the feeling that we’re in the driver’s seat. (Dr. James W. Moore, University of London)

Successful people make decisions, even in difficult times, because they have what’s called a high sense of agency. You, too, can cultivate this valuable and life-changing skill.

I get that it’s hard to make any decision in 2020. Like most people, you feel out of control because you don’t know what the future holds. We’re all now staring 2021 in the face and asking, what will 2021 be like?

But is that the right question to be asking? Shouldn’t we instead be asking how can I make 2021 a great year for me? …

Do you feel discouraged, distracted, or disheartened and can’t seem to get your life back on track? If so, I have a strategy to help you quickly achieve more focus and increased success. It involves ignorance. Not just any ‘ole ignorance, it takes strategic ignorance.

Focus and win

Fools will believe anything, but the wise think about what they do. (Proverbs 14:15, NCV)

2020 has been a tough year, right? The toll of negative news, the vitriolic election, the global pandemic, and the free-falling economy wreak daily havoc on your psyche and focus.

Every day outside forces fight for your attention, attempt to direct your thinking, incite your emotions, and influence your behavior. Like a disruptive enemy, upsetting information shows up in what you read, watch, and listen to. The enemy infiltrates its way into your conversations with friends and family and in water-cooler talk with your co-workers. …

Do you want to get ahead in life? People say that impatience will get you there. That’s a lie. I’m here to say that patience is your true path to a successful life.

Why do we think it’s better to be impatient?

Patience is something you admire in the driver behind you and scorn in the one ahead. (Mac McCleary)

You think impatience is the motivation that gets you ahead in life, right?

You think impatience is what drives you to seek new solutions, to try new things, to get things done when others are slow on the draw.

Please don’t feel bad about these thoughts; I think them too. I’m embarrassed to admit that, in the past, I viewed patient people as weak, as doormats, letting other people and circumstances dictate their lives. …

Choose your relationships using this advice

A long time ago, a prosperous merchant remarked to his sons: “We spend much time and effort on our client Aethel, but have little profit to show for it; we should “fire” him, he no longer deserves to be our client.”

The elder son gasped, “Father, are you crazy?! Two years ago, he lined our pockets with six figures of profit. He’s an influential man, and besides, who fires such a client?”

“Well then,” said the father, “go visit Aethel and ask if he has more business for us?”

The elder son soon returned, excited, his eyes green with money, “Father, Aethel offered us business prospects that will render us six, nay, seven figures of profit! We are the best at what we do; we should never turn down the potential for such profit!” …