Appreciate Yourself

While looking ahead to this new year, remember to be grateful for what you have already done and achieved. It will help motivate you to reach the next goal, too.

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Episode Transcript

Speaker 1 (00:02):
Welcome to the Gratitude Diaries, a production of My Heart Radio.
Hi'm Janice Kaplan. Thanks for joining me for more practical
advice on how to be happier. Today's tip give yourself
an extra pat on the back for your own achievements.
It's one way to assure that you will achieve even

(00:25):
more in the year ahead. All this week we're talking
about how to achieve that first week in January spirit
of New Year, New you. Being focused on positive goals
always gives you a better chance of reaching them. When
you know where you're headed, you're more likely to get there.
But often we get in the way of our own

(00:48):
happiness by not recognizing when we have already achieved something.
We're so busy looking at where we want to go
that we forget to be grateful for where we are.
A lot of people worry that gratitude might get in
the way of their ambition and keep you from doing more.
If you're grateful for where you are now, maybe you'll

(01:09):
never get anywhere else. But that's just not how it works.
In my research and interviews, I've discovered that grateful people
are often more successful, not less. You can appreciate what
you have and still see the next steps of where
you'd like to go. In a survey I did a

(01:29):
few years ago, percent of people said they thought a
grateful boss was more likely to be successful because people
would support them and nobody succeeds on their own. It's
interesting to flip that just a little bit and think
about being grateful to yourself and appreciating what you have achieved,

(01:49):
because nobody also succeeds without believing in themselves. Research shows
that grateful people are more likely to achieve their goals
than others. When you're grateful, you have a sense of
purpose and a positive approach that helps you move forward.
If you can see that what you have right now
is pretty good, you're excited for the next step. You

(02:11):
know you'll appreciate that too. If you undermine everything you've
achieved and think that it's not enough, you don't have
much motivation to go on. You secretly realize that the
next goal or mile post isn't really going to make
you feel better. Not long ago, I was talking to
a young woman who works in a high tech company.

(02:32):
She does great work and she's well appreciated, but she
looks around at some of her business school friends who
are making more money and working in more famous companies,
and she starts to get a little anxious. Is she
just being complacent? Should she want more? I asked the
young woman to remember how she felt the day she
got the job and the day she started work. She

(02:54):
said she'd been really excited. Most of us are happy
when we start a new position, but then that begins
to fade a bit. Instead of appreciating where we are,
we wonder what's next. I suggested to the young woman
that she hang on to that first day on the job,
feeling whenever she could. When you start a job, you

(03:15):
don't expect it to be the only thing you'll do.
You know there may be opportunities and promotions in the future,
and you're excited for that. But right now, you also
appreciate that you're there. You appreciate what you have, and
that gives you the motivation to work hard and do
your best. So today, as we're looking forward to a

(03:35):
new year and the new things you want to achieve,
take a little time to appreciate what you already have
and how much you have already achieved. Instead of being
hard on yourself for not doing enough, be grateful for
what is enough right now and know that there can
still be more tomorrow. Thanks for joining me. I'll be

(03:57):
back with more practical ideas on how to start to
d twenty one with joy and gratitude and how to
make it a great deal. Have a good day. The
Gratitude Diaries is a production of I heart Radio. For
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