How one month of Meditation and Gratitude Journaling changed my life – September

This month’s challenge went above and beyond what I had expected. I was a little skeptical at first but, I believe the energy that I focused on my needs and goals this month lead me to some amazing outcomes that were kind of “Freaky-Friday”-Esque.

The Challenge:

• Spend 3-15 minutes a day doing guided meditation

I tried out a few different apps to guide my meditation (see below for more information) as well as I set up a meditation corner in my room with a candle, a piece of coral and some gem-stones for good energy.

• Every night, write at least 3 things that I am grateful for as well as at least one manifestation.

This technique I learned from the 30 Days of Gratitude book (see below) a couple of years ago but I decided to apply it again as I really enjoy the positivity and reflection that it gives my day.

Here is how to do it:

• Place a notebook and pen beside your bed (I liked to do this before bed to reflect on my day but you can also do it first thing in the morning or whenever works best for you)
• Every day I write the date, followed by the words: Today I am grateful for:
• Write at least 3 things that you are grateful for. They can be big, small, general or specific (i.e. an activity you did, a person you met, the food you ate, your family, your home, spending time with someone or even yourself), the possibilities are endless.
• Write at least one manifestation in the same form as above. Write it as though it already happened (i.e. Today I am grateful that I bought my dream home).
• Read over your points and feel the feeling of gratitude to the universe for each item (Yes, even the manifestation one).

You will be surprised how positive and uplifted you will feel when you focus on the good things in your life. It is truly the best way to go to bed each night.

What It did for me:

At the beginning of this month, I was really struggling with some personal issues, particularly with my career (or lack thereof). I was looking for work that would keep me inspired and creative while also helping me achieve some financial goals that I have put on the back burner for some time now. I had been working only part-time for the past many years and while that was very rewarding in some aspects, I had managed to wrap myself into a very large amount of debt and I decided that It was time to take control and make some changes.

This month’s challenge really helped me take the time to ask myself “What do I want?” and direct positive energy to those things. Within a couple of weeks, I managed to get 2 Job offers as well as another company asking me back for a second interview. I know it sounds crazy, right? What did any of that have to do with Meditation and Gratitude? Well, I believe that positive thoughts have positive results and because I was consciously having positive thoughts towards myself and my career, (even when it was difficult to see the positives of something that wasn’t yet there) I truly believe that I brought myself to these opportunities.

Here is an example of how wonderful the universe is:

A woman that I do some freelance dance for every now and then sent me an email asking if I could do some shows for her in the next couple of months. I replied to her email, thanking her for asking me but I had to decline because I was looking for some full-time work and couldn’t commit to the day-time hours. She responded that she understood and that her office was looking for someone full time and that if I was interested she would put in a good word for me. I explained to her that I had actually seen the posting and had applied for that job two weeks before this conversation and said that I would appreciate the good word. Within 30 mins of that email, the company called me for an interview. I got off the phone and called her to thank her for her recommendation to which she replied, “I was just typing up the email, I haven’t even sent my recommendation yet”.  What?!

This was only in the second week of my challenge and it was already working. My positive thoughts were creating positive results. Yes, this definitely went into my gratitude journal that night.

Now I totally understand if you believe that was a wonderful coincidence, it is possible but, I think it was more than that. Maybe you should just try this challenge and see for yourself how wonderful and magical this universe is.

Books:

30 Days of Gratitude by Julie Boyer

• I read this book a few years ago and really enjoyed the idea of gratitude journaling. The book also takes you through many more activities and tasks that are helpful for going further into your gratitude journey.

Apps:

Headspace 

• This app is great for beginners who are nervous about being able to accomplish lengthy meditation sessions. It starts with a Free 10 day introduction with only 3 minute guided meditations with great explanation and imagery as well as a very non-judgemental approach so you don’t have to do it “perfectly”. After the 10 day introduction, you can try out other courses and meditations but I believe they are in-app purchases.

Calm

• This was the first app that I tried, I like this app for the different settings you can put on your meditations. You can choose the background sound from birds chirping to ocean waves to chimes. This is also a great app for beginners or people who have done a little bit of mediation as most of these guided meditations are around 10 minutes and are very easy to follow. This app starts with an introduction and then, similar to the Headspace app, you can purchase more guides or do the Free Mediation of the Day.

Insight Timer

• This app was recommended to me by a friend who swears by daily mediation. This app is like a meditation forum where people from all over the world can post a guided meditation and you can listen for free. I love that it really focuses on the meditation community (It will tell you how many people meditated with you from all over the world as well as tell you if there are people in your community that also use the app) as well as you can try out a wide variety of meditations for all kinds of focuses or lengths. This app also features a timer so you can meditate on your own time without a guide if you choose. The only downside to this app is that, since anyone can upload a meditation, some are better than others and it is difficult to gauge the quality before you try it.

Conclusion:

I honestly didn’t think that this month would be so obviously rewarding. I am really happy with the results and I am going to continue daily gratitude as well as regular meditation.

Have you every tried gratitude journaling or meditation before? Comment below with your experience or your favourite apps, books or podcasts.