Retirement can be challenging, but it’s also a humbling experience that helps us appreciate what truly matters to us. Today, I want to share why practicing gratitude and recognizing abundance are important on your retirement journey. These tools have been essential in my life, and they can make a big difference in yours, too.
Having been formally trained in affairs of the human mind, body, and soul, I can attest to the fact that decisions in life do, indeed, have consequences. I have no degree from a prestigious university. Having spent the past 57 years doing an intensive study, research, and trial and error on this one human being – yes, this is a very exhaustive study.
Normally, in baseball, if a player is in a slump, the coach will talk with that player about “getting back to the basics.” Getting back to the basics – doing something that, at this point, seems so very simple. It is more about getting that simplicity back into that player’s head. It is a confidence booster. You know the basics. You have them down. You know more than you realize. You got this.
The Gratitude Practice
So, in line with that, this year, I discovered a gratitude practice. I have always thought of myself as a gracious person. But I was wrong. I have followed the Western philosophy of setting goals throughout my life and working diligently to achieve these goals. Earl Nightingale described success as “the progressive realization of a worthwhile goal or objective.” But the part that I seem to miss is the progressive realization—the verb part—the action part. It’s about the journey, not the goal.
Now, I have to be very intentional about goal setting. Yes, I want that one thing or event, so what am I willing to do and learn to get there?
Now, going back to gratitude, did you know you can read books about gratitude? My wife is a social worker. I am late to the party to learn this psychology of gratitude. Leading a genuinely gracious life keeps your ego in check, creating new neurological pathways in your brain. In other words, you get smarter in a different way!
When you accomplish a major goal in life, the enjoyment is much less than your anticipation, and it only leads you in one direction – to do it again. For example, you’ve heard that saying that earning your second million dollars in life is much easier than the first. But in truth, the question that we should be asking is, “Is it worth it?”
On Abundance
This morning, I checked my attitude elevator. This idea is based on a great book titled The Mood Elevator by Larry Senn. The idea is that you start your day at your baseline. What is your midline of your emotions? Some people wake up angry. Some people wake up depressed. Some people wake up being open to what life brings. You can train your brain – and your emotions will follow.
If you train yourself to wake up curious and open to what comes, that decision can lead you to something you never thought you could find. If you (me) wake up looking for a fight, chances are good that you will find one today. It doesn’t really matter with who—you will find one. Just like laying your clothes out the night before, you can do the same with your outlook the next day.
So I guess what I’m saying is, be intentional with abundance. Be intentional with scarcity.
In regard to abundance, give more. Always. Every time, even when it feels like you can’t give more.
And in terms of scarcity, let abundance override it. Every time. The idea behind my attitude elevator is to reach my highest form of consciousness so that I can reach my ultimate goal, which is carefree timelessness.
This is where all my worlds combine to become my perfect moment. I am at the lake with my girls, and we have no plans other than being together, outside hanging out, with no plan, no plan is the plan, with nowhere else to be, all day long, together on lake time. In my opinion, this is love —- a vision of what Heaven looks like.
Giving Back and Abundance
We often hear stories of how a successful organization or family is “giving back” to their community. Giving back is an important part of life. In the book Thou Shall Prosper, Rabbi Daniel Lapin takes issue with the term “giving back.” It implies that successful people give back only after they have become successful. This, in practicality, is simply not true.
Most small business owners, as they pursue their idea of success, get involved in their local community. They buy raffle tickets, volunteer as coaches, and advertise in the local sports program. Successful people give while offering valuable goods and services to that same community. The giving and receiving are one in the same. It is a win-win.
Final Takeaway
Ultimately, starting with the “back to basics” of leading a gracious lifestyle is where we journey into a strong belief of abundance. When we believe that there is enough of what we need in life for ourselves, we can feel safe enough to dream “what if.”
Accomplishments do not determine who we are. Accomplishments come through because of who we are. Gratitude will lead us to abundance. Abundance will lead us to great events and moments of truth. And it’s in these moments of truth that we will prove that gratitude is a foundational need for every human being.
My coach says that your mess is your message. If you look at any rags to riches story, any underdog fighting to overcome, or any person standing tall and alone – you will find the courage in your message. I believe our number one purpose in life is getting to know who we are. Once we know who we are, then what we have to offer to this world in abundance will be automatic. God created all of us in His image and likeness. When we know ourselves, we know God.
