Saturday, December 11, 2010
Holiday (Secret Santa) Idea
Teach your child to give thanks, without expecting anything (including recognition or thanks) in return. How can they do something for someone, without identifying themselves? A 'secret santa' type gift? Hummmmmmm give it a thought. Make it a plan. See what they can come up with. Just something little. It will be special to the person that receives it! Good luck, and happy holidays!
Saturday, November 20, 2010
Kids SEND thanks... with heartfelt cards
What a wonderful season. Thanksgiving. Wow, think about it. How many opportunities have we missed to tell those that have loved us and supported us THANK YOU.
This is the perfect time. The holidays bring into our lives so much emotion, at least it does for many. And between now and the end of this year, there are so many small acts that we can all do..
As we guide our children to live a life of gratitude, take advantage of this beautiful season to reach out to those who deserve thanks, and those that just need it.
A thoughtful heartfelt act of love from a child is a memory that is not easily forgotten.
I recently had one of my customers call me with a touching story the other day. Her hairdresser lost her husband a few months back and spoke of the difficulty this holiday may bring. My customer mentioned this in passing to her 7 year old daughter.
When working on her gratitude journal a couple days later, her daughter told the mother how happy she was to have all of her family with her (YES, THIS IS A 7 YEAR OLD..). That of course brought up conversation about the hairdresser, and the daughter decided to send her a special card.
The card had a photo of the child on the front, holding out a bunch of flowers as if she were handing them to the hairdresser). I don't remember the exact words she used, but in the card she simply acknowledged the hairdressers difficult time, and that she (the little girl) loved her and hoped that the card would make her feel better.
The hairdresser cried when my client went back in the salon. She had that card, proudly displayed. She said that every time she looked at that beautiful little angel holding those flowers for her, and all the effort that went into making that card, she felt a warmness that she could not explain.
Now honestly, that card was not hard to make. It was a Send Out Card and once the photo was taken, the card was made in 5 minutes or less. Send Out Cards even puts a stamp on the card and mails it for you.
The point is that we can all make a huge impact, by small little acts. Happy Holidays to you and your family.
This is the perfect time. The holidays bring into our lives so much emotion, at least it does for many. And between now and the end of this year, there are so many small acts that we can all do..
As we guide our children to live a life of gratitude, take advantage of this beautiful season to reach out to those who deserve thanks, and those that just need it.
A thoughtful heartfelt act of love from a child is a memory that is not easily forgotten.
I recently had one of my customers call me with a touching story the other day. Her hairdresser lost her husband a few months back and spoke of the difficulty this holiday may bring. My customer mentioned this in passing to her 7 year old daughter.
When working on her gratitude journal a couple days later, her daughter told the mother how happy she was to have all of her family with her (YES, THIS IS A 7 YEAR OLD..). That of course brought up conversation about the hairdresser, and the daughter decided to send her a special card.
The card had a photo of the child on the front, holding out a bunch of flowers as if she were handing them to the hairdresser). I don't remember the exact words she used, but in the card she simply acknowledged the hairdressers difficult time, and that she (the little girl) loved her and hoped that the card would make her feel better.
The hairdresser cried when my client went back in the salon. She had that card, proudly displayed. She said that every time she looked at that beautiful little angel holding those flowers for her, and all the effort that went into making that card, she felt a warmness that she could not explain.
Now honestly, that card was not hard to make. It was a Send Out Card and once the photo was taken, the card was made in 5 minutes or less. Send Out Cards even puts a stamp on the card and mails it for you.
The point is that we can all make a huge impact, by small little acts. Happy Holidays to you and your family.
Saturday, October 2, 2010
Helping children live a life of gratitude, appreciation, and kindness
Parents, teachers, and caregivers.... Start a gratitude journal. Just start listing once per day how many things happened for which you are grateful. Be specific. Decide how to show gratitude where you can.
Read it out loud to your kids. Ask if they have any acts they would like to add (be sure to put their name next to their post). Have fun with it. The journal can be a family (or classroom) journal, or, each child can have their own.
p.s. Watch what happens with the people that get heartfelt thanks, notes, emails, cards etc. They will start responding with kindness. But don't tell that to the kids. Gratitude needs to be heartfelt with no expectation. An easy tool that I use to send heartfelt cards, is Send Out Cards. This is a fabulous system. You can even trail the system and send a free card.
"As we express our gratitude, we must never forget that the highest level of appreciation is not to utter words, but to live by them." JFK
Read it out loud to your kids. Ask if they have any acts they would like to add (be sure to put their name next to their post). Have fun with it. The journal can be a family (or classroom) journal, or, each child can have their own.
p.s. Watch what happens with the people that get heartfelt thanks, notes, emails, cards etc. They will start responding with kindness. But don't tell that to the kids. Gratitude needs to be heartfelt with no expectation. An easy tool that I use to send heartfelt cards, is Send Out Cards. This is a fabulous system. You can even trail the system and send a free card.
"As we express our gratitude, we must never forget that the highest level of appreciation is not to utter words, but to live by them." JFK
Tuesday, September 28, 2010
How do we teach our children to live a life of appreciation & gratitude?
I was at a hospital today, talking to a volunteer who was a teacher for years. (I love talking to teachers about this). She reminded me of a great saying... PLANT A SEED; WATER IT DAILY; AND WATCH IT GROW. Such a simplistic and accurate example of what we teach and what we all strive to do. How do we plant the seed? By example.
How often do you talk about the great things in your life? How full is that glass? How often can you find something good in your day, and how often do you share that with your children?
Plant the seed. That is the first step.
How often do you talk about the great things in your life? How full is that glass? How often can you find something good in your day, and how often do you share that with your children?
Plant the seed. That is the first step.
Sunday, September 19, 2010
Saturday, September 11, 2010
Nick Vujicic - google him to feel grateful at any age!!
Nick Vujicic - look for his DVD No Arms, No Legs, NO WORRIES with bonus youth disc's.
below is some information about him.
below is some information about him.
Born in 1982 in Melbourne, Australia, without any medical explanation or warning, Nicholas Vujicic (pronounced Voo-ya-chich) came into the world with no arms or legs. Having had an uneventful pregnancy and no family history to expect this condition, imagine the shock his parents felt when they saw their first born, brand new baby boy, only to find he was what the world would consider imperfect and abnormal. A limbless son was not what nurse Dushka Vujicic, and her husband Pastor Boris Vujicic had been expecting. How would their son live a normal happy life? Little did they or anyone know that this beautiful limbless baby would one day be someone who would inspire and motivate people from all walks of life, touching lives all over the world.
As Nick grew up he learned to deal with his disability and started to be able to do more and more things on his own. He adapted to his situation and found ways to accomplish tasks that most people could only do by using their limbs, such as cleaning teeth, brushing hair, typing on a computer, swimming, playing sports, and much more. As time went by Nick began to embrace his situation and achieve greater things.
After school Nick went on with further study and obtained a double bachelor degree majoring in accounting and financial planning. By the age of 19 Nick started to fulfill his dream of being able to encourage other people and bring them hope, through motivational speaking and telling his story. I found the purpose of my existence, and also the purpose of my circumstance. There's a purpose for why you're in the fire. Nick wholeheartedly believes that there is a purpose in each of the struggles we encounter in our lives and that our attitude towards those struggles that can be the single most effective factor in overcoming them.
Now at 26 years old this limbless young man has accomplished more than most people even twice his age. Nick recently made the massive move from Brisbane, Australia to California, USA, where he is the president of Life Without Limbs an international non-profit organization, and also has his own motivational speaking company; Attitude Is Altitude. Since his first motivational speaking engagement back when he was 19, Nick has traveled around the world, sharing his story with millions of people, speaking to a range of different groups such as students, teachers, youth, business men and women, entrepreneurs, and church congregations of all sizes. He has also told his story and been interviewed on various televised programs worldwide.This year alone Nick is set to speak in over 20 countries.
People say to me, "How can you smile?". Then they realize there's got to be something more to life than meets the eye if a guy without arms and legs is living a fuller life than I am. Through his amazing ability to connect with people from all walks of life and his incredible sense of humor that captivates children, teens and adults alike, Nick is truly an inspiration.
As Nick grew up he learned to deal with his disability and started to be able to do more and more things on his own. He adapted to his situation and found ways to accomplish tasks that most people could only do by using their limbs, such as cleaning teeth, brushing hair, typing on a computer, swimming, playing sports, and much more. As time went by Nick began to embrace his situation and achieve greater things.
After school Nick went on with further study and obtained a double bachelor degree majoring in accounting and financial planning. By the age of 19 Nick started to fulfill his dream of being able to encourage other people and bring them hope, through motivational speaking and telling his story. I found the purpose of my existence, and also the purpose of my circumstance. There's a purpose for why you're in the fire. Nick wholeheartedly believes that there is a purpose in each of the struggles we encounter in our lives and that our attitude towards those struggles that can be the single most effective factor in overcoming them.
Now at 26 years old this limbless young man has accomplished more than most people even twice his age. Nick recently made the massive move from Brisbane, Australia to California, USA, where he is the president of Life Without Limbs an international non-profit organization, and also has his own motivational speaking company; Attitude Is Altitude. Since his first motivational speaking engagement back when he was 19, Nick has traveled around the world, sharing his story with millions of people, speaking to a range of different groups such as students, teachers, youth, business men and women, entrepreneurs, and church congregations of all sizes. He has also told his story and been interviewed on various televised programs worldwide.This year alone Nick is set to speak in over 20 countries.
People say to me, "How can you smile?". Then they realize there's got to be something more to life than meets the eye if a guy without arms and legs is living a fuller life than I am. Through his amazing ability to connect with people from all walks of life and his incredible sense of humor that captivates children, teens and adults alike, Nick is truly an inspiration.
Monday, September 6, 2010
Should we help children learn how to live a life of gratitude?
ABSOLUTELY! I have a passion!
How did it start? Well I have always wanted to do something like this, but one day a conversation made me take the leap.
I was talking to a young 15 year old girl. She was so very excited about her girlfriend's video. She couldn't wait to show me.
I was devastated.
This girl was given a car for her 16 birthday. I watched at least 4 or 5 minutes of excitement. The young girl jumped up and down; sent some text messages; grabbed the keys; made a phone call; got into the car (she could not drive it because she did not have her license yet); jumped out of the car; walked around the car; made another call..... have you guessed yet? NEVER SAID THANK YOU OR SHOWED ANY TYPE OF GRATITUDE.. At the end of the video, I prayed (for her) that I just missed it but I really don't think I did....
We have wonderful teachers, who work so hard with our children on their development. They are wonderful examples to our children. But they can only do so much.
Who can help them learn what teachers do not have time to teach in school? You and I can. Our kids learn more from us than we realize. Lets work on our every day efforts to focus on gratitude and appreciation. Lets do a few little things, over a period of time, to drive a life of gratetful, happy children turned adult!
Why is that important? Lets just start with 3 reasons for now..
1) We want the best for our children. We want their wishes to come true. Of all of their wishes that do come true, how good is any of it, if they are not happy? If they are not grateful but rather finding something negative with everything, how happy can they really become?
2) Do you know extremely intellegent people who can't hold onto a job? Ever wonder why people just don't want them in their company? If they played back their life, could someone have helped influence them differently? ( How many of us wish we did things differently raising our children? I often say we all screw our children up, it is just a matter of degree SMILE SMILE)
3) Do you think YOUR life will be easier with grateful, rather than ungrateful children?
If so, lets work together to make a difference. Lets learn and grow every day, and help our children do the same.
With gratitude,
www.AppreciationMarketingMadeEasy.com
How did it start? Well I have always wanted to do something like this, but one day a conversation made me take the leap.
I was talking to a young 15 year old girl. She was so very excited about her girlfriend's video. She couldn't wait to show me.
I was devastated.
This girl was given a car for her 16 birthday. I watched at least 4 or 5 minutes of excitement. The young girl jumped up and down; sent some text messages; grabbed the keys; made a phone call; got into the car (she could not drive it because she did not have her license yet); jumped out of the car; walked around the car; made another call..... have you guessed yet? NEVER SAID THANK YOU OR SHOWED ANY TYPE OF GRATITUDE.. At the end of the video, I prayed (for her) that I just missed it but I really don't think I did....
We have wonderful teachers, who work so hard with our children on their development. They are wonderful examples to our children. But they can only do so much.
Who can help them learn what teachers do not have time to teach in school? You and I can. Our kids learn more from us than we realize. Lets work on our every day efforts to focus on gratitude and appreciation. Lets do a few little things, over a period of time, to drive a life of gratetful, happy children turned adult!
Why is that important? Lets just start with 3 reasons for now..
1) We want the best for our children. We want their wishes to come true. Of all of their wishes that do come true, how good is any of it, if they are not happy? If they are not grateful but rather finding something negative with everything, how happy can they really become?
2) Do you know extremely intellegent people who can't hold onto a job? Ever wonder why people just don't want them in their company? If they played back their life, could someone have helped influence them differently? ( How many of us wish we did things differently raising our children? I often say we all screw our children up, it is just a matter of degree SMILE SMILE)
3) Do you think YOUR life will be easier with grateful, rather than ungrateful children?
If so, lets work together to make a difference. Lets learn and grow every day, and help our children do the same.
With gratitude,
www.AppreciationMarketingMadeEasy.com
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