The Single Testimonial That Has Me All Fired Up for 2018

When I first created these calendars, I told myself that even if all the work I was putting into it affected just one person, it would all be worth it. Of course, one of the many things they don't tell you when you start a small business is that feedback isn't self-evident. It's not natural for someone to reach out to a seller on a whim just to be like, "oh hey just wanted you to know this thing you made is rad." So you start correlating "number of sales" with "how much people like this thing you made." And when you do that, the whole "I just want to make someone's life a little brighter" gets buried under, "the more people buy, the better I'm doing." Priorities get skewed, confidence gets twisted, and if you're not absolutely killing it you start to wonder if all the time and effort matters. And then you get a random text from a friend, who had just gotten a text from HER friend, who wanted to express how impactful the calendar has been on her year. And you realize, "Oh shit, THIS really is what it was always about."Meet Leslie. Within a single calendar year, she went from an unfulfilling career to starting her own business. It took patience, resilience, and strength. And ALL THREE of those things are made stronger with gratitude. (1) When your brain thinks about what it's thankful for, it releases serotonin—a happy chemical—decreasing stress and anxiety (thereby curbing impatience). (2) When you practice gratitude, your positive thoughts actually open new neural pathways. The more often your brain uses these pathways (aka DAILY gratitude), the more automatically your brain will choose to use them in everyday situations. So when you're in a stressful situation, instead of spiraling to the negative (old pathways), your brain stays cool and focuses on problem solving. Resilience. (3) Strength is all about perseverance—and if you've made a resolution to practice gratitude every single day, it takes some serious tenacity to follow through. Leslie is living proof that gratitude can grow into SO MUCH MORE than a daily practice. If you give yourself the space to really connect with what moves you, YOU can move mountains. I reached out to Leslie directly to ask if she'd answer the simple question, "how do you feel this calendar helped you achieve your goals this year?" and her response literally made my eyes well up:

When I received The Heart of Happy Gratitude 2017 Calendar from my dearest friend Rosie, I was completely inspired. Having a gratitude calendar on the wall was so perfect for me because I'm such a visual person. I look at it everyday and think about what made my heart so full that day and fill it in. I will miss a few days here and there but that actually makes me focus on gratitude even more. I think back to the days that have passed and think deeply about what memory stands out and take a moment be grateful. A day doesn't go missed. I love when my 8 year-old daughter Sydney takes a day—it's sweet to see what filled her heart in that moment.

This calendar has been sweet, thoughtful, and even funny. I'm often very thankful for my husband Dave. He has a great sense of humor and will often look at the calendar and see how many days it's been since I was grateful for him. If he feels too many days has passed, he light-heartedly says, "Oh man, it's been a week—I better make sure I do something good for you today." Unexpectedly, the calendar brought a new connection to our relationship—in a beautiful, fun, and positive way.

My mother and I started a tradition about 3 or 4 years ago at the beginning of the new year: instead of a New Year's resolution, we pick a word that symbolizes our goal for the new year. One single word. Because a word has so many definitions, it allows the year to evolve naturally but with the intention of the word chosen.

My word for 2017 is BRAVE.

As I sit here on December 7, 2017, I can trace so many goals that I reached with the intention of being BRAVE. It has truly carried me through the year. After many years of personal and professional obstacles, I finally found the courage to try again to achieve my dream of being my own boss and starting my own small design business and showroom. By taking the time to be grateful everyday and writing it down, it allowed me to create balance in my gratitude. For example: if I had a successful day working on my business plan and meeting with my mentor, I would write that I was grateful for both my mentor and my husband. Obviously my mentor was there for encouragement and motivation, but I was grateful for Dave's unwavering support, for allowing me the time to work on my goals, for parenting my two little girls alone for the day, and for caring for our home. All of those actions allowed me time to do the work.

Being BRAVE in 2017 also meant asking for help, saying no to stress when it tried to sneak in, staying focused on enjoyment and fun—without feeling guilty, but instead, being grateful.

The most frequent feelings of gratitude for me in 2017 were for Dave, my sweet, good, and funny girls Sydney & Emme, my parents, my home, a healthy family, my girlfriends, motivation, and sunshine. I am always grateful when the sun shines.

Thank you, Killian, for creating this lovely gratitude calendar and thank you Rosie for thinking of me. Without knowing it, you both planted the seeds that helped me achieve my goals for 2017. I am forever grateful. I will pay it forward.

Here is to 2018, a new calendar, and the word TRY.

I mean, ARE YOU AS INSPIRED AS I AM? Leslie is a full-on mindful warrior. It's not just that the calendar worked for her, it's that it worked for her in ways I hadn't even anticipated. It opened doors for her. Because it ALLOWED her to stay the course without falling prey to negative self-talk: the guilt, the fear, the doubt—they were all replaced by a consistent, persistent wave of gratitude. "I can't/shouldn't stay this course" is replaced by "I am so privileged and thankful that I even have the OPPORTUNITY TO TRY, even if it doesn't always go my way." Negative, self-defeating feelings COWER in the shadow of gratitude.  Leslie's experience inspires me. It inspires me to always look for new ways to view gratitude (I love how incorporating the word "brave" gave her a new vantage point for her gratitude—and probably helped her brainstorm with a bit more intention.) "Brave" is also such a perfect word to pair this calendar with because COURAGE IS A CATALYST. If you want to make big changes, you're going to need to summon up some bravery. If you're used to negative thinking, it can actually take courage to trust that a positive approach won't change the core of who you are—it will only make you more powerful. Leslie's story inspires me to encourage YOU to find new ways to view gratitude, too. I'm committing to more newsletters in 2018 that will do just that in an effort to help you get through any gratitude plateaus or brain fog that may arise along the way—to encourage you to STAY PERSISTENT. This leads me to yet another lesson Leslie's story reminded me to hear: PROGRESS TAKES TIME. You know, when it comes to a Gratitude Calendar, it really can take a FULL YEAR to notice the all-encompassing impact of your effort. Leslie reminds me that hindsight is 20/20—you don't always feel the shift as it's happening. You just have to have faith that it is. Just like I just had to have faith (and patience) that this little art print I designed over a year ago would one day impact someone in exactly the way I had hoped. Progress takes patience. Progress takes courage. Progress takes a will to try. And so I love that Leslie's word for 2018 is "TRY." PROGRESS TAKES A WILL TO TRY. You have an opportunity to TRY what it feels like to be grateful. What a beautiful way to throw doubt to the curb — fear can hold us back from acting on anything. "But you'll never know if you don't try," right? I encourage you to look at 2018 with the same bravery and spirit that Leslie has. I encourage you to be brave, to trust that your efforts will pay off, and to be persistent. I encourage you to try.