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How did you start your morning? Pondering your “to do” list? Feeling frustration with a work challenge? Feeling overwhelmed with life? What if there was a way to change the course of your day so that by every evening, you end the day with a smile? It turns out we all have the ability to find the best in every day.

Remember the giddy excitement you felt as a child the morning of your birthday and holidays? You KNEW it was going to be a great day and you took notice of all of the wonderful things that happened throughout the day. That same philosophy can be incorporated into your morning and it will change your outlook on life.

If you start your day with the expectation that something great is going to happen, you will start watching for and appreciating those amazing moments throughout the day. It’s a gift that only you can give yourself.

The life’s challenges ebb and flow throughout the years. Rarely is there a day without some type of stressor, but deciding to focus on the positive will change your outlook. The guy who cut you off in traffic may be heading to a chemotherapy appointment. The coworker who is not pulling her weight on a project may be struggling with depression or financial problems.

When your blood pressure begins to rise with the insignificant problems in life, take a deep breath and feel grateful that you are not heading to the emergency room with a chronically ill child or arranging for hospice for a loved one. On those days when you find yourself struggling with a truly significant challenge, remember that there are rainbows in every storm. You might have to search but they are out there waiting for you to discover them.

As a gentle reminder… tomorrow is not guaranteed for anyone. You have been given the gift of this day. While your schedule may be predetermined by your responsibilities, your perspective is your own to choose. Start your morning with the anticipation that something great will happen… big or small… and be watchful.

And as you lay your head on your pillow tonight, take a moment to recount those positive highlights.

Expecting a wonderful day becomes a self-fulfilling prophecy that leads to a healthier, happier life – why not start today?

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Beverly McKee, MSW, LCSW, a licensed mental health therapist, has a passion for empowering others to celebrate life, even in the midst of crisis. With 20+ years of experience in the social services field, her world changed forever with a Stage III breast cancer diagnosis.

Determined to use her experience as a catalyst for positive change, Beverly offers HOPE and guidance to her worldwide following through social media, speaking and radio/TV appearances. Her writing has been published throughout the world, including the New York Times, Post Dispatch and Cancer Treatment, earning her the “2014 Top Cancer Blog” and “Best in #Social Work” awards.

Beverly’s book, Celebrating Life DECADES after Breast Cancer shares stories and insights from forty long term breast cancer survivors celebrating life up to fifty years after diagnosis. Join Beverly and meet survivors from the book on her worldwide book tour beginning in October 2015.

Now cancer free, Beverly lives with her husband Dan and sons, Jack and Alex. They split their time between the rolling hills of Missouri and the beaches of Sanibel Island, Florida where Beverly will host a party on October 17, 2052, forty years to the day after her breast cancer diagnosis.

 

For more information, please visit navigating.org

This Post Has 9 Comments

  1. Anticipating that something good will happen to you … YES ! This is such a good reminder to start the day with – and end with gratefulness that you discovered happier moments.

  2. If you expect a great day and it is not, you are disappointed. If you expect things to go wrong and they don’t that is a bonus. . I try to stay somewhere in the middle, but as a full time carer for a 90 year old disabled, passive aggressive,. bad tempered, demanding Aspie with the beginnings of dementia – not easy to be positive. Not many silver linings.

  3. Your post is very true – the only thing we have control over is our attitude, so why not choose a good one!

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