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At this time of year we have so much to be grateful for and so many people to appreciate. Because my new book, FOCUS ON THE GOOD STUFF: The Power of Appreciation, is all about this amazing power of gratitude and appreciation, it is a perfect book to give to others for the holidays.
So many people have told me that they love giving the book away because they know it both inspires and empowers the people they give it to, and it is also a wonderful way to say “thank you.”
We put together a very exciting holiday promotion campaign that starts today, 12/17/07. When you purchase Focus on the Good Stuff online today, you’ll receive free bonus products from great authors like Marianne Williamson, Jack Canfield, Jeffrey Gitomer, and about 30 others. You’ll also receive additional bonuses when you buy multiple copies!
For specific details about this promotion, more details about my book, and to receive your free bonuses now, visit www.focusonthegoodstuff.com/holiday
Have a great day. Look for the good stuff and enjoy this magical time of year!
With Appreciation,
Mike
We have a magnet on our refrigerator with an anonymous quote that says, “Friendship is when people know all about you but like you anyway.” Isn’t that the truth!
Think of all of the gifts that we receive from our friends. So often my friends have shown up, picked me up, and loved me in ways that have both healed and transformed my life. Our friends are our “chosen family.” My daughter Samantha, who is just 22 months old, has a best-friend named Mackenzie. The two of them are so cute together…check it out:
Mackenzie and Samantha
What I love watching when Samantha and Mackenzie play together is how much they teach each other. They push each other, learn from one another, copy each other, and interact in such a beautiful, intuitive, and loving way…it is very sweet. Often when it is time or one of them to go home, both girls cry. They instinctively know the importance, connection, and power of friendship, even at their tender age.
A wonderful book about friendship came out earlier this year, called FABULOUS FRIENDSHIP FESTIVAL, by artist and author SARK (Susan Ariel Rainbow Kennedy). If you are not familiar with SARK and her books, you will love them. Filled with color, creativity, wisdom, beauty, authenticity, and more – SARK writes and creates in a way that is both inspiring and empowering. If you know about SARK, than you know exactly what I mean. This newest SARK book is truly fabulous. I have been a fan of her work for almost 10 years and love her books. She and I have also become dear friends and she has been a generous and loving mentor to me. She is a wonderful member of my own “chosen family.”
This great book by SARK will give you new insights and understanding about the importance and power of friendship. And, it will allow to both appreciate your great friends and also to become best friends with the most important person in your life – YOU!
Click here to check it out at Amazon.com.
Take some time today and this holiday season to truly appreciate your friends and yourself. Appreciation is such a great gift and we can give it any time.
With Appreciation,
Mike
On this day of Thanks and Gratitude, I want to take this opportunity to first of all thank YOU for your interest and support of me and my work. I cannot fully express in words what it means to me to have people read what I write and listen to me speak. I don’t say this in an insecure, self-absorbed, or narcissistic way – I am simply humbled, honored, and grateful to be able to do what I do and to have it impact other people…my dream come true.
As we gather together with family and friends today…or long to do so, let’s make sure to take some time to focus on what we appreciate about ourselves, our many gifts, and the courage it takes to be human and live this life.
I acknowledge you for who you are and all that you do. I acknowledge myself for the courage it takes to put myself out here in the world like this. And, I acknowledge all of us for the things – big and small – that we do each day to make this world a better place.
Happy Thanksgiving…there is so much for thankful for – today, and every day!
With Gratitude,
Mike
First of all, I want to acknowledge that it has been two and half months since I last posted to this blog. 🙂 I had gotten into a great habit of posting about once a week and then my book launched on August 28th (the date of my last post). Needless to say I have been a little busy the past few months and blogging has not happened. I am so grateful and excited with all of the wonderful stuff that has happened in the past few months with the launch of my book. Thanks to all of you who have bought the book and supported the launch! I am re-committing to blogging at least once a week and have lots of thoughts, ideas, books, and action ideas to share. Thanks for being patient and reading my blog! Now, onto this post…
Next week when you sit down for Thanksgiving dinner with your family or friends, you will probably do some version of one of my favorite holiday rituals – “gratitude sharing.” Everyone will go around the table and say something they are grateful for. It is wonderful that we take this time to give thanks and express our appreciation for the “good stuff” in life. However, why don’t we do this more often?
We seem to have many unwritten rules about public gratitude and appreciation in our society. One of these rules is that expressions of thankfulness and appreciation should come only at “appropriate” times. Thanksgiving is one of these acceptable times, which is why many of us take the time and feel at least somewhat comfortable expressing our gratitude out loud. Birthdays, holidays, weddings, retirement parties, awards banquets, and other events or activities also fall into this acceptable category.
What if expressing our thankfulness was a regular, everyday occurrence? What if we had “Thanksgiving” all the time? The same good feelings that we generate sitting around the dinner table at Thanksgiving could be generated on July 17th, April 2nd, October 28th or on any other day throughout the year. We could express our gratitude every Wednesday, every other Tuesday, or every single day for that matter. There is an endless supply of things for us to be grateful for. It is simply a matter of what we focus on and what we choose to talk about. If we take time on a regular basis to focus on what we are grateful for and have the courage to express it out loud, we can have Thanksgiving all the time!
Today, a week before the big day, spend some time thinking about, talking about, and focused on what you are grateful for. And, if you feel inspired, do the “gratitude sharing” ritual at dinner tonight and all week…and then keep doing it every night after Thanksgiving as well. Have fun!
With Gratitude,
Mike
My new book, FOCUS ON THE GOOD STUFF: The Power of Appreciation, officially came out last week! It has been a very busy and exciting time (hence I have not posted to this blog in a few weeks).
Today, 8/28/07, we are running a special online launch campaign! When you purchase Focus on the Good Stuff online today, you can receive free bonus products from great authors like Marianne Williamson, Jack Canfield, Jeffrey Gitomer, and about 25 others.
For specific details about this launch campaign and to receive your free bonuses, visit www.focusonthegoodstuff.com/launch Check it out!
When we step back and pay attention to all of the “good stuff” around us, in others, and within ourselves – our life and our world begin to transform. The more we focus on gratitude, the more we have to be grateful for. This is what my book and my work are all about.
Writing and this book is HUGE for me on so many levels. At this moment, I am feeling an incredible amount of gratitude for all of the wonderful teachers, mentors, and coaches I have had throughout my life. Specifically, I am grateful for my dear friend and mentor Richard Carlson who not only wrote the foreword to this book, just three weeks before he passed away, but taught me so much about being an author, a father, a man, and more.
I miss you Richard – but you are with me today and always!
I hope you enjoy my book and that this is the first of many that I am fortunate enough to write and share with the world. Thank you for your interest in my work, for reading this blog, and for doing your own internal work to make your life and this world work beautifully.
With Love and Gratitude,
Mike