The next time you are feeling angry, frustrated, over-whelmed, or just in a funk, think about giving this a try: take a deep breath and choose to focus on what you are grateful for in your life. Make a mental list or even say it out loud – your kids, your spouse/partner, your job, your home, childhood memories, your friends, food, your parents and siblings, your pets, your car, your favorite PJs – whatever comes to mind. But remain focused on those grateful thoughts for a few minutes. By shifting your focus from negative emotions to positive thoughts and their connected feelings, you will feel your mood change and your energy increase. It is physically impossible to fully focus on both a positive thought and separate negative thought at the same time. So realize at that moment that you do have a choice, and choose to focus on the positive, grateful thought.

I’ve tried this with my kids as well, and it works great! Let me clarify – yes, I’ve done this myself when my kids were driving me to the brink of insanity, but I was referring to having my kids try it out for themselves – they were smiling within a minute or two, and they forgot all about what they had been bickering over or upset about a few minutes earlier. In fact, my older daughter proudly told me one day after school how she had helped a boy in her class get in a better mood by taking him through this little exercise! We’re thinking about moving the kids’ little tiki bar from the back porch to the end of the driveway and letting her set up a coaching booth – 5 cents per “session”, just like Lucy from the Peanuts!

Take a deep breath, relax, and be grateful! You’ll be grateful you did!