In bygone years not really so long ago, gratitude wasn’t talked about as a major component of success as it is nowadays by coaches and prosperity teachers–professions that didn’t even exist then.
And it was in the 1980s that I was first introduced to the idea of going around the turkey-laden table and each sharing what we were most thankful for.
This happened at my all-time favorite new holiday, The Day After Thanksgiving, a new annual ritual created within The Inside Edge–the leadership support group attended by myself, Jack Canfield, Louise Hay, and many other speakers, authors, entrepreneurs and entertainers. It was Beverly Hills after all.
We were supposed to bring potluck leftovers from our Thanksgiving feasts, but many of us got even more creative. I remember one year the dessert table featured 12 amazing pumpkin concoctions, including a fluffy, yummy soufflé I still remember most fondly and vividly.
Being in California, many of us didn’t have family nearby to celebrate the actual holiday, so this new ritual became more special. Especially when we told everyone what we were most thankful for in the past year; what inspired our greatest gratitude. We had to make our few words count, as eventually the annual gathering had about 100 guests seated at two or three long tables.
I don’t think it is farfetched to imagine much of the ensuing gratitude movement was triggered by the simple fact of so many thought leaders contained in one room focused on one subject they were then inspired to share in bestselling books, talks, and workshops.
Today, nearly thirty years later, the most popular and effective prosperity teachers, authors, and coaches take it as a given (a Thanksgiven?) that an essential element in one’s success is an attitude of gratitude.
This is certainly true of my masters of manifestation, contributors to MoneyLove 3.0, including Rev. Maggy Whitehouse:
Gratitude is about acknowledging what you’ve already received, and I think one reason both the U.S. and Canada are two of the richest countries is because they both have a national day of thanksgiving.
Might I suggest that it is time to transform Thanksgiving from a one-day holiday to a way of life?
Jerry
