Living a Triple-A Life
fotolia © Gina Sanders
The 3 A’s: Acknowledge, Awareness & Appreciate
We all want the best in life, right? Seems to me that most of us want the same things. To be happy. To be healthy, to have enough time and money to do the things we want to do. To love and be loved. That would be a Triple-A life. The way in which we personally experience these concepts looks drastically different from one person to the next. Yet I think we can all achieve them using three easy, no-cost, easy to learn, ideas: awareness, appreciation, and acknowledgement.
fotolia © egokhan
Awareness is so simple, yet so overlooked. It costs nothing. At least not monetarily, yet you do need to pay attention. That’s all. Pay attention. Perhaps you have heard it said that energy flows where attention goes. Be aware of yourself and others. Be engaged in what you are doing and what is happening around you. Get your nose out of your phone and look up to see what is actually happening around you. And pay attention to what you are doing. Are you doing things just out of habit because that’s the way you have always done it? Or is it really the best way to accomplish whatever you are doing? Is there a way to be that is more in alignment with who you are now? Stop and be aware and you may get a big surprise when you see what you are actually doing, or what others around you are doing.
fotolia © egokhan
fotolia © egokhan
Next is appreciation, which is a key component in a life well lived. You need to appreciate the good things in your life for more of those things to show up. Appreciation is a form of gratitude. When you appreciate something you are experiencing the vibration of gratitude, and as the Law of Attraction states, the essence of that which is like unto itself is drawn. Appreciation is born on the heels of Awareness. Once you are aware, you can then appreciate. And it is so easy! There are millions of things you experience every day for which you could feel appreciation. You could appreciate a colorful sunrise or majestic sunset. You might appreciate the way the crossing guard takes care of the children she helps to stay safe at that busy intersection you travel though each morning on your way to work. What about appreciating the craftsmanship in a well-made suit or the mastery for an amazing engineered vehicle? Or even the way the car wash team detailed your car? How about the way your mom takes the time to cut the carrots for her chicken soup just so and fills the pot with her love for the family?
fotolia © egokhan
fotolia © egokhan
And once you become aware and feel appreciation, acknowledge it. Maybe just to yourself. Acknowledge the excellence of your new suit and appreciate how well it is made and how the fit is perfect for your body. Allow yourself to feel the emotion of the appreciation as you express your gratitude. And if you really want to pump up the volume in your life, start expressing your appreciation to others. Maybe even to that crossing guard. Can you imagine how good you and the crossing guard would feel if you stopped for a few seconds and just told her you appreciate the way she is getting those kids across the street safely? Or if you gave the car wash team a really nice tip and looked each of them in the eyes when you said “Thank you, I really appreciate the good work, guys.” What about asking to speak to the chef so you may express your appreciation for your perfectly prepared meal? And you know how much your mom would light up if you told her how much you appreciate her and all the little things she does to take care of the family.
These three seemingly small ideas, when adopted as a regular way of being, offer enormous transformative power in your experience of happiness and prosperity. Each of them is important and powerful, yet added together, the sum of the parts is far greater than the whole.
As published in Conscious Shift Magazine:
