Have you ever been really frustrated and were ready to tear the head off the next person that happens to come your way? Did you ever consider saying “thank you” to them in lieu of the first thing that comes into your mind?  I think I can safely answer those questions for you.  Yes and No.

I recently finished reading “The In-Between – Embracing the Tension Between Now and the Next Big Thing” by Jeff Goins. Goins does a great job of describing the benefits of what happens during the ‘in-between” times and how that part of the journey is often overlooked.  It takes focus to achieve this.

An added value that Goins has offered with the launch of his new book is what he calls the “Slow Down Challenge.”  If you have been following me for a while, you know I usually do a book review post on Wednesday.  I am going to throw a little twist into that for this and one more post.

This will be the final of five posts following Goins Slow Down Challenge.  Here is the lineup that will take us through this five post series:

• Day 1 – The Habit of Noticing (Click here to read)
• Day 2 – Savoring Every Moment (Click here to read)
• Day 3 – Focusing On What Really Matters (Click here to read)
• Day 4 – Interruptions (Click here to read)
• Day 5 – Gratitude

It’s so easy to react to the any situation after it happens.  Usually when we react, it is due to something going wrong and us using our human ability to act before we think. C’mon, you know you have done this!

Have you ever been upset and someone and out of the blue, they said or did something nice.  Kind of a humbling moment isn’t it?  We have a tendency to become so consumed in the moment.  But not what the moment could hold, but what we hold in the moment.

In an earlier post, I mentioned a place my wife and I go to about an hour away that releases us from the day to day interruptions that create stress.  One of the reasons I like to go up there is because of the view.

It doesn’t matter where we go or what we do when we are up there, all around us there are things to be thankful for.  Maybe it’s a way to refuel on gratitude.  Do you have a place you can go where you are easily reminded why you have so many reasons to be thankful?

The key to life is balance, right?  Well, sort of.  I would suggest that it is balancing not necessarily everything, but the right things.  The in-between times are good times to think about all you are thankful for, in fact, it’s probably the best time.

When was the last time you made a list of all the things you were grateful for?  Have you ever made that list?  Consider this your bonus challenge:  Make a list of 25 things you are grateful for and put it somewhere so that you can see it every day.  You might just be a little more grateful when you have a constant reminder of those things.

Here is the action plan from Day 5 of the Slow Down Challenge:

1. Today, try saying “thank you” for everything.
2. Say it to the server who took forever to bring out your meal.  Say it to the cashier who moves to slow.  Say it to your late lunch appointment or the call center operator who keeps putting you on hold.
3. Say it to God for every inconvenience that causes you to grow.
4. Say “thank you.”  Don’t just think it or tell it to yourself.  Actually speak the words – and mean them.

So my challenge for today; “Don’t wait for a reason to say thank you to someone. Intentionally go out of your way to say thank you, when it’s not even called for, to at least five people today.”  Do it because you want to and not because need to.

Oh, and by the way … “Thanks for reading this post and joining me in The Slow Down Challenge”

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Barry Smith    9/9/13   photo by author   © Building What Matters 2013