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moneymotivationandmotherhood's podcastAuthor: Marion Syversen
What do you do if talk of stocks and bonds aren't your think, but you want to know more about money? Who can you ask when you are feeling down about life? How can you encourage the family when you feel pressure? Optimist and encourager, Marion Syversen, will cheer you up and fill your heart with hope in this introduction to her new podcast. Marion owns Norumbega Financial, is an independent financial advisor, the wife of one man, the mother of two sons, and the nana of nine grandchildren. What if relatives want to borrow money? How much stuff do kids really need? How can we meet the deep needs we have without spending all our money? I want you to see how beautiful you are, how capable is your brain and that improvement doesn't have to hurt. Look for the Money, Motivation & Motherhood Facebook group and join in the conversation. https://www.facebook.com/moneymotivationandmotherhood/ Connect with Marion: Twitter https://twitter.com/home Website http://www.norumbegafinancial.com/ Language: en Genres: Business, Investing, Kids & Family Contact email: Get it Feed URL: Get it iTunes ID: Get it Trailer: |
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Episode #4 - Gratitude & Peer Pressure
Episode 4
Thursday, 6 February, 2020
Podcast – Episode #4 Gratitude & Peer Pressure Gratitude is a good practice to have any time of year, all year, or around the holidays. The practice of gratitude is the mindful focus on the people, situations and things for which you are grateful. It sounds easy and too simple to be helpful. But being grateful changes our brains. Studies on happiness have found that a key to joy is gratitude. You’d think with all the years of research (for instance that something as simple as smiling – even without emotion, by holding a pencil between your teeth) people would do what they could to live in as much joy as they could. It’s FREE, it’s EASY and it changes your outlook and can lift up the hearts of those around you. And yet, though we may be thankful for a few days, or weeks, we tend to quickly fall back into our grouchy habits of jealousy and discontent. You may look around and think, ‘life is pretty chaotic here. The kids are noisy, money is a struggle, my spouse and I are tired, and the work piles up.’ Yeah, but what if you said, ‘I’m married to the person I prayed for, a man who loves me, and does all he can to take care of us.’ Or, ‘I always wanted kids. I dreamed of being a mom. And now I get to live this life.’ Or, ‘we are making progress in money and so many parts of life. And look at all the blessings that we enjoy!’ Part of our discontent is wound up in a discontent caused by our own hearts. And studies have also found that peer pressure can play a role. You’re shopping with friends, and feeling out of your element. But you want to fit in, so you spend money when you had kind of decided that self-control was your new middle name. Or you are simply envious of your neighbor’s new car and vacations and put yourself in financial jeopardy spending money unwisely. Giving into to these darker impulses only give us a kind of pleasure for a short time, before we are overcome with remorse and maybe are even embarrassed. Gratitude is the victor over jealousy and peer-pressure. Knowing you have everything you NEED, that you are blessed with breath and that there is beauty in the nature around you. Kissing your kids who are safe in their beds at night gives a lasting peace and joy that few other things can match. For many people, a Gratitude JOURNAL is a great way to see all the good things that float in your life every day. What works for me is a blessing Jar. I write down all the kindnesses that come to me that made a situation more wonderful. Friends that go beyond the extra mile. A gift won in a contest. Health in a situation. A joyful event. On New Year’s EVE we open the jar and reflect on all the good things God has sent into our lives over the past year. When you begin focusing on the good things that FILL your days, you will see even more of them. When you practice gratitude it’s much easier to be content. Makes sense. That contentment gives you a sense of confidence that makes you stronger in a variety of situations. Now you can choose YOUR plan for your future, instead of perhaps spending money that you don’t have to meet other’s expectations. Where to YOU want to be in your life? Are you willing to sell your future just to keep up with others? Do you want the peace that comes from knowing your life isn’t perfect, but it’s awesome and getting better every day? Use peer pressure and a good group of friends to help you STAY on track. Not because you show them your checking account balance and they monitor your spending. But folks who have similar goals and priorities as you when it comes to what they find important in life. Folks with similar values will be less likely to pressure you into things that aren’t in your best interest. But ultimately, you and your family are the BEST JUDGE of what’s good for you. It’s easy to be grateful for new stuff. It’s BETTER to build your gratitude based on things OUTSIDE of stuff. Practice gratitude for PEOPLE in your life. One happiness author wrote that you could SPREAD gratitude by writing a happiness letter. An actual letter thanking a person for all they mean to you and the life change their presence has had in your life. Positive attitudes in a negative world can be easily lost. So you need to guard your heart and mind to keep on the gratitude journey and not go back to the land of jealousy and discontent. You know yourself. Limit exposure to things that derail you. Don’t bad mouth yourself for ‘weakness’ thinking you ‘should be able to withstand the negative pressure. That’s just crazy. Why put yourself in that position? Just don’t and keep your joy. Don’t sabotage yourself and others with foolish chatter that gossips or envies. SAY good things, positive and uplifting things to friends and family, even strangers. Compliment people. DO things that HELP others. Living and giving of yourself is the natural way to lift up your own heart and fill it to overflowing with joy and gratitude. There was a movement around my circle a few years ago where you wore an elastic around your wrist, and when you complained, you would snap the elastic and change wrists. The goal was to STOP COMPLAINING. For some that is TOO big a goal. Then stop complaining for a DAY. Gratitude. It’s just human nature to want more, be discontent. But you are really okay. And if you are NOT okay, get help. But most of us are REALLY okay. We’re aren’t just okay, we’re good. Maybe even great. So you don’t have to spend more; you don’t need to fix it; you don’t need as much as you sometimes act driven to get. Practice gratitude and in doing so take control of your heart and your brain.
