It’s December. The month when everybody has Christmas on their mind. The shopping for gifts and presents, the preparations for the feasts with family and friends, putting up of decorations and the Christmas tree and much more.

’Tis the season of caring and sharing and giving and forgiving. ’Tis the season when we think of others … more than ever. But don’t we always think of others? When was the last time that you thought of yourself or did something for yourself? If you had to think for while to answer that question, you’re like most of the people in this world. As with everything else, extremes are bad in case of priorities too. Narcissistic or altruistic are not the only options. In this article I will give you some ways and means to achieve the balance between thinking of others and thinking of yourself. Because both are important. Equally important.

“If your compassion does not include yourself, it is incomplete.” – Jack Kornfield

In order for us to genuinely feel like doing something for a person, we need to feel a kind of appreciation or gratitude towards them or for what they may have done for us. This applies to our own selves too! So let me ask you then, do you appreciate yourself? Are you grateful for being you, having what you already have, for the life you are leading?

Gratitude towards YOU

Practising one or more of the following will help you live in the feeling of gratitude towards life and towards yourself.

• When your feet touch the ground when you wake up every morning, say the words “Thank you, thank you, thank you!” Think of at least one thing or being you are thankful for. This sets the energetic tone for your day.
• Whenever you look into a mirror or catch your reflection in a glass during the day, tell yourself one thing that you appreciate about yourself. Do your best to mention a different thing each time.
• When you go shopping for Christmas presents (or any other time of the year or reason), think to yourself at least one reason you are grateful for the person you’re buying the present for.
• Treat yourself to something nice, whether food, item or experience, this holiday season while you scamper around buying the same for others.
• When you go to sleep each night, write down 3 things or beings or experiences you feel gratitude towards on that day.

#25daysofchristmas with a difference

If you are social media savvy, you will know this particular hashtag that surfaces and trends on various social media platforms this time of the year. Usually this concept, 25 days of Christmas, is about being caring and kind towards others and sharing what we have with others, too. This year, Radiance Holistic Wellness is hosting a 25 days of Christmas event with a difference, on our Facebook page. I will be sharing daily inspiration for random acts of kindness – towards yourself – from 1st to 25th of December.

What you give out, comes back to you

So you may be asking, why be so grateful? And why towards myself and my life? I hear you. Us humans in this day and age are wired to be dissatisfied with what we have. We’re programmed to find happiness in objects. So we have to have more, we always have to have more. That, of course, results in no gratitude whatsoever for what we have been blessed with. However, the way the Universe and life works is that only if we feel a feeling, we attract more of it. In other words, if my heart feels grateful for something or someone, that feeling then attracts more feeling of gratitude … for something or someone else.

We’re also, unfortunately, wired to believe that there is inherently something wrong with us. And so we keep finding more and more wrongs. It is important to sow a seed of gratitude – for ourselves and for others – if we want to benefit from the fruits of the tree of gratitude, among the weeds of greed and unhappiness that abound in our hearts, sadly. What are you grateful for in 2016?

Have a lovely Christmas and holidays!

Radhika also offers a 6-week online course titled “Love Yourself to Your Ideal Weight”, with a special promotion price of $111 (standard price $333). It may just be the Christmas present that you can gift to yourself or your dear ones.

For more details and to purchase, please visit her website.