Image: Jupiterimages | Pixland | Thinkstock

What do you think about the most?

The world’s greatest minds, philosophers and spiritual leaders have all addressed our thoughts. Even Shakespeare said that things are not good or bad; it is thinking that makes them so. Have you thought about that?

Have you ever caught yourself thinking, “Dr. X stresses me out!” or “Nurse Y makes me so mad!”? Well, actually, you make yourself mad and you stress yourself out. But don’t get mad at that. If you think about this, it’s very empowering to own your feelings. If you can see that the way you choose to think affects your life, your happiness and, yes, your health, then that means that you, and only you, have the power to make these things the very best they can be.

Have you ever left work talking through your teeth? You know what I mean. You grumble to yourself through clenched teeth on your drive home and mentally rehash the day you had. As you recall the insults that you had to bear or the unkindness you witnessed, you find yourself growing more and more upset. What’s your B/P doing? Your heart rate? How does your stomach feel? Yet, as you drive home, you must know that you’re all alone in your car…those people who “made you mad” are nowhere to be found, yet your thoughts have changed your physiology. Your thoughts, in a way, are making you sick!

If a thought can do this, can’t a thought also heal you? Make you feel good? Change your level of inspiration? I “think” so! Let’s do some work:

• For one day, choose to see the good in every coworker you come across…yes, even THAT one. Dig deep if you must. At the end of the day, do a self-evaluation. How did that feel? Was it easy to see the good? How fast could you go from seeing the bad to seeing the good? Is there room to improve?

• Choose one day and notice what goes well, what felt right and what you found was positive about the day. At the end of the day, ask two questions: 1) “What did I learn from today?” and 2) “What good did I accomplish or witness?” Here’s what you’ll find. You learn more from your tough days than you ever do from your easy days. There are great lessons in that which challenges us. The most beautiful coral reefs grow where the surf is roughest. Nature understands that challenges often bring out that which is most beautiful, enduring and magnificent. It is the same with us.

It has been said that if we only knew how powerful our thoughts were, we wouldn’t dare have a negative one. Our thoughts determine so much of who and what we are, yet most of us spend more time thinking about what shoes we’re going to put on our feet than about how we think. Yet our thoughts lead us to greater heights and more inspiring views than our feet could ever take us.

What do you think?

Find the good in others. Notice the good in the day. You’ll be thanking your thinking. Be well. Stay inspired.

Image: © Veer Incorporated

Grateful people are the people most of us like to be around. You know the type. They’re positive. They have an easy laugh and a ready smile. It seems as if they see the world differently than we do. For the most part, they do.

When there’s a box of donuts at the nurse’s station donated by a kind patient, they are happy for the sugar. The grateful nurses never look in that box filled with sweet happiness and say aloud for all near and far to hear: “Hmmm. Only two jelly donuts? And there’s hardly any jelly in them. Figures.”

Got the picture? Which type are you? Are you a “jelly donut is half full” or a “jelly donut is half empty” kind of nurse?

Cicero, the ancient philosopher, said of gratitude that it is not only the greatest of all virtues, but the parent of all others. Being grateful doesn’t mean you’re a mindless zombie who walks around with a perpetual smile on her face. Gratitude is simply a mind-set where one makes a choice to be thankful for the good in this world. As a nurse, think about the abundance of things you can be grateful for.

I talk about gratitude in my book, Inspired Nurse, and extensively in the talks I give around the country. I find it’s one of the paths to inspiration that most people are resistant to at first, but then come around to feeling that it makes a huge impact. To paraphrase Cicero, all the positive aspects of your life, your virtues, stem from gratitude.

So, how can you use gratitude as a tool to build a more inspired “you”? Here’s your “work” for the next month or so:

• Today, make a list of things you’re most grateful for about being a nurse and about your workplace. Most people start with things like working with great people, comforting patients, knowing I make a difference, always learning…you get the picture. Start with three things on your list. If you’re feeling really negative lately and this is harder than you thought it would be, start with the basics. You know, things like indoor plumbing, air-conditioning, half-price Easter chocolate in the gift shop…whatever it takes! Start with three things, and for the next month, have a goal to add just one thing you’re grateful about each day. That’s all. Just one a day. If you can squeeze out a few more, go for it.

• This month, find three people at work you’re grateful for. Those folks who always make you smile, help you out, support you. The ones whose names you look for on the schedule when you’re going to sign up for overtime, because you know if you’ve got to spend an extra shift at work, you’d rather work with them. Then write these three people thank-you notes. Let them know what they mean to you, how much you like working with them and how much you appreciate them. Take your time writing these. Do your best to specifically express your gratitude. You’ll find this is an exercise that will do even more for you than it does for the recipient of your note.

Have you ever said, “No one appreciates me”? Come on. We’ve all said it either out loud or in our minds. Here’s the funny thing about gratitude: The more you want it, the more you want it. The more you give it, the less you need it.

The other thing about gratitude is that it causes you to see things differently. You become more aware of the good. Have you ever heard an unusual name? Let’s say you meet someone named Zeus. You think, “I’ve never met anyone named Zeus before.” Then strangely enough, that day in the store you hear someone call out to her toddler, “Zeus, you get back here!” A week later, your child brings home a friend to study with and introduces you to his friend Zeus. Is it that suddenly people just started naming their kids Zeus? No. You’ve just become more aware of the name Zeus, and because of that, it becomes more obvious to you.

Guess what? It’s the same with gratitude. When you start to look for it, when you choose to use it, when you talk about and think about it, you’ll suddenly find you’re more grateful. People will begin to see you in a different light. Challenges become less severe. Work becomes a little less stressful. You’ll begin to see things differently. You’ll feel more inspired. You’ll see that there’s enough jelly in your donut and you’ll find that being grateful makes for a much sweeter life.

If you don’t have gratitude, get some. It’s well worth the effort. Be well. Stay inspired.

[main image: Thomas Barwick | Digital Vision | Getty Images]

Image: Ben Edwards | Brand X Pictures | Getty Images

We nurses have the best stories, don’t we? Our stories can make you cry so hard you can’t see and laugh so hard you can’t breathe, and can be so risqué that if you tell them out loud, you might cause civilians (non-nurses) to faint. The point is, we have amazing stories. That’s who we are. It’s our history. As humans we have been etching our stories on cave walls, writing them on papyrus and chiseling them into stone for millennia. We need to tell our stories. This need comes from deep within. Nurses are no different.

This is part one of a series of articles about inspiration in nursing. You can look at these articles as ways to get your inspiration back, keep your inspiration going or help prevent you from losing your inspiration—whatever works for you. The idea here is that there’s a lot out there to help improve our “how,” and while nurses certainly need that skill-building information, there isn’t much out there to help us to connect back to our “why.” I believe that when we’re connected to our “why”—our calling, our spirit, our inspiration—we are so much more powerful. I want to help you do that in this series.

In my book Inspired Nurse, I used stories from my own nursing journey as a way to introduce each chapter’s “spiritual stretches,” which are exercises to help you connect to your inspiration, deal with burnout and fill your soul. I believe that our stories are what we are made of. In other words, our stories are our “bricks.” How often do you reflect back on those amazing moments? Those times when you felt most “on purpose”? Those are the moments I want you to think about. They are what “built” you, those amazing stories. Those are your “bricks.”

Your “bricks” are the stories that stir up deep emotions and will cause you to either stay in touch with or get back in touch with your inspiration. Are these the stories that you share in meetings, at the nurse’s station, when you go out with other nurses? Or do you spend time on the mundane? You know, the “he said/she said” nonsense that fills our heads like another mind-numbing episode of a reality TV show that offers nothing but “filler” and does nothing to stir emotion, fill our spirits or move us back to a feeling of purpose? When was the last time you remembered that “best moment ever” as a nurse? When was the last time you spoke the name of that patient who forever touched your heart? If you can’t remember that time, now is the time to do it. I promise you this: Telling your great story is the first stone you must lay on the path to inspiration. So, what’s your story?

Story Exercise

Here’s your “work” for this month:

• Think about your story. Take some time to simply sit quietly and think back on what your greatest story was. What was your greatest moment as a nurse? Where were you? Who was there? Close your eyes and “be there.” What does this bring up for you? How does that feel? What made this story so memorable?

• Write your story. Maya Angelou says that to keep an untold story inside of you is agony. We need to tell our stories. Sit down and write this great story. Don’t worry about spelling, don’t worry about how it sounds—just write it. Make it tangible and real for yourself. It will come alive for you as you write. You will be in that moment again.

• Share your story. Your story is a way to inspire not only yourself, but others. Challenge your department or team to share their stories. Combine them all into a notebook that can be shared among the team. You will be amazed. You’ll see each other, and yourself, in a totally different light. Your stories will inspire others, and theirs will inspire you. Make sure these stories, the powerful ones, are what you begin to talk about in meetings and at the nurse’s station. Your stories are truly your “bricks.” They help build a more inspired nurse. The more solid the brick, the stronger the structure.

Don’t hope for things in life to get better so that you can feel more inspired. That’s like hoping it won’t rain as you walk outside so you can avoid getting soaked. Instead of hoping for better weather, get out your raincoat and umbrella and enjoy singing in the rain (dancing through puddles is optional!). Don’t hope it will “all change someday.” Hope, instead that “I can be better.” Own your inspiration. Start with your stories. You are on your way. Be well. Stay inspired.

Click on the book to learn more about Inspired Nurse!