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#monthlydoseof Gratitude and No Cussing!

I have two short and sweet updates for y'all. Read on to see what I was up to for my #monthlydoseof challenges for September and October!

September 

My monthly challenge for September was to keep a gratitude journal (a #monthlydoseof gratitude). Gratitude is a powerful thing, and with all the negativity and craziness that comes with living in NYC, I (read: we all) could benefit from being more thankful. 

This challenge was very simple: once a day I wrote in my journal (aka the Notes app on my iPhone) a few things I felt grateful for. The themes were largely around my husband, safety when traveling 🛪, my cat 😻, my job, and friends. 

Things were mostly smooth sailing, except for one weird thing. For one week, from September 17-24, I completely forgot to do my gratitude journal. I don't have a reason or excuse - it's not like I was stressed or traveling or extra busy. I just straight up forgot, which perfectly shows how easy it is to slip into a mindset of being ungrateful. An  attitude of gratitude  doesn’t come naturally to most people - We have to be intentional and work every day at being grateful!

After all, there are many things to be grateful for right in front of your eyes. 

October

October was an interesting challenge. I did a #monthlydose of NO CUSSING. Or, as my NY friends would say, NO CURSING.👄

Y'all - I needed this challenge. My language ebbs and flows and is worse at some times than others, but in general I don't like to cuss. Other people can, I don't mind - but it says a lot about where I am mentally if I am cussing. I likely am feeling panicked or like things are outside of my control. Also, my dad always told me in high school that people only cuss when they can't think of anything smarter to say or when they can't articulate their feelings, and at least for myself, I find that to be true. It's easier to hurl a cuss word impulsively when I'm frustrated rather than to slow down, think about why I'm upset, and talk through it calmly. I've also read that there is some psychology behind feeling a "release" whenever you say a cuss word, but that was a long time ago and I don't know where I read that, so don't quote me on it.

The challenge: I basically went through October trying not to cuss and kept a list of when I slipped/failed. The list is actually pretty funny. For your entertainment, here are a few of my real entries:

"said ass"
"said 2 cuss words after 1 beer"
"said F at work 🙊"

Results: Overall, I cheated 13 times. I'm not sure what I expected, but out of 31 days and ample times I felt panicked, I think 13 isn't too shabby!


It was a good month. And now, at the end of November, I can say that I've stuck with this challenge and am really happy about it. In my case, cussing really is unnecessary most of the time. This challenge was really helpful in raising self-awareness and being cognizant of what I say. It also serves as a good reminder that no matter where we are in life, there is always room to improve!

_________________________________________

I only have ONE challenge left for this year. What do you think it is? 
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Location: New York, NY, USA

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