Let’s Celebrate the Thanks We Give
Many cultures around the world celebrate a type of Thanksgiving. We tend to think of it as an American holiday that dates back to the times of the pilgrims. However, most cultures give thanks for the fall harvest and that it will carry us through the cold winter months. There is plenty of information on the subject of other cultures’ celebration if you are interested.
- How 7 Other Nations Celebrate Thanksgiving
- Thanksgiving Customs in Other Countries
- Gobble Up These 7 Thanksgiving Traditions Around the World
It is not until you start a small leadership blog (or any blog for that matter) that you can quickly learn how small the world is. I am both grateful and surprised how many readers and followers I have from other countries around the world. As more of them join, I want to learn more about their cultures and how what I share on leadership can be even more relevant to them.Keeping that mind, I do think taking a day to celebrate all that we are thankful for is an excellent idea. It doesn’t have to be a calendar event, and it doesn’t have to be something that everyone celebrates on the same day, but I suspect we all have things we are grateful for and choose to give thanks for.We should celebrate our good fortunes. Let us look past just the financial or material elements we may be thankful for, but also take time to reflect on the fortune of good friends, our health, our ability to make decisions that allows for a better life.As I have mentioned before, I maintain a routine that allows me to jot daily thoughts in what I am grateful for. That doesn’t preclude me from taking some extra time on a day like Thanksgiving to celebrate those gratitudes.This year has seen a lot of change for myself and my family. I have moved, taken a new position, traveled to new places, and seen my kids enter new phases of their lives. I am forever grateful for their support of my work, both with Effective Retail Leader as well as the everyday job. My wife has continued to be a superhero of keeping everything moving forward during all of those changes. We would probably be living in a hotel room or worse if not for her endless hours of organizing and working with people to make our move possible. I could not be more proud of my daughter who is her senior year of college and am grateful for the opportunity she has had to learn and grow over the past several years while away at college. My son has traveled to some extravagant places to follow his passion for fencing. No words can express how thankful I am for the Groupon offer that my wife found to get him connected to his current coach and initiate what has become a defining part of his life.It is fairly easy to take many of these things for granted. I work with amazing people every day, I get to interact with leaders around the world in different ways, and I am continuing to learn new things as I go. Those are tremendous fortunes that I know I am lucky to have.Some pretty sizable lottery jackpots were won recently, and I am sure those winners feel beyond lucky in their winnings. However, I when I stop and reflect on what I have, I feel I have already won the lottery as well. No amount of money would replace the opportunities I feel fortunate enough to experience each day.I wish everyone a Happy Thanksgiving or just a Happy Day of Thankful Reflection. Celebrate your fortunes and continue to look for ways to share your ideas, experiences, and opportunities to create more memorable moments for you, your family, and those around you.Join other retail leaders in continuing their development journey with Effective Retail Leader.com. SUBSCRIBE today to receive leadership tips directly to your inbox and monthly newsletters that provide many tools to help further develop your leadership skills. JOIN NOW!No spam ever - just leadership goodness.Photo by Priscilla Du Preez on Unsplash