brooke hargett's blog

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I’ve been reading Between Shades of Gray, which is NOT the same as 50 Shades of Grey, lest there be any confusion.   I will be moderating “Between Shades of Gray” at the fabulous Delicious Reads book club in June.  This book is the story of a small family who are taken as prisoners under Stalin’s rule in the early 40’s and forced to endure the cruelest of conditions.  It’s a fabulous and tragic read so far, and I won’t give away more of the plot here.

Anyway, the story has got me thinking about the power of positivity in the face of adversity.  There are thousands of stories showcasing what the human mind is capable of, especially when the odds are stacked against someone.  During tough times, it seems like people either crumble, or they rise to the challenge and become stronger.  In life or death situations, someone’s outlook on life and maintaining a positive attitude can have a direct bearing on their survival.  I love learning about how people handle tough situations.  Especially as a mother, I’m extra sensitive to people who put on a brave face for their children, teaching them to be strong and capable.

Thankfully, I’m not facing any major life dilemmas, but I’ve been thinking about how I would handle things if I were.  One of the items on my Bucket List  is to become Complaint Free for 30 days.  The idea is to “leave the toxic communication of complaining behind and experience an internal shift toward being more positive, hopeful and optimistic.”  So you wear this bracelet on your wrist to help you remember during the day to only voice positive things and see how it affects your life.  They say it takes 21 days to form a habit, so by the 30th day, hopefully it will stick, and you will be better for it.  So, I’ve ordered my bracelet, and will begin as soon as I get it.  (Yes, I KNOW I do not need a bracelet to do this… but it’s much more fun this way, so just go with it, ok?)

Want to do it with me?  You can order your own bracelet here.  I’m interested to see how many times a day I will have to change my way of thinking.  They say that on average people complain 15-30 times in a day.  I wonder how many times I do it?  Maybe I will tweet every complaint I was going to say out loud.  Kidding!

Has anyone else done this?  At this posting there are 10,121 812 other bracelets out there…  So I’ll let you know when I’m going to start!  Hope you all have a great weekend!  See ya Tuesday!

Brooke