Grace and Gratitude at Work

Grace is Sometimes Falling

I was recently facilitating a workshop about Emotional Intelligence at one of our large corporate clients. I normally wear comfortable shoes when I'm standing all day long. But this day I wanted to be uber-smart and wore a pair of new heels. As soon as I parked the car and took my first step on the ice, I realized my mistake. I was going to be tottering my way across the parking lot, and possibly falling with my briefcase, laptop and projector.

FORTUNATELY, this facility provides a service to pick up emloyees from distant parking lots. The driver saw me struggling, stopped and asked if I wanted a lift? I was SOOO full of gratitude. It was as if fate had stepped in and saved me from a terrible fall.

Stories of Gratitude Bond People

The feeling of gratitude from this human act of kindness stayed with me. So I began my class with the story,

I am so full of gratitude to be here this morning...

It had a profound affect! The people were immediately engaged: nodding, smiling and laughing at my ridiculous decision to wear heels. And once, again, grace stepped in and my story bonded us even more!! And since, the workshop was about Emotional Intelligence, the idea of bringing grace and gratitude into the workplace became one of the key takeaways of the class.

Is Grace in Corporate Environments?

It's interesting to talk about grace in a corporate environment. Of course, we never talk about specific religions, but most people, even atheists acknowledge the spirituality of being human. And even though the workshop provides tools and skills to help people become emotionally intelligent--bringing grace and gratitude into the conversation reminds people that we are indeed human beings first and foremost. Yes, we want productivity increased, retention levels improved and bottom line results enhanced. But the fastest way to achieveing these results is to access grace and gratitude.

The fastest way to bring grace into your life

I use the following techniques and they work! I am living a happier, joy-filled life because I am grateful every day for the people, situations and things in my life.

• List 5 things you are grateful for when you first wake up in the morning
• If a bad thought comes into your head, replace it with a thought of gratitude
• Before you go to sleep, again list 5 things you are grateful for
• Find things to be grateful for in your co-workers and bosses and let them know

Try it for at least three weeks. Being grateful works my friend. I am a living testimony!