Have you ever had the experience of becoming so immersed in something that you completely lost track of time? Psychologist Mihály Csíkszentmihályi observed this in his work and called it "flow state."  Flow state is described as your peak productivity and happiness happening simultaneously.  Athletes refer to it as "being in the zone," for musicians it's "aesthetic rapture."

Statistically speaking, 85% of people have experienced flow at least once in their life.  But wouldn't it be great instead of surrendering ourselves to random moments of flow, to be able to create a lifestyle of flow that we regularly experience.

The first characteristic for people that regularly experience flow is that they are optimistic.  Keeping a gratitude journal helps mold your mind to think optimistically and is the first step to a greater experience of flow in your own life.

Western medicine has significantly downplayed the role of your mental state on your physical health.  It's been foo-fooed with comments of "it's  all in your head" or a likeness of that statement.

In Bruce Lipton's book "The Biology of Belief," he explains the effect of thought on the body from his research on stem cells.  In his research, he took a single stem cell and let it replicate again and again until there were a couple thousand stem cells in a petri dish.  All the genetic material is therefore the same because all the cells are copies of the original.  He then took 3 additional petri dishes in which he supplied different culture mediums, or environments, for which he could place a clump of stem cells from the original petri dish.  Amazingly, in one dish, the stem cells became muscle, in another, they became bone and in the third, they became fat tissue.  So it wasn't the genes that made the determination of what tissue was formed, but rather the environment.

What controls the environment in which the cells are being bathed? It's the interstitial fluid, which is derived from your blood.  And what controls what's being released into your blood stream, but your neuro-endocrine system.  You activate different parts of this system based on what you're thinking about.  If you're under a lot of stress, then your sympathetic or "fight or flight" component of your nervous system kicks in and if you are relaxed, then your parasympathetic or healing component of your nervous system kicks in.  Depending on which component is being activated will determine which group of hormones and neuropeptides are being secreted into your blood and therefore what kind of environment your cells are being bathed in.  So, quite literally, your thoughts are controlling which genes are being suppressed and which ones are being expressed.

The thoughts and feelings of gratitude activate your parasympathetic and healing response in your body.  Take the time each day to make it part of your lifestyle and reap the benefits of a healthier you.

"I'd rather be an optimist and a fool, than a pessimist and be right." - Albert Einstein

Einstein understood that there was nothing inspiring about being a pessimist.  Let's face it, "today is going to be an awful day" does not vogue well in setting the tone for the day.  Where your focus goes, your energy flows and what you focus on is what you attract.  The whole process starts with choice. 

You've heard the phrase success is 10 percent inspiration and 90 percent perspiration.  It's the 10 percent drives the other 90 and makes success a possibility.  Anyone that accomplished anything in life saw the glass as half full.  And yes, for many of you this won't be an easy point of view to accept.  Zig Ziglar talks about this in terms of motivation.  What he said is "people complain about motivation because it doesn't last.  Well,...neither does bathing.  That's why we recommend you do both daily."

Being an optimist is a ritual, or a daily routine.  If you strive for something different out of life, do something different.  Start today with gratitude.

1.  I am grateful for a fantastic staff.
2.  I am grateful for the abundance of "I love yous" coming from my children.
3.  I am grateful for my wife's home baked bread.
4.  I am thankful to have been able to spend time with my family this morning.
5.  I am grateful for warmer temperatures this week.

This is not a new concept.  You've heard of Oprah Winfrey? Gratitude journaling is one of the things she attributes to her success.  At the end of the day, she writes down 5 things that happened that day that she is grateful for that was unique to that day.  But you need to do more than just write grateful things down.  You experience them on an emotional level, facilitating the neuroplastic changes necessary to experience those sensations again and again.

The two times of day that have the greatest impact on how that day is going to unfold for you are the 20 minutes before you fall asleep and the 20 minutes after you wake.  End your day on a positive note, journal thoughts of gratitude.

Have you ever met that person who made you crazy because they were happy all the time?

The purpose of this blog is to help you move out of your comfort zone and become that crazy person because, on average, according to a new study done at Yale University, that person lives 7.6 years longer than you.  In fact, nurturing an optimistic outlook has a greater impact on your longevity than blood pressure, cholesterol levels or your weight.  The simplest way to start is by keeping a gratitude journal (or in our case, blog).

The blog works in a simple way.  When you focus on what you want, that's what you get.  Mother Theresa understood this concept.  She once said, "if there is a war protest, don't invite me, I'm not interested.  But if there is a peace rally, I'll be there."  When you appreciate the things you appreciate, they appreciate.

The science and physiology behind it is called neuroplasticity, which to you and me means "practice makes perfect."  (The more times a neural pathway fires increases the likelihood of it firing again.)  So you are literally etching into your nervous system a sensation of gratitude and peace.

Having grown up in a fairly affluent area, my wife and I noticed our kids were becoming...well...spoiled.  We started with a gratitude journal at night before they go to bed, and we noticed a change in their attitude within the first 2 weeks.