Like 10 Million Bucks

Tell me this: if I offered you 10 million dollars, with only one condition, you’d be interested or intrigued right?

You would of course ask what that one condition is, at least I hope you would, but I am sure the idea of 10 million dollars is enticing.

Here’s the deal: I will give you 10 million dollars in exchange for this being your last 24 hours alive. You get the money, but you have 24 hours left if you accept. You trade your life for the cash.

Not interested?

Of course not.

Life tomorrow is more valuable than 10 million dollars today.

Looking at it both ways, it’s clear. If you had the 10 million dollars already, would you pay it to guarantee you could live past today?

Absolutely.

I know this started off a bit morbid for some of you, but the point is clear: life tomorrow is worth 10 million dollars.

This is about your attitude

If we have established that tomorrow is worth 10 million dollars, an important question you need to ask is, why don’t you live like that?

Too many people wake up dreading the day, worn down by difficulties, and mad at the world.

A few months ago, I was enduring a particularly tough season. I was put in a difficult spot at work, holding two positions at the office without notice, in the midst of crucial conversations with people at work, all while my kids were not sleeping at night and I was preparing my family for a 600+ mile move this summer.

The days were filled with frustration and exhaustion.

It was three weeks straight of daily anxiety.

Honestly, I was close to quitting.

But one day I stumbled across this question. Would I take 10 million dollars today in exchange for my life tomorrow? And if I would not take 10 million dollars in exchange for my life, why am I not approaching the day as if it is worth 10 million dollars?

My attitude needed adjustment. The important note to remember is that you cannot control your circumstances but you can always control your attitude.

I needed to adjust my attitude and start living life today differently.

So I started waking up and saying “I feel like 10 million bucks”. I was reminding myself that being alive today is worth 10 million dollars, so I am going to make the most of it.

I cannot always choose my circumstances, but I can choose my attitude.

How do I change my attitude?

Dwight Schrute has the unique ability to raise and lower his cholesterol on command. Allegedly. While that may not exactly be possible, changing your attitude is possible.

Changing your attitude is a choice.

Jon Gordon talks about the battle for your mind. Your mind is something that you can train and develop and influence. And every single day is a battle for your mind. Negative thoughts actually drag your mind down and positive thoughts raise your mind up.

It is like your body. Put in junk and your body will show. Last week, I attended a staff party where Krispy Kreme donuts were given out for free. I was reminded of the time that I ate 8 (yes, 8 fresh hot donuts) in about 20 minutes. It was a funny memory, but I also remembered that the next day I felt sluggish and my face broke out.

My body was showing the results of the things I put in it.

Your attitude is a result of the things your mind dwells on.

Start with gratitude

Research shows that you cannot be stressed and thankful at the same time. Actively choosing to focus on the positive, the things you are grateful for, actually gives you freedom from feeling stressed.

Gratitude is the foundational positive thought that builds a positive attitude. Without gratitude, it is near impossible to have a positive outlook.

When you build a habit of gratitude, you give yourself a new pair of glasses. You put on glasses that provide a positive outlook on your circumstances.

When you build the habit of gratitude, you are sustained in the hard seasons. Because, I hate to break it to you, but you will endure a hard season. But building a habit of gratitude allows you to identify the positive things present in the midst of unbearably difficult circumstances.

Recently, I was talking with a friend who is enduring a painfully and incomparably difficult season. But as I listened to him, I could hear his posture of gratitude oozing from his spirit. He is walking through something that most others will not ever have to, and somehow he was able to encourage me with his posture of gratitude!

When you build a habit of gratitude, this is the posture that you approach life with regardless of the circumstances. Henri Nouwen puts it simple: “It is here that we are faced with the freedom to make a decision. We can decide to be grateful or to be bitter.”

The habit of gratitude allows you to have a positive attitude, and this habit will change your life.

Next time someone asks you how you’re doing, let them know, “I feel like 10 million bucks”.