I have a confession to make:  Yesterday was a bad day.  I was disappointed, sad, frustrated, felt sorry for myself and even (gasp) cried.  The badness started with something small and insignificant but quickly snowballed out of control and I wasn’t able to recover.  I was doomed.  In the spirit of true disclosure, I was feeling so blah that I ate not one, but two brownies AND had a rather large glass of wine.  Did I mention the pizza for dinner?  While I am not a frequent stress eater, I have to admit that the combination of warm gooey chocolate and Pinot Noir really did make me feel better.  The pizza however was a bit too much.  Thankfully, yesterday is now history.  Why do you care?  Well, you probably don’t which is ok, but I’m sure you can relate.  We all have bad days.  How you look at and learn from them is the key.  If you give attention to the negative energy, guess what you’re going to get in return?  Yep, more bad ju ju.  However, by choosing to laugh off your bad luck, even if that storm cloud follows you around I bet you’ll see a rainbow or at least stay dry under an umbrella. 
Here’s an example.  You wake up 10 minutes late.  As you rush around to get ready for work you cut your leg shaving.  Great!  You’re wearing a skirt today and now need to stop the gushing.  You can’t walk around with blood soaked nylons all day.  The extra time in the bathroom means you’re now at least 20 minutes behind schedule – no time for breakfast.  As you grab a bagel and coffee on your way to the train all you can think of is how many extra hours you’re going to have to workout in order to burn off these empty calories.  Sprinting up the stairs you spill your coffee, snag your nylons reaching for the cup and miss your connection.  Wonderful.  You will definitely be late to work and are now covered in cold coffee.  Could this day get any worse?  Unfortunately, it probably will if you don’t take a minute to hit ctrl + alt + del and reboot your mindset. 
What if we put a different spin on the start to the same day?  You wake up 10 minutes late.  As you rush around to get ready for work you cut your leg shaving and think “Damn that hurt!  Guess I’m wearing pants today.”  You finish your morning routine, put a bandage on your leg (and remember to take a few extra’s for your purse).  To save a few minutes you decide to put your hair up instead of curling it.  Despite getting up late the smart choices you made put you back on schedule.  You almost literally run into your friend on the brisk walk to the train.  On the ride in, you notice she’s got her hair up too which makes you both laugh.  Your friend suggests you meet for drink after work.  You think that’s a great idea and say “Guess it’s going to be one of those days.”
See how quickly you can change the feel of the day?  You might not be able to control the things that happen in your daily life, but you can certainly decide how each thing will affect you.  The choice is yours.  What’s it going to be?  Crabiness or Happiness?  I vote for happy :)

~ Angie

You know what day of the week I feel bad for?  Monday.  Why do we as a culture tend to dread this day so much?  There have been a ton of studies around anxiety, depression and sadness with the results claiming to actually prove that Monday’s have a negative effect on people and their health.  Have you ever noticed how drastically people’s behavior changes as the work week progresses?  Monday mornings are generally quiet and funeral like.  There’s an abundance of somber expressions as people walk quietly around mourning the loss of another weekend with an IV of coffee required to sustain their energy levels throughout the day.  As the week progresses the overall mood seems to improve.  Tuesday people find their smiles and start to become human again.  I think Taco Tuesday lunch specials have something to do with that.  Nothing says cheer up like chips, salsa and a couple of tacos.  Wednesday’s and Thursday’s are a blur.  You’re in your groove and can see the light at the end of the tunnel.  Plus Happy Hour specials are usually pretty great on Thursday’s.  Why not celebrate the quickly approaching weekend a bit early?  And then it arrives….FRIDAY….the highly anticipated end of the work week!  The coffee room is full of bagels and donuts, people linger around talking with each other, you go out to lunch and blink twice and BAM it’s closing time.  Hello weekend!!  You spend Saturday and Sunday running around like crazy, trying to pack so much in to those two days because who has time for fun or chores during the work week?  Sunday night reality sinks in and Monday morning the vicious cycle starts again. 

Any of this sound familiar?  Well, the good news is that you can actually cure the poison associated with Mondays.  Better yet, it’s free and doesn't require a prescription or a trip to the doctor.  The antidote is gratitude and the directions are simple.  After your alarm goes off and before you actually get out of bed on Monday morning think about 3 to 5 things that you are grateful for.  It might be helpful to write them down in a journal or as a note in your cell phone so throughout the day you can look back and remember what you’re grateful for.  Maybe you’re grateful to be up early enough to see the gorgeous sunrise or for the ability to have spent a weekend with your family.  Whatever you’re grateful for is entirely personal and up to you.  Try this exercise every morning and notice how your ATTITUDE changes as a result of focusing on your GRATITUDE.  You might also want to try doing this at night before you go to sleep.  Reflecting on what you are thankful for, what lessons you have learned throughout the day, or even what you want to dream about are great ways to head off to dreamland on a positive note.  A better night’s sleep can do wonders to improve your energy level, which can lead to a more productive work day, which means less stress.  Less stress generally means more happiness.  And when your life is full of happiness who knows what amazing things can happen?!

~ Angie