I’m sure many of us have been reflecting on this past year, working out what’s worked out and also what’s not. Making sense of the world and ourselves is an ongoing process where we can put things into perspective and understand what brings happiness in our lives and how we also manage through difficult times too.

Whilst I’m a keen advocate of self improvement I’ve intermittently tuned in and out of what it means to be ‘grateful’ and started to journal the things I have felt grateful for more frequently.

The daily practice of journaling was also stimulated through a mobile app I came across when I connected with the co-founders of www.whatsright.ai ,Graham Daking and Rory Darkins. They were working on a mobile app platform integrating breath work, humanistic psychology and coaching practices which I started to trial. One of the many great features of this app was as a chat bot tool which prompted me daily to focus on the things that were right [going well] and to construct and nurture a more positive mindset.

I met both Graham and Rory at a time when I lost my job in June 2019 as a result of a corporate restructure. Losing my stable corporate job impacted my self worth, confidence and I questioned my purpose, true passion and future prospects. After months of applying for jobs, continual interviews, rejections and intermittent contracts I had lost sight of the really wonderful things that I had in my life and to be grateful for.

Combined with meditation, breath work and exercise and constructive habits like journaling, I discovered that the practice of being grateful energized me, gave me focus and a strong positive mindset to focus on the things I needed to achieve that day and keep focused on my true passion.

Occasionally I felt my list was a bit general with family, health, financial and basic needs being listed consistently. After a few weeks I started to incorporate new people I had met, books I had read, sunsets (picture I took recently) watching my son pretending to be spider and other more incidental things – interestingly despite how trivial I thought my observation of gratitude was, I felt it contribute to my positive attitude as part of my daily routine.

– Robert Brault

“Enjoy the little things, for one day you may look back and realize they were the big things.”

For me personally 2020 has been a ‘mixed’ year and I have learnt a great deal through gaining and losing a job – twice, dealing with my dad contracting COVID in the UK, observing how resilient my family is and I’m extremely grateful for everything I have and the kindness and support others have shown. This year has helped me find greater clarity and connect me to a purpose that I have always been passionate about – helping other people.

Whilst I have coached and mentored people from all ages and from many walks of life over the past 20 years I have decided to make this a more conscious part of my work life and increase my active involvement in community.

So I (soft) launched my own coaching service www.wellbeinz.com.au to help people navigate through career or life events and have also volunteered as a youth mentor for Big Brothers and Big Sisters, an organization that offers support for disadvantaged young adults across Australia.

I am now looking forward to shifting a greater focus to helping more people in 2021 and look forward to practicing gratitude in even more ways.

Thank you to so many people this year who have been advocates, teachers, mentors, coaches, supporters, managers, inspiring visionaries, friends and loving family members. I am for ever grateful and wish you all the very best for 2021.

Chris