A customer of mine, who I’ve since begun to consider a friend, is a kindergarten teacher. As she was trying to find a way to teach her young charges about gratitude, she came across my website and downloaded the “Attitude of Gratitude” song. She taught it to her students and they loved it and learned it very quickly because it is so simple. She communicated with me that she would like to have the kids perform the song for their Principal and asked if I had any objections. Of course I thought it was a terrific idea and it got us to talking back and forth about what kids learn when they are very young.
I know my mom taught me all kinds of cute little songs like “Barney Google”, and “Yes, We Have No Bananas” (guess I’m dating myself:-)). I remember each and every one of them to this day and I taught them all to my own children. They are cute and harmless and fun, but if something is going to stick with you all of your life, wouldn’t it be great to have it be something positive and uplifting?
Most of the research out there on how we establish what we believe about ourselves says that these beliefs get rooted in what we see, hear, think and experience up until we are about 7 years old. We begin to believe things about ourselves whether they are true or not from this point on. Sometimes they are positive beliefs, but more often than not, they are negative limiting beliefs like “I’m not smart” or “Nobody likes me”, or “I’m not good enough.” Maybe you are really smart, tons of people like you and you are plenty good enough, but if you believe otherwise you will always find the circumstances that will prove your beliefs correct. I work with so many people (including my own self) who have been plagued by these kinds of negative beliefs all of their lives.
So my friend and I were talking about what the world might be like if the songs that little kids got stuck in their heads had lyrics like “I believe” or “I can change everything” or “I trust that everything comes to me Perfectly?” What if the songs stuck in my head from childhood had been “I’m Happy” or “Every Day, in Every Way, I’m Getting Stronger and Stronger,” instead of “I’ve Got a Lovely Bunch of Coconuts?” Can any of you imagine how different life might have been to have had rock solid, unshakable belief in yourself and your abilities from early childhood? I know I could have avoided a lot of pain and suffering over the years, agonizing about the “Not good enough” thing alone.
It’s something to think about anyway. My friend gave me permission to let you hear her darling kids sing “Attitude of Gratitude.” Just listen to the gusto in their voices. Hope you enjoy it as much as I do. Thanks so much S, A, J and M. Much love to you all. Mmmwah
