The Challenge of Living Complaint-Free by Lexie Wolf
Update: Nov. 27: Betsey Downing, who gave me the book and inspired this challenge, has 8 of the books and some bracelets to donate to the studio for anyone who would like to participate in the challenge! I’ll update when they’re in!
“The first step towards prosperity in all its forms is to be grateful for what we currently possess, and we can’t complain about what we have and be grateful at the same time”
-Will Bowen, A Complaint Free World
During the Thanksgiving holiday gratitude gets a lot of attention. Gratitude is well-deserving of our attention at all times of the year. There is no emotion that can shift our state quite like it. Thoughts of gratitude release dopamine and serotonin in our brain, enhancing our mood immediately.
A friend turned me on to a very cool book some time ago called A Complaint Free World. I am sure some of you already know about this very popular book by Will Bowen, first published in 2007.
The book details a simple program to follow to change the habit of complaining. The goal is to go 21 days without complaining in order to cement that habit. You wear a bracelet on one wrist and if you catch yourself complaining (out loud), you have to switch the bracelet to the other wrist and start over the next day. The plan is simple. The book is full of wonderful techniques for reframing and shifting negative energy and thoughts, and lots of interesting data and research about the power of the mind to enhance or diminish our lives:
“When you commit that what comes out of your mouth will be positive, your mind will become more aware of positive experiences to be used as raw materials to supply positive thoughts. As a result, the fundamental focus of your mind will shift. Your attention will be on what you want, and this is important: You will begin to draw more of what you want into your experience. Further, as you shift your focus away from the challenging aspects of life, you lessen their occurrence. What you call reality will transform.”
The cover of my edition says that “more than 10 million people have joined the life-changing program detailed in the book.” I’m pretty skeptical about the term “life-changing” and its trendy twin “transformative” (ask our studio coordinator, Joy, how often I remove the word “transformative” from class and workshop descriptions submitted to me). However, I believe that to stop complaining and move through the world from a place of gratitude could potentially qualify as a transformative shift.
The book asserts that the average person complains 15-30 times a day! (Don’t worry, a basic statement of fact like “it is cold out today” is not a complaint. It’s more about the attitude or energy behind it.) Bona fide pain and grief don’t count.
I have set an intention to start the 21-day challenge on Thanksgiving day. I don’t think of myself as a chronic complainer, but I’m quite sure I’ll find that I complain a lot more than I thought. The book says most people take 4-6 months to get to 21 consecutive days! Have you done this challenge? How did it go? Join me! And join the conversation in the comments below.
