Hi

Firstly, Happy New Year! 

Here’s to a fabulous 2024 for all of us!

But let me wind the clock back momentarily… 

(And bear with me, this will relate to getting your genealogy organised).

I think we all love Christmas and the festive spirit it engenders…

We’re with family, eating and drinking to our heart’s content, opening presents, sharing stories, stoking the fire (or the barbeque if you’re here in Australia!) – you can picture it all, can't you?

Generally, we’re having a wonderful time.

And I think that’s because we all give more of ourselves at this particularly special time of the year.

Not only do we give gifts.

We give our time, attention, and presence to our family and friends.

And often to people we don’t even know.

It could be people we meet in a queue, or people we support through charitable donations...

It seems we are much more giving of ourselves at Christmas.

There’s a waft of kindness in the air.

And my belief is (and I may be completely wrong!) that kindness often stems from gratitude. 

(And here’s the genealogy link…)

I want to say that over the Christmas and New Year period I was inspired by the kindness and gratitude of you guys here in the wonderful genealogy organising community we’re building. 

(Which is how this ‘practicing gratitude in genealogy’ notion came about).

With the release of my 2024 Genealogy Organising Planner (as well as the delay in its release!), I’ve had so, so many lovely emails and messages from you. 

 Here’s a few examples:

• "I’ve only skimmed it but it looks great. Thank you for making this available." (Donna)
• "Got it! Printing it out right now! I’ve done genealogy for about 20 years now and feel like I’m organized to a certain degree but your planner looks like it could take me to the next level!" (Tamara)
• "Thank you again for all your time and effort, providing these freebies for us." (Joy)
• "You’re incredible Sally!" (Linda)

Look at all that gorgeousness and kindness flowing from gratitude.

It really demonstrates to me the profound connections we’re making even though most of us have never met in person.

Makes my heart sing. 

So, being the ever-practical gal, I was wondering how we might bottle some of this gratitude???

And use it to inspire ourselves while organising our genealogy.

So here some...

**Ideas for Practicing Gratitude as You Organise Your Genealogy**

1. Appreciate the journey (both the ups and the downs) that comes with learning how to organise genealogy and take a moment to reassure yourself that you have the skills and support you need. 
2. Celebrate every small step taken towards organising your genealogy. Each effort, no matter how modest, is a step in the right direction. This is about progress - not perfection. 
3. Share your insights and offer genealogy organising ideas and tips where you can to your fellow family historians and know that the law of reciprocity will be gloriously generous to you in return – just when you need it. 
4. Give your genealogy space a little tidy up (whether it’s a dedicated room or a corner of the kitchen table) to acknowledge how blessed you are that you love genealogy and can share stories between generations past, present and future. 
5. Embrace ‘GENjoyment’ which is 'the enjoyment of organised genealogy' and take notice of the satisfaction you experience when you’re moving towards this goal. 

As I’ve said many times…

Organising your genealogy is NOT about finding the time.

It’s about finding the joy.

And if you look for the joy – you’ll very often find it!  

And just thinking about it, I’d suggest one more tip…

6. Use the 2024 Genealogy Organising Planner to help you find the joy. Achieve a genealogy organising goal that is emotionally important to you knowing that you have a tool (and a back-up community) that helps guide you every step of the way. 

**PS.** If you haven't already, download your free 2024 Genealogy Organising Planner from www.genealogyspace.com.