Day in and day out, what are you grateful for?

This question is part of a new approach to life that I’m trying out these days.

Each morning, the first thing I do is pick up a pen and pad of paper that I keep on my bedstand. I write down one thing I’m grateful for.

After that, I read a page from a book of inspirational writings – writings designed to open myself up to the possibilities of my own life, and the power of positive thinking.

All this was prompted by my recent attendance of a seminar given by Dr. Rob Kiltz, a motivational speaker and the founder and director of the CNY Fertility Center. It cost me $45 to attend.

Kiltz has a mansion on the eastern shore of Skaneateles Lake with a gorgeous view of the lake. I was among two dozen other guys who attended his seminar, which was held in a large, center room on the home’s first floor.

I really didn’t know what to expect. I’ve never attended one of these seminars before. Several guys showed with yoga mats and pillows. I just sat back in a comfortable chair and listened.

Kiltz, who looked like a shorter, toothy version of Richard Gere, spoke for nearly three hours. He was dressed in a tight-fitting, black T-shirt and jeans. He was bare-footed the whole time.

His message: “The power of positive thinking (and acting on those thoughts) is the key to life and success.

“We have within us the ability to create our own destiny. The way that we create our destiny is by learning that our thoughts and energy create our reality.”

Sure, we all have problems – even Kiltz, who’s divorced and said that about a year ago his girlfriend dumped him.

For me, the last month has been a particularly rough ride. I was fearful of being laid off at work due to a corporate restructuring. I was convinced right up until the final minute that I was toast.  But in the end, I kept my job.

I’ve seen the corrosive power of negativity in family members, friends and acquaintances. Sometimes life just sucks. There’s divorce, being laid off, death and sickness of family and friends.

Kiltz’s pitch is this: Life is a story full of ups and downs. The secret to living life to the fullest is to embrace the big picture in a positive way and to keep moving forward, not wasting your time or energy reliving your mistakes or obsessing over what’s gone wrong.

“The only people with no problems are in cemeteries. They’re dead,” he said several times during his talk.

Kiltz’s book, which he handed out at the seminar, is “The Art of Living with Intent, 60 Days of Intentions and Inspirations to Transform your Life.” This is the book I’m reading each morning.

The writings are a mixture of messages from well-known authors, philosophers (both Eastern and Western) and famous personalities. Above all, the major message is the awareness that our thoughts have a huge impact on how we think of ourselves, and how we act.

I’ve heard this positive-thinking message before. It’s the main philosophy espoused by Norman Vincent Peale, author of the “The Power of Positive Thinking,” and Napolean Hill, who penned “Think and Grow Rich.”

“Whatever the mind of man can conceive and believe, it can achieve,” is Hill’s catch phrase.

The daily messages in Kiltz’s book that I’ve read to this point ring true. Messages like:

– Practicing selfless love of yourself and others

– Accepting life’s many curves

– Realizing the power of thought and attitude

– Having the ability to squelch and discard negative thoughts

– Using visualization and goal setting

– Realizing that transformation/change of one’s situation begins from within

– Understanding that any change or positive development starts with taking the first step.

Kiltz’s book offers 60 days of messages.

The 61^st day — and every day afterward — is up to you.

  For more on Kiltz and his book, check out his website.