Finding Gratitude in Everyday Life: You’ll Thank Yourself
These days we hear a lot about gratitude. There are apps, bullet journal layouts and journals for gratitude. Perhaps we want to live our best lives so we might give this a try.
The practice of gratitude finds us stopping to think about the simplest of things. It means accepting the life we have, flaws and all and finding things to be thankful for. Honestly what could be better than practicing gratitude? There are no negative side effects, there is no cost and the desired outcome is that you feel better about your life. According to an article in Happify research by the University of Pennsylvania showed that the effects last longer than one might think. Gratitude is a gift that keeps on giving.
“Gratitude unlocks the fullness of life. It turns what we have into enough, and more. It turns denial into acceptance, chaos into order, confusion into clarity. It turns problems into gifts, failures into success, the unexpected into perfect timing, and mistakes into important events. Gratitude makes sense of our past, brings peace for today and creates a vision for tomorrow”
– Melody Beattie,
Author
Tell People How You Feel
Let others know that you are grateful for their love and friendship. You don’t need to have a special occasion just do it. In an article on Tiny Buddha they share 50 Ways to Show Gratitude for the People in Your Life. These can be people you are close to, co-workers or even people who provide a service. Just a smile or asking someone at the checkout how their day is can boost their confidence for the day.
Show Gratitude to Yourself
Be kind to yourself and show yourself gratitude for all that you are. We can show appreciation to ourselves for our own abilities and uniqueness. For example, you can be grateful that your sense of humor has helped your through life’s challenges or perhaps you are grateful that you have been able to share your culinary talents with others. Think about what makes you, you.
Do it For Your Health
There are actual health benefits to practicing gratitude. Especially relevant is research shared in Harvard Health article Giving Thanks Can Make You Happier, which supports that there is “an association between gratitude and an individual’s well-being.” Practicing the art of gratitude may increase your resilience and your energy levels according to 6 Surprising Reasons Gratitude Is Great For Your Health.
For tools and ideas on how to get started, check out our Gratitude board on Pinterest or next week’s Facebook posts. Here you’ll find gratitude printables, journal prompts, articles and Gratitude Challenges.