We spend a good amount of our time exercising our bodies and educating our minds. There is no shortage of self-improvement ideas to be found on the web, in books and at the gym. Practicing true, honest gratitude is one self-improvement tactic that often gets overlooked. The practice of gratitude helps keep our souls healthy. We feel better and our outlook is improved when we learn how to simply be grateful. People that see the silver lining in difficult situations tend to be ones that are happiest and healthiest.
Ralph Waldo Emerson once said that in order to achieve contentment, one should “cultivate the habit of being grateful for every good thing that comes to you, and to give thanks continuously.” Wise words!
1) Keep a Gratitude Journal. Reflecting on things you’re thankful for and jotting them down promotes happiness and optimism. Research has shown that writing down what you’re thankful for can lead to a happier and less-stressed life. Keeping a gratitude journal is a great exercise because it encourages us to log positive experiences. Writing down the things we are thankful for gives more meaning to them and shifts the focus away from the downs of daily life. Keeping a gratitude journal can reinforce positive thoughts. This, in turn, promotes happiness.
2) Know the value of the little things. Take time to smell the flowers, listen to a child’s laughter, and look at a beautiful sunset. Don’t let these small pleasures slip away. These simple pleasures trigger our minds and create a mental break. Take the time to really savor them. There is power in ordinary moments.
3) They’re grateful to people, not just things. They spread their joy. Grateful people want their friends and loved ones to benefit from their positive outlook on life. They find ways to draw the people into their special moments. This actually increases their own personal joy.
4) Seeing the good in others. It is all to easy to focus on the faults of the people in our world. Naturally grateful people see the good qualities in others.
5) Teach gratitude to children. Parents that set an example of gratitude give their children a great gift. Practice gratitude so that your children take notice. Children learn through example and are sponges, let them absorb gratitude.
6) It’s not about money. Grateful people believe that the path to true happiness comes from within, not from material possessions. Filling your cart with items will only provide short-term bliss. Grateful people understand that money cannot put a price on the value of happiness.
7) It is better to give than receive. Everyone loves gifts. But giving brings a greater joy. Volunteer and paying it forward is food for the soul. Sharing what you have with those in need is the purest expression of gratitude.
English writer G.K. Chesterton said, “When it comes to life, the critical thing is whether you take things for granted or take them with gratitude.” Like any good habit, cultivating gratitude requires patience and constant effort. But once you get there, life will be boundlessly better!
