Gratitude is a feeling of thankfulness or appreciation towards something or someone specific. It is being thankful for what you have instead of continually seeking out more and more.
You’ll find lots of articles and research stating the benefits that come with being a grateful person. People who are thankful are known to:
· Be depressed less
· Get better grades in school
· Sleep Better
· Stay healthy
· Have deeper friendships
· Have an improved ability to deal with adversity
· Have a better outlook on life
Basically…Gratitude is Good For You!
Whether your life is moving along smoothly, or it feels like you’re walking in quicksand, consider adding these daily habits to your life:
· Create New Pathways
Dr. Caroline Leaf, the cognitive neuroscientist, and author, said, “As you think, you change the structure of your brain.” This isn’t easy. But we have a choice in what we think about, so let’s allow thoughts of gratefulness to fill our minds.
· Choose Five Things
Make a daily habit to say or write five things you’re thankful for. You can do it any time of the day-morning or night!
· Set a Gratitude Alarm
Create a reminder in your phone to go off daily, or as often as you want. When the alarm goes off, take a couple of minutes to think about all the things that you are grateful for right then and there.
· Tell Someone
Every day, talk to someone about what you’re thankful for. Maybe it’s their friendship, the sunrise, a powerful moment you’ve experienced, or kindness you’ve received.
· Create a Gratitude Anchor Habit anchoring, also called habit stacking, is when you link a current habit to a new one you want to develop or practice.
For your gratitude practice, you could attach it to something you already do every day. An easy way to do this would be to spend the time you are brushing your teeth thinking about what you are grateful for at that moment.
If you need further help remembering, you can put a post-it note near your toothbrush
Eventually, you won’t need the extra reminder anymore. The habit anchor will be enough of a cue.
It’s vital that we make our gratitude habitual so that when life's storms come upon us, we know how to navigate the rough waters. Part of this is choosing to be grateful even when we don’t understand the world around us.
As we build this gratitude muscle, it won’t be something we have to think about- it’ll become as natural as breathing.
Article is taken in part from, YouVersion.com, “How to Be Grateful For Your Life,” and https://handfulofthoughts.com/gratitude-during-the-holidays/