Practice Gratitude And Improve Your Life

When Thanksgiving comes around we might ask ourselves ‘what am I thankful for?’ It’s a great tradition to be thankful for our families at this time of year but it would be better to practice it on a regular basis. So why isn’t once a year enough?

Gratitude is not only the greatest of virtues, but the parent of all others. ~Cicero

Uc Berkley’s research has shown psychological benefits of gratitude. It helps detach us from toxic emotions and will even give personal improvements if you don’t share it with others. Although you won’t see immediate results you will get lasting effects on the brain. Pretty cool way of looking out for yourself, right?

Benefits of Gratitude Practice

What do we mean by gratitude? Gratitude is a thankful appreciation for what someone receives.

If you’re going through some tough times, or you’re feeling totally unsatisfied with life, you tend to keep your focus on what’s you don’t have and find it hard to enjoy the things that you do have.

Studies show that those who express gratitude tend to have improved well-being, whether they are the person giving it or receiving it. It’s one of the foundations to living a happy, fulfilled life.

Improvements expected

• Happier with a more positive mood
• Increased satisfaction in life
• Decreased interest in material things.
• Less stressed with life
• Improved health
• Better quality sleep
• Less tiredness
• Less inflammation
• More resilience
• More patient with others

It’s amazing the differences that people have found, once they start to practice gratitude on a regular basis. If you’re not used to it, you can make keeping track a daily habit, by using a gratitude journal. Over a few weeks you should start to see some improvements in the way you think and feel. Being more relaxed in mind can give a better sleep too.

Ways to Practice Gratitude Daily

The goal here is to look for things that you feel grateful for, even if you have to really seek them out in the beginning.
It’s all about creating a habit until it becomes a normal part of your day. You might want to try one of two different ways to practice gratitude till you find one that feels natural and that you can stick to.
Daily practice is a great goal to aim for but if you find that too hard, try once or twice a week. Just stick with it and do it consistently.
Why not start off by posting words, photos, and objects of gratitude in your home. Seeing them will keep you motivated.
You might also try keeping a gratitude journal. Mark it up with three or five things you’re grateful for. This can help focus thoughts on all you have in life rather than on what your don’t have. Appreciate everything you can see, smell, taste, and hear and aim to keep track of it every day.

Another way is choose an affirmation and say it to yourself throughout the day. Here are 10 daily affirmations for you to try:

Daily Gratitude Affirmations

1. I am grateful for everything I have in my life while looking forward to what’s coming.
2. I appreciate that I always get exactly what I ask for.
3. I am grateful that I’m in excellent health, and enjoy prosperity and love in my life.
4. I’m grateful for the abundance of goodness that fills my life.
5. I’m grateful for the challenges in life that give the opportunity for growth and the chance to evolve.
6. I am so grateful for the blessings of supportive friends and a loving family.
7. I am grateful for everything I have in my life which keeps the door open for more blessings.
8. I welcome all the blessings the universe sends me.
9. I’m grateful that I’m the co-creator of my reality.
10. I feel grateful for the beauty that surrounds me in nature.

Ways to Practice Gratitude Without A Gratitude Journal

Instead of buying a gratitude journal you can use a daily calendar that you fill in with one thing you are grateful for every day. This is great to look back on and see how you have evolved with your gratitude practice over time.

Use your phone

If you like to keep everything on your phone then why not invest in a Gratitude Journal app. This allows the user to create a daily gratitude entry. They usually offer more than just the journal but the ability to use daily affirmations. You can also set reminders so that it will prompt you to record what you are grateful for today.

Dealing with others

Focus on how you speak and deal with others rather than yourself. Make sure that you are using grateful actions in your day like smiling at people, always saying thank you and making sure that you send letters of gratitude to people. Share something positive on social media. Why not give some of your time or money to a charity. Any of these things will improve your day but will also improve the day of others too.

Gratitude at work

We can spend many hours at work in a day so introducing gratitude into the workplace can make a difference to the overall atmosphere.
Share with your co-workers the things that you are grateful for while you’re chatting together rather than focussing on what you’re not happy with.
Make the effort to show an interest in them personally rather than just keeping to business. Let them know how much you value them and their work.
Try and practice calmness in stressful situations. Make time to listen with an open mind to others, especially if they’re having a bad day, and give them space to figure out things if they need it. Little acts of kindness can make a big difference.

A little meditation

Here is a simple meditation for you to practice gratitude. You will need a quiet place where you can focus.
Think of someone or something you’re grateful for. It could be an old friend you couldn’t imagine life without.
Or maybe it’s just a feeling, like the pleasure you feel when the warm sun breaks through the clouds on a cold day.
It has to be something uncomplicated without any problems involved.
Visualize the situation and really get into it. Try and hang onto that feeling for five or ten minutes.

Practice gratitude with your kids

The easiest way to start practicing gratitude with you kids is to get their input while you write your daily journal. Get in a routine of speaking with your children and telling them what you are grateful for so that they can understand and join in. It gives you a special time to explain what it’s all about while sharing what you’re all grateful for. This won’t work if you don’t believe it’s an important trait for your children to develop.

You can do something similar when they come home from school. Ask them what the best part of the day was for them. Give them your full attention while they tell you all about it. Quite often it’s the simplest things that make them happy and can only highlight to us adults not to overlook similar things in our lives.

Create gratitude games with your kids using colors. Have some different colored counters in a bag and when a counter is chosen they have to state something that they are grateful for. Have a different gratitude reason for each color.

Red might equal a person they are grateful for, orange for an experience, yellow might be a skill you have, green for a wonderful memory and purple a place you love. You can change up the rules and choose your own statements. After each turn they get to eat the sweet or receive a treat. It makes gratitude a game that your kids will love to play.

Get your children to sit down and write a letter to someone in their life they are grateful for. Help them to put into words the reasons why and what that person means to them. Let them see how this small act of kindness can make another person feel appreciated. Gratitude is one of those important virtues that teaches children and adults appreciation, generosity and kindness. It can change people for the better.

Another great way to keep them involved is to start a gratitude jar. Provide pieces of paper and let them fill it in with things they are grateful for. When it fills up have a special evening when you open it up and read them out. It’s a great way to reflect on good things that have happened to them.

Summary

It’s not difficult to practice gratitude on a regular basis. You don’t have to buy anything to get started and the benefits to yourself and your family are worth any efforts needed. Start a journal or a gratitude jar and get everyone involved but the most important thing is, just to get started.