There is one way to make sure that you wake up every single day feeling calm, joyful, and blissed out, and that is to adopt an attitude of gratitude. When you make it a conscious habit to express appreciation for your life, the Universe listens and responds with more love.
Life is far from perfect. Sometimes things happen that cause us to react negatively. Having a pity party is okay now and then. However, it does nothing good for your mental and emotional well-being.
An attitude of gratitude forces you to get outside of your problems and look at the bigger picture. In turn, you are better able to bounce forward when challenges occur in life.
What is an attitude of gratitude?
An attitude of gratitude is the habit or disposition to be grateful. It’s an observable mental state that demonstrates thankfulness for the good things that happen to us, big and small. People with such an attitude tend to be happier and less stressed than those who don’t have one.
Grateful people give thanks for everything in their life, even on the days when it feels like nothing is going right. Cultivating this attitude can help you focus on the positive aspects of your life instead of the negative ones—making you happier, more productive, and more successful. Gratitude also strengthens relationships by making people feel appreciated and supported. In addition, grateful people tend to be more helpful than those who aren’t.
To turn an attitude of gratitude into a sustainable habit, your foundation for feelings of gratitude must be independent of your circumstances.
Why is gratitude important?
We all know how important it is to have a positive attitude. We’re taught to look at the world as a half-full glass, rather than a half-empty one. There’s good reason to adopt this mindset.
Studies show that if you express gratitude, it raises your happiness by 25%. When you take a moment to give thanks for what you have, instead of ruminating on what you don’t have, it fills you up.
Here are two processes gratitude can influence.
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Catharsis
In situations where both parties ultimately feel fulfilled, the usage of thankfulness acts as a cathartic agent. Despite a recent setback, the actions are intended to express the friends’ respect for one another. Having possessions from departed loved ones may provide the new owner a sense of calm that allows them to look back on themselves with thankfulness.
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Reciprocity
When someone shows gratitude to another person, they could be inspired to return the kindness to the first person or do it again for a total stranger. In its simplest form, reciprocity is the exchange of pleasant feelings between individuals who have helped one another out.
Here is an overview of eight recent psychological findings related to the study of gratitude:
1. Enhanced wellbeing
Expressing your thanks can improve your overall sense of well-being. Grateful people are more agreeable, more open, and less neurotic.
Furthermore, gratitude is related inversely to depression, and positively to life satisfaction (Wood, Joseph, & Maltby, 2008). This is not to say that “depressed people” should simply be more grateful, as depression is a very complicated disease and struggle for millions of people. Instead, perhaps gratitude practices need to be a part of the therapy and treatment for people who struggle with depression.
2. Deeper relationships
Gratitude is also a powerful tool for strengthening interpersonal relationships. People who express their gratitude for each other tend to be more willing to forgive others and less narcissistic.
3. Improved Optimism
When people are optimistic about their well-being and health, they may be more likely to act in ways that support a healthy lifestyle.
4. Increased happiness
In the pursuit of happiness and life satisfaction, gratitude offers a long-lasting effect in a positive-feedback loop of sorts. Thus, the more gratitude we experience and express, the more situations and people we may find to express gratitude towards.
5. Stronger self-control
Self-Control helps with discipline and focus. Long-term well-being can benefit from self-control. Self-control helps us stick to the “better choice” for our long-term health, financial future, and well-being.
6. Better physical and mental health
The link between the mind-body connection aligns with how gratitude can have a double benefit. For example, the feeling of appreciation helps us to have healthier minds, and with that healthier bodies.
7. Makes you more creative
When your mind is filled with negative thoughts, it’s challenging to be open to new ideas or solutions.
8. Grateful people are more likely to be successful in life
They will be successful because they’re willing to help others achieve their goals, too.
How to cultivate an attitude of gratitude
Let’s look at these simple ways that you can develop an attitude of gratitude.
1. Keep a gratitude journal
We often experience things that we should be grateful for, only to forget about them the next day. This is why writing down what you are grateful for is a good idea. By doing so you are rewriting your brain to focus on the good.
Gratitude journaling is the habit of recording and reflecting on things (typically three) that you are grateful for regularly.
When it comes to practicing gratitude, consistency is key. Get into a routine of writing in your journal daily, preferably in the morning. This is a great way to start your day with a grateful heart.
2. Express your gratitude
Research shows that on the days those individuals strive to express their gratitude, they experience more positive emotions and are more likely to report helping someone and feel connected with others.
Think about the people in your life who have made a positive impact on you. Reach out and tell them how much you appreciate them. There are plenty of ways to express your gratitude.
3. Celebrate the small things
We are conditioned to focus on and celebrate our big achievements, instead of our small wins. However, if you fail to ignore the small things and keep rushing from one thing to the next, you will quickly become demotivated.
When you celebrate the small things, what you’re doing is celebrating your habits. Take time to pause, slow down and savor the small things.
4. Meditate on gratitude
Meditation is a powerful practice in self-awareness. The goal isn’t to silence your thoughts. Rather, it’s to become an active observer of them. The process of meditation is all about allowing the mind to do its thing and accept it as it is.
Through meditation, we can build up areas of our brain and rewire them to enhance positive traits like focus and decision-making and diminish the less positive ones like fear and stress.
5. Practice a positive mindset
When you’re grateful, your brain switches to positive mode—you start looking for solutions instead of problems. Employing a positive mindset is one way to increase your gratitude attitude. Staying positive against seemingly formidable challenges can be difficult, but it’s worth the effort. Positivity breeds more positivity.
6. Choose people around you wisely
Surrounding yourself with positive people will help keep your attitude and gratitude in check. Spending time with negative people will only bring you down and make it challenging to stay grateful.
Final thoughts
Gratitude is a powerful emotion that can change our lives for the better. It can make us happier, healthier, and more successful. When we express gratitude, we send a message of love to ourselves and others. And by being grateful, we open up our hearts and minds to receive better in our lives.
It’s never too late to start cultivating an attitude of gratitude.
What are you grateful for? Give thanks for whatever that is every single day. Life is beautiful. Take the time to stop and appreciate it.