By definition, gratitude is the quality or feeling of being grateful. It is a characteristic that some people naturally possess and that others can cultivate to greatly influence one’s overall happiness and well-being. According to Psychology Today, “studies show that we can deliberately cultivate gratitude and can increase our well-being and happiness by doing so. In addition, gratefulness—and especially the expression of it to others—is associated with increased energy, optimism, and empathy”. In the spirit of deliberately cultivating gratitude, I plan to start the week with a gratitude list and I invite you to join me.
Make Your Gratitude List
That’s right, grab a piece of paper and pen and take the next minute to make a list of the all the things in the past 24 hours that you are grateful for. Seriously, don’t spend more than one minute doing this and don’t over think or judge yourself for something that you think is silly. This exercise is simply to retrain your brain to recognize the daily blessings and the positive things and moments in your life.
Writer and motivational speaker, William Arthur Ward, once said, “Gratitude can transform common days into thanksgivings, turn routine jobs into joy, and change ordinary opportunities into blessings.” Let’s kick off this week with intention and gratitude and see how our overall happiness and well-being is positively affected.
shemakescents 