12 Practical Ways to Practice Gratitude
Gratitude isn't a common habit for most of us, but without gratitude, life is more challenging than it needs to be. Feeling grateful resets your perspective, and this is a gift you can give yourself each day or even better, many times each day. If you find yourself feeling pessimistic or overwhelmed, a little gratitude can get your attitude right back on the right track.
Gratitude is free, enjoyable, and very effective in bringing you peace and joy.
Practice gratitude each day with these actions:
Write it down. Make a daily habit of writing down a few things that you can be grateful about. Ideally, you'll do this early and late in the day. It gets your day off on the right foot and sets you up for a good night of sleep.
Be grateful for the little things. There are plenty of small things you can be grateful for each day. A great cup of coffee or tea, the sound of birds in the morning, or the fact that you have a new set of tires on your car can all uplift your mood.
Go for a gratitude walk. This is a great way to get out of your head. Go for a walk in nature (or even downtown) and look for things that you can be grateful for. A beautiful tree, happy people walking down the street, a friendly dog, or a nice, cool breeze are all things you could choose to feel gratitude about.
Avoid making comparisons. When you compare one thing to another, you demean it. Be grateful for something exactly as it is. This applies to people and things.
Tell people you’re thankful. Show people that you’re grateful by thanking them. Whether it’s thanking your secretary for getting that important mailing done on time or tipping the cashier at Starbucks. Be thankful and let them know about it.
Enjoy your pet. Pets give us plenty of reasons to feel gratitude. If you have a pet, give your pet some extra attention. You’ll both feel great.
Donate your time or money. Give your resources to something that you think is valuable to the world. It could be a chairty or organization. Time and money can have a great impact.
Make a list of things that impress you about yourself. Have a little gratitude for yourself too. What are you impressed by when you take a long, hard look at yourself? You’ll not only be expressing gratitude, but you’ll also be doing wonders for your self-esteem.
Write a positive review for a business you appreciate. Business owners love positive reviews. It makes them feel good and can boost their business. Be supportive and express your gratitude.
Meditate on things that you’re grateful for. Take some quiet time and put your focus and attention on those things you’re most grateful for. You might develop an even greater appreciation for them.
Minimize judging and complaining. Judging and complaining are the opposite of gratitude. People that do this aren’t enjoyable to be around, either. Keep your negative thoughts and opinions to yourself. Avoid judging others and you’ll find that you’re happier and less stressed.
Be thankful at mealtimes. Since you eat at least one meal each day, this is a great way to develop a habit of expressing gratitude. Be grateful for your food and the people sharing it with you.
Be grateful for everything you have. Even if you’re struggling to survive below the poverty level, you’re still living better than the vast majority of the world’s population. That doesn’t mean you have to be satisfied with your current situation, but you still can be grateful for what you do have.
Practice gratitude. Your mood and perspective will be lifted. Your opportunities for success will increase. And you’ll receive even more good things to be grateful for!
Joe Mitchell, Esquire is a High Performance Coach and EFT (Tapping) Practitioner, who has logged over 35 years of in depth study of personal and spiritual development. In his studies , he has done hundreds of self-development courses, spiritual retreats and health-related workshops. Coach Joe is a certified yoga teacher, meditation teacher, NLP Practitioner and a graduate of three coaching academies. Two years after he graduated from Harvard Law School, he became a monk for five years. In 2016, after over 20 years as a solo criminal and personal injury attorney, he decided to turn his heart’s passion into a career as a Success Coach, Motivational Speaker and Trainer. For information on Coach Joe’s programs, high performance videos and apply for a Free High Performance Session click the following link: http://www.activateyourgreatness.com/free-session.