Gratitude always looks good. It is ingratitude that is ugly and distasteful.
"There is no such thing as gratitude unexpressed. If it is unexpressed, it is plain, old-fashioned ingratitude." (Robert Brault)
Psychologist, Researcher and Author, Dr. Robert Emmons is considered by many to be the world's leading authority on Gratitude. Studies he has done indicate that practicing gratitude can increase our happiness level by 25%. In his book he explains that there are 3 things that determine our happiness: circumstances, genetics and intentional activity. Practicing gratitude is an intentional activity that will increase happiness.
Read his book, "Thanks!: How the New Science of Gratitude Can Make You Happier". You can find it @www.amazon.com/.
Learning to live a life of gratitude means we are always conscious of our many blessings, no matter what negative circumstances may be present in our lives. To succeed at learning this 'attitude of gratitude', we must train ourselves to be more grateful.
There are exercises we can do to achieve this. One is to imagine losing some of the things you take for granted, such as your freedom, your home, your ability to see or walk, your finances etc. Then imagine that you regained each one of them back. Ponder how grateful you would be to have them again.
Another thing some people do, is keep a gratitude journal where they record 3 to 10 things they are grateful for every day. In Dr. Emmons studies, daily gratitude exercises resulted in higher levels of alertness, enthusiasm, determination, optimism and energy. Furthermore, those practicing gratitude had less depression and stress, had more success in achieving their goals and were more likely to help others.
Another idea, is to wear a wristband that is a reminder to express gratitude throughout your day. Whenever you glance at it, you stop for a moment and think of something you are grateful for.
Of course there is also the obvious, of making the habit of frequently thanking those around you. This could be to the person who held the door open for you, to the friend who just called to say 'hi', or the person who did you a favor.
Dr. Emmons says that there are life-changing benefits from practicing gratitude!
- It puts situations into perspective. If we see enough 'bad' around us, we realize how "good" things really are.
- It helps us realize all that we have, which hopefully will result in us wanting less.
- It strengthens all of our relationships.
- It improves our health and strengthens our immune system.
- It reduces stress and gives us the ability to recover quicker from difficult situations.
- It makes us generally happier and healthier people.
It is not in our nature to have an 'attitude of gratitude'. So we need to make a daily effort to practice it and find joy in the small things in life. If we only get excited and grateful when it is Christmas, or time for a vacation, or at the birth of a child and other big events, then we are missing out.
So I am grateful today for the research of Dr. Emmons that teaches us about gratitude and the happiness it brings.
Give Thanks!
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