I love Thanksgiving. This year it got me thinking about gratitude and how it is something we should all be feeling everyday. We need to have the positive habit of feeling gratitude. So please join me on a 30 day journey of making gratitude part of my day, every day.
Most of us have heard that feeling gratitude is good for our well-being but did you know that people who write a daily gratitude list can see a drop of up to 28% in their levels of the stress hormone - cortisol.
Writing a list is great but if you think that you can scribble down a few words and it magically lift your spirits you may be disappointed, this is something you have to do very mindfully. You need to be completely present as you write the list, you need to not only write the words but feel the feeling of gratitude as the words unfold on the page.
When you combine the written words with the emotion, the feeling you get when you are so happy and grateful for something in your life, that’s when the magic happens!
You will be lifted into a happier place, and if you let your mind wander back to that feeling during your day, nothing can bring you down.
So, here’s my challenge to you…
Firstly – grab yourself a note-book – personally, I bought myself a little fancy number for $4
For 30 days (it takes doing something new 28 times to make it become a habit, so we’ve got a couple of extras for good measure :) I ask you join me and do the following:
1. Before you get out of bed in the morning, take a moment to appreciate your comfy bed, your warm duvet and soft billowy pillows that made you nights sleep so comfortable. Notice and acknowledge how well rested and refreshed you feel after such a good night’s sleep. (Even if it wasn’t the best night’s sleep, focus on what rest you did get).
Now you have that happy-gratitude feeling running through you, write it down in your notebook. Write about what you are grateful for, why you are grateful for it and how you feel right now. It can just be a couple of sentences, or if you feel inspired by what you are feeling and want to go into more detail, that’s good too.
2. At the end of your working day, when you get in the car to leave, on the train on the ride home, when you pull up on the driveway or when you get home. Think about your day – and find at least one thing you are grateful for during your working day – if you can, find three.
It maybe a colleague said or did something nice, or maybe an opportunity came your way, maybe you completed a difficult task or learned something new – or maybe you are just grateful for having a job that provides you with the money to take care of your family. Try to be as specific as you can.
Now you have that happy-gratitude feeling running through you, write it down in your notebook. Write about what you are grateful for, why you are grateful for it and how you feel right now. Again, it can just be a couple of sentences, but if you feel inspired by what you are feeling and want to go into more detail, go with it, and let the words flow.
3. At the end of your day – just before you are ready to go to sleep, what else are you grateful for, how was your evening? What have you got to feel grateful for tonight?
Think about them,
feel about them,
write about them.
As you lay down in your comfy bed, slowly drifting off into a calm and restful slumber think about your list and how much you have to feel grateful for. You are about to have one on your best night’s sleep ever!
Do this routine for 30 days. Before you say that you don’t have the time to do this, it only takes a few minutes three times a day. If you want to make a difference in your life and get yourself feeling happier and be able to see more positives in your life you will make the time.
You have the same amount of time in your day as Elon Musk, as Bill Gates, as Adele, and as every other successful, happy and influential person that has walked this earth, so do I, so neither one of us has any excuse, it’s all about priorities. So please join me on this gratitude habit making challenge. Starting today! Let’s go!
I would love to hear your feed back on this challenge via Comment, DM or Email.
Click this link for more on adopting an Attitude of Gratitude
and this one if you want to read some very inspiring quotes on Gratitude
Drop in to my Etsy store Positive Life by Design for great printables to help you on your journey.
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