I’ve wanted to write a post on gratitude for a while, I was just unsure how to go about it without sounding overly airy-fairy.
Gratitude, however, isn’t some obscure ‘up-in-the-air’ notion.
In communities across the world it is still taken incredibly seriously, sometimes as part of a religious practice.
I am an atheist, but like many atheists out there – who are good, kind, and fulfilled people despite not having let religion into their lives – I absolutely see the need to appreciate what I have everyday.
It keeps you grounded, sane, and generally makes you a nicer person to be around.
If you can appreciate the little things while striving towards your own big goals, you’ve got it made.
So often we forget to appreciate what we have, what we have achieved and what we are working towards.
The importance of gratitude was more recently bought to my attention, as something you can strive towards doing more of as an actionable being, rather than a simple concept in the book 59 Seconds by Professor Richard Wiseman.
In his book, Professor Wiseman of Hertfordshire University expelled tips for life that could be implemented in 59 seconds or less.
Within the first chapter, ‘Happiness’, Professor Wiseman talks about developing the Gratitude Attitude. He describes how, when a new smell enters a room, at first you notice it but quickly you get used to it and it eventually disappears from your consciousness. However, as we all know, it’s easy to reactivate the smell again by stepping out of the room and back in again.
This, in a nutshell, is the concept of the gratitude attitude.
Professor Wiseman’s Gratitude Attitude five-day plan goes as follows -
- Monday: Thanksgiving – There are many things in your life for which to be grateful. These might include having close friends, being in a loving relationship, being part of a supportive family, enjoying good health, having a roof over your head or enough food to eat. Alternatively, you might have a job that you love, have happy memories of the past, recently had a nice experience, such as a lovely cup of coffee, enjoyed the smile of a stranger, had your dog welcome you home, eaten a great meal or stopped to smell the flowers. Think back over the past week and list three of these things.
- Tuesday: Terrific Times – Think about one of the most wonderful experiences in your life. Perhaps a moment when you felt suddenly contented, were in love, listened to an amazing piece of music, saw an incredible performance or had a great time with friends. Choose just one experience and imagine yourself back in that moment in time. Imagine how you felt and what was going on around you. Now spend a few moments writing down a description of that experience and how you felt. Do not worry about your spelling, punctuation or grammar. Instead, simply commit your thoughts to paper.
- Wednesday: Future Fantastic – Spend a few moments writing about your life in the future. Imagine that everything has gone as well as it possible could. Be realistic, but imagine that you have worked hard and achieved all your goals. Imagine you have become the person you really want to be, and your personal and professional life feels like a dream come true. All of this may not help you achieve your goals, but will help you feel good and put a smile on your face.
- Thursday: Dear… - Think about someone in your life who is very important to you. It might me your partner, or close family friend or family member. Imagine you only have one opportunity to tell this person how important they are to you. Now write a short letter to this person, describing how much you care for them and the impact they have had on your life.
- Friday: Reviewing the Situation – Think back over the past seven days and make a note of three things that went really well for you. The events might be fairly trivial, such as finding a parking space, or more important, such as being offered a new job or opportunity.
Each of these points are explained in more detail in the ‘Happiness’ chapter of Professor Wiseman’s book, along with scientific backing as to why each method works, and just as importantly, why many conventional methods don’t work – at best – and often cause more harm – at worst.
If you can only do one of the above exercises, I suggest you take on ‘Thanksgiving’.
I do this as often as I remember and it’s been hugely beneficial. If you’re an iPhone user, I can also recommend an app called Gratitude Journal, a simple diary-style app that asks you “What are you grateful for today?” every day.
I’ve been filling this in 5-6 days a week now since the beginning of the year and I can honestly say it’s been great.
Complain less, and appreciate the small things. Develop the gratitude attitude.
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