GRATITUDE. IT’S NOT A BUZZWORD… #5TTT
Hi all,
I’m sure you have heard the word gratitude being thrown into every conversation at the moment. Being thankful and grateful… or the word I hear associated with gratitude most often, especially online, #blessed.
Call it what you will. Use it in any way you will. But the art of gratitude has been with us as human beings for a long time, and long may it continue.
I, for one, am very happy that more and more people are being introduced to the concept of gratitude but like many other things out there, we had the ability and awareness all along. Maybe for some we just need a little nudge or a way to gain some clarity.
For this weeks 5 top tips on a Tuesday I want to discuss with you the ways in which you can bring gratitude into your own life… and more importantly how!
A practice
No matter how you want to bring gratitude into your life please be aware that it is a practice. Start small and develop it into a habit and you will see more happiness in your life. Gratitude journals are all the rage right now where you list what you are grateful for on a daily/ weekly basis but sometimes I think that can be too overwhelming and too easy to eventually forget about. For me, I like lying in bed at night and listing what the ‘peak’ of my day was and something I ‘loved’ from my day. We do it every night before we go to sleep and it always makes me sleep with a smile. Try making it a habit with your partner or children or maybe it could be something to talk about at the dinner table each night!
It is not about ignoring the bad
It’s a real misconception that gratitude practice is about ignoring the bad or stressful situations that are going on in your life. Gratitude wont take them away, but it may help lighten the load on your mind. There will always be stress, speed and manic times in our lives, gratitude practice is about seeing the light in your tunnel. Pulling your joy to the forefront.
Seeing the beauty in our world
For me, gratitude also comes in the form of taking in my surroundings. Yesterday I felt grateful for the warm sun on a chilly day and the crunchy leaves that coat the pavement leaving me very entertained. Gratitude can come in the form of simply being thankful for the world that surrounds us. Sometimes it can be more grounding to focus on this side of the gratitude sphere.
Realising the joy in the mundane
Relating a fresh ‘peak’ and ‘love’ of the day to David, day in and out, sounds like it would be hard work. Often they are repeats and there is nothing wrong with that. But also they often highlight small joys in the mundane. Like listening to my favourite music whilst chopping up vegetables. A server at the store commenting on how much she likes my ring. Being ability to call my Mum when I want to even if I didn’t speak to her that day. It makes you realise how lucky you are to have what we have, even if it feels like on the grand scale we are struggling.
Knowing how you truly feel
Gratitude is basically checking in with your body and your mind. Think of it as taking stock but instead of allowing your mind to drift into the negative, you pull it back into the positive. If there are things in your life that you are thankful for and they make you happy, do you make them a priority? Do you view certain people now in a different light? They may not act the way you would like but you are thankful that they try and always have time for you. All kinds of questions about you and how you feel about your life can pop up when you start practicing gratitude. Such a small thing that can lead to you living a truthful and more fulfilled life. You just have to be open to letting it in.
Do you practice gratitude?
Tell me something you are thankful for?
Are you good at discussing gratitude with others?
