Gratitude Practice - A Way To A Positive Mindset
Author: James Conlon
Finding a few minutes each day to reflect and appreciate the things that have gone well or acknowledge the reasons we have to be grateful, can positively change how you feel. These simple yet powerful thoughts release Dopamine, one of the so-called ‘feel-good’ chemicals and gives us a mental boost.
Benefits
Numerous studies indicate a correlation between practicing gratitude and :
• Better quality sleep
• Greater mental resilience
• Increased energy levels and motivation
• Enhanced positive mood
• Better physical health (fewer aches and pains)
• Improved self-esteem
*See the links provided at the end for more information.
How To Practice Gratitude
There are many different ways to implement a gratitude practice. The following are a selection of popular examples that can easily be incorporated into your daily routine.
DAILY REFLECTION
Spend 5 minutes each day considering at least three reasons you have to be thankful. These can be simple things such as meeting friends, watching a beautiful sunset or avoiding the traffic jam on the other side of the road. Find a way to incorporate this into your daily routine. Maybe during your morning shower or coffee, lunch break or daily commute.
GRATITUDE STONE
Choose a smooth, interesting stone that conveniently fits in your pocket. Whenever, you notice the stone, whether touching it with your hand or you feel it against your leg, pause for a moment to think of at one reason you have to be grateful. It doesn’t matter how small. This can help break the negative mindset many of us have and create positive thinking habits.
GRATITUDE JARS
Each day write on a strip of paper at least one reason you have to feel thankful; place it in a jar and keep the jar somewhere you’ll see regularly. Just stumbling across the jar and remembering you have reasons to be thankful, can have a significant positive effect. Over time, the jar will fill with more and more reasons to be thankful, and each time you walk passed the jar you’ll be reminded of them. On days when you’re feeling low or just fancy a reason to smile, you can open the jar and read through the notes.
GRATITUDE TREE
This a great activity for children and also works well with adults. Ask your child to draw a tree on a piece paper or go for a walk and find a large branch with many stems coming from it. Place the branch or picture somewhere they’ll be regularly seen. Cut out leaf shapes from paper. Each day, ask your child to write on a leaf a reason they have to be thankful and attach the leaf to the branch. As more and more leaves appear, the child has a visual reminder of the many reasons to be thankful.
GRATITUDE WALKS
Regularly set aside time to go for walks in nature with the sole purpose of focussing on the things you have to be thankful. Observe the beauty around you as you walk, the colours, the sounds of the birds,the smells of the plants. Spending time outdoors, in nature, distracts the mind from the stresses of day to day life, as well as generating the benefits associated with exercise. A study in 2015 found that when people walked in nature versus an urban environment, for 90 minutes, they experienced lower blood pressure, lower levels of the stress hormone Cortisol and a decreased heart rate. They also reported lower levels of worry.
GRATITUDE MEDITATION
The benefits of meditation are well documented. Incorporating gratitude reflection as part of mindful meditation can further add to those benefits.
Further Reading
The neuroscience of gratitude :
https://positivepsychology.com/benefits-gratitude-research-questions/
https://www.happierhuman.com/benefits-of-gratitude/
https://www.health.harvard.edu/healthbeat/giving-thanks-can-make-you-happier