Practicing Gratitude
Discover the power of gratitude and transform your daily life through simple, meaningful practices
What Is Gratitude Practice?
Gratitude is the act of consciously noticing and appreciating the good in our lives. Having a grateful mindset helps us notice the little things to cherish everyday, such as the sun on our face, a hearty breakfast, a stranger holding the door open for us or an old friend calling. It allows us to appreciate the present moment, celebrate our past successes and look forward to the future.
The benefits of regularly practicing gratitude can be both physical (e.g. lower blood pressure, stronger immune system and improved sleep) and psychological (e.g. improved happiness, better ability to cope with stress, higher levels of optimism and increased connectedness).
Tools For Practicing Gratitude
So, how can you be more grateful? There are many different ways in which you can practice gratitude. You might decide to express it verbally by sharing your gratitudes with someone else, you might prefer to write your gratitudes down in a journal or letter, or you might want to try your hand at gratitude meditation. Below are some suggestions for different methods to help you get started.
Three Good Things
This is a simple but powerful tool to help you realize what you have done well this week and how that makes you feel. By focusing on your achievements you will learn to take a more positive approach towards yourself. Planning the things you want to accomplish next will help you build upon that encouragement.
Pick a day, preferably towards the end of the week, and fill in the PDF worksheet in the Download Materials. Repeat this on a weekly basis.
You can also write this exercise in a journal, if you have one.
Gratitude Journal
A gratitude journal is a diary specifically for recording and reflecting on the things which you are grateful for on a regular basis. This can include people, places, objects, memories or events.
The gratitudes that you write can be as big or as small as you like but they must be both specific and personally meaningful. It is not enough to simply write down what an event was. You need to include the details of who it involved, when it happened, and most importantly, why it mattered to you.
Thinking in this much detail enables you to experience the event more deeply and develop a greater appreciation for it.
At the end of the day, before you get into bed, set aside some time (5 to 10 minutes) to think about and write down at least one thing you are grateful for that day.
The PDF in the Download Materials will provide you with a basic framework for getting started. Once you have filled it all in, you may wish to purchase an inexpensive gratitude journal/notepad, download an app or create a file on your computer designated to recording your gratitudes. Alternatively, you could try switching to the 'Gratitude Jar' tool outlined in the next tab.
REMEMBER: Whatever you write in your journal needs to be as specific and personally meaningful to you as possible.
The gratitude jar is a simpler alternative strategy to writing a journal. It is a fun way of creating a personal jar full of gratitudes to appreciate and be thankful for.
1. At the end of each day, write down two things you are grateful for and put them in the jar. You can also draw them if you like.
2. Remember each event can be as small as a friend phoning you on your lunch break or a colleague thanking you for your help on a project.
3. At the end of the week, set aside some time to empty the jar and read the entries.
Here are some ideas for journaling applications you can download to your mobile phone/tablet and use to write down your gratitudes. All of these have free basic versions you can use with optional paid upgrades.
- Penzu: private, 100% customizable journal.
- Daybook: journal that safeguards your memories and helps you to reflect upon past experiences, analyze and improve yourself.
- Diaro: simple, effective and personal diary to keep life moments and ideas always with you.
- Day One: easy-to-use journal to capture anything, from once-in-a-lifetime events to everyday moments.
Letters Of Thanks
Letters of thanks can be used as a tool for communicating your appreciation to a specific person for something they have done for you.
Expressing gratitude to others will not only boost your own happiness, it will also have a positive effect on the recipient and may help strengthen the relationship you have with them.
1. Think of three people who have been a positive influence in your life and that you feel really grateful to – they could be a friend, family member, colleague or someone else who has made a difference in your life.
2. Take a piece of paper and write down their names followed by the reasons you are grateful to them.
3. Choose one of these people and write them a letter to tell them how grateful you are. You can either decide to write freely on a blank piece of paper or you can use the template in the 'Download Materials' for some guidance.
4. Repeat this process once a month, each time choosing a different person to write to and adding more names to your list as required.
Ideas for information to include:
- What is it specifically that you are grateful to this person for?
- How did this person help you?
- How did this shape who you are today?
In addition to writing letters of thanks to other people, you can also try writing a letter to yourself.
Write down something you are grateful to yourself for – it can be anything from persevering with a difficult work project, to learning a new language, to making time for yourself to watch your favourite film. As before, you can either decide to write freely on a blank piece of paper or you can use the template in the 'Download Materials' for some guidance.
Once you have written your letter, try and read it out loud. Repeat this process at the end of each week to remind yourself of what you have achieved.
Gratitude Meditation
Meditation provides a way of taking a pause from a hectic day in order to tune in with yourself. Gratitude meditation is a type of meditation that focuses on appreciating the things in life that you are grateful for.
It involves consciously focusing on and visualizing these things in order to experience the feeling of appreciation; for yourself, your body, your family and friends or something good that happened to you today.
Why not try starting each day with a personal morning gratitude meditation? Or, allocating some time in the evening to sit down and reflect on the good things you experienced today?
Here are some example meditation videos and audios to help you get started. Just pick one that feels right for you and give it a go!
- Appreciating Nature (2 Min)
- Gratitude Meditation (5 Min)
- Strengthen Happiness (5 Min)
- Guided Meditation for Gratitude (10 Min)
- Appreciation Meditation Audio (10 Min)
- Gratitude in Difficult Times (8 Min)
Here are some ideas for meditation applications you can download to your mobile phone/tablet. All of these have free basic versions you can use with optional paid upgrades.
- Headspace – meditation and mindfulness for any mind, any mood, any goal.
- Insight Timer – meditation and yoga for sleep, anxiety and stress.
- Smiling Mind – not-for-profit daily meditation and mindfulness guide.
- Calm – guided meditations, breathing exercises and sleep stories.