The Secret Power Of Appreciation: 10 Little Ways To Express Gratitude That Will Completely Change Your Life
Gratitude isn't just a nice though; it's a life-changing practice.
Igor Alecsander | Canva Whether it comes naturally to you or not, feeling grateful can be easy. Still, you may avoid gratitude because you think you don't have time. However, gratefulness can be as easy as changing your mind.
Developing ways you can learn how to practice and express gratitude are things you can do every day. Being grateful can improve your happiness and mental health and help you shift from a negative mindset to a more positive one, no matter what you're experiencing.
Here are ten little ways to express gratitude that will completely change your life:
1. Tell your loved ones how much you appreciate them
Chay_Tee via Shutterstock
Too often, we take the ones we love for granted. One easy way to practice gratitude is to simply tell the ones you love how much you appreciate them.
It's important to use descriptive words. Challenge yourself. Instead of simply saying, "I appreciate you," try using specifics.
For example: "I really appreciated it when you washed the dishes last night. You're very thoughtful, and I'm so grateful you're my partner. The little things are everything to me."
2. Start a gratitude journal to jot down moments you appreciate
PeopleImages.com - Yuri A via Shutterstock
All you need is a wee little notebook to carry with you and a pen. Simply taking a few minutes each day to write out some thoughts can help you establish a practice of gratitude.
Do it for a few days and see how easy it is to establish a daily practice. Also, it's great to flip back through the pages and review your blessings. A study in the Journal of Psychiatric and Mental Health Nursing found that "mindful gratitude journaling could positively affect the state of suffering, psychological distress, and quality of life."
3. Thank everyone you meet today
PeopleImages.com - Yuri A via Shutterstock
Even if you're working from home, you can remember to thank everyone you interact with. Try not just the simple "thank you," but actually try to recognize something about each person that you can thank.
Include anyone with whom you interact. If you go shopping or out to lunch, be sure to thank clerks and others for their service.
4. Avoid negative social media posts and news
Antonio Guillem via Shutterstock
Oh my goodness, put your phone down. Truly, there is so much bad news out there, it's unavoidable.
Set aside some time today (and every day this week) to take a break. Turn it off, and put it in another room so you aren't tempted. Take a social media break if for nothing else than for better sleep. "Taking a break from social media improves well-being through sleep quality," explained a 2021 study.
5. Take care of your health
Aliaksandr Barouski via Shutterstock
Without your health, you have nothing. This is one thing for which we all can be grateful. Some really simple ways to keep your health top of mind are to develop healthy daily habits. You can use movement to motivate a grateful thought.
Connect a gratitude practice to simple and consistent movements, such as washing your hands. Each time you wash your hands, you can state a little bit of gratitude.
6. Remind yourself to keep your thoughts in the present moment
Tiantip Deedet via Shutterstock
It's so tempting to ruminate on negative thoughts, but it can be super difficult to overcome, especially if it's a habit. It's not healthy to dwell in the past, and you really can't experience your future until it's here.
Instead, use the pause button. Press pause and reset your thoughts. Remind yourself, "I'm here now. This present moment is the only thing that matters. I am grateful for this moment."
Training yourself to stay present is important, according to research in the Journal of American College Health. This is a great and easy way to practice gratitude.
7. Examine your current state of balance and happiness
fizkes via Shutterstock
The life-balance wheel is a visual graphic display of how you're feeling about the different priorities in your life.
Draw a circle and divide it into categories that represent the major focus areas of your life. Some of the most common categories can include home, career, health, finances, spirituality, love, family, fitness, etc.
Choose categories that are meaningful to you, and then rank yourself on a scale from one to ten representing your level of satisfaction in each area. If you're unsatisfied, those are great areas to focus your time and attention.
8. Stop one negative habit for one week
Nicoleta Ionescu via Shutterstock
Let's get serious about just one thing you know isn't good for you. You know, that thing that you've complained about over and over. Or tried to dodge and avoid.
Well, for this week, focus on something you've been wanting to start doing or wish you could stop doing for a while.
Maybe you've been wanting to stop binge eating chips at 9:30 p.m. Or, perhaps you've been avoiding setting your alarm 30 minutes early to take a quick run before your shower a few times a week.
Regardless of what it is, each of us has negative habits. And like it or not, you've probably been avoiding tackling them because of a lame, fill-in-the-blank excuse. So, just for this week, pick one bad habit to address. Then make a plan to either do the opposite of it, or get rid of the excuses not to do it, and just start.
The challenge is not a one-shot thing. The challenge comes through commitment and repetition. Doing it once (or not doing it one time) is easy. More difficult is doing or stopping "the thing" for a solid week. And if a week seems too long, give it at least three days of a solid effort.
When you take action, you'll create some feelings. Check in on them when you shift the behavior. Try it and see what shows up. Instead of invoking your critic, hire your inspector or observer. Zoom out and get curious about yourself.
Also, regarding habits, it's important to track your progress so you can stay accountable. At the end of the week, check in with yourself and see how you did. Then, use that time to express gratitude for the journey.
9. Add inspirational quotes to your decor
fizkes via Shutterstock
When was the last time you printed something out for you to read? Everything is so digital these days, and you process so many messages daily that inspiration is becoming a lost art.
Head over to Pinterest or simply search for Inspirational quotes. You can set yourself up with a free Canva account to create quick graphics and print some inspiring images and quotes for your own enjoyment. Gratitude will then happen at a glance.
10. State one of your strengths or beliefs aloud daily
PeopleImages.com - Yuri A via Shutterstock
Have you ever told someone you loved them? If so, you understand the power of your spoken word. Remember the time before you said, "I love you," and then the split-second after, there was a shift. The same goes for stating things aloud about yourself.
So often, you get stuck in a rut of negative self-thought. Too often, you say things about yourself that aren't true. Instead, write a list of your strengths, then make a practice of stating one strength aloud daily with gratitude. Something like: "I'm so thankful for my strong legs." Or, "I'm thankful that I have faith, it helps me get through tough times." This helps build self-esteem and self-acceptance.
A 2006 study showed that "self-esteem was more closely associated with affect, with higher levels of self-esteem being indicative of lower levels of depression. Self-acceptance appeared to be more closely associated with general psychological well-being."
It's even better to build accountability around this. Share the self-love with another. Ask a friend or family member to be your accountability partner for this exercise for a week.
Practice grateful statements with each other for the week. See how stating your strengths and beliefs aloud to someone else feels.
Establishing a gratitude practice can be easy. It truly can improve your quality of life. Once you’ve mastered the practice of gratitude, you can pay it forward to others. A gratitude practice brings everyone up.
When you're more positive, you can spread that positivity around to others. You can blog about it, write a book, or even turn it into your life’s work. Regardless of what you do with it for others, it's important to just start.
Practicing gratitude is a way to be more present and count your blessings, and it can help chase away feelings of gloom and anxiousness, according to research by the American Psychological Association. Life balance is not a destination, but a journey filled with constant readjustment. The end is reached when consistent practices are in place.
Gratitude can be a part of your daily plan and practice to create sustained joy. Therefore, developing a gratitude practice can and really will make you happier.
The times when you feel that things can't get much worse present great opportunities to hit the pause button and reach for simple ways to feel more gratitude.
Cena Block works with ADHD entrepreneurs to turn ADHD blind spots into super-powers through coaching.
