Gratitude is a widely popular psychological variable with hundreds of researches on its effectiveness. In lay terms it is a feeling of recognition & acknowledgment of the blessings and positive elements in life.
With the new year approaching let us share some habits you can practice to build a sense of gratitude in life to de- stress and gain an optimistic outlook in life.
Journaling
Keeping a gratitude journal is a great way to start practicing it. It is an easy task, it’s like keeping a diary for yourself. Making a list of all the things you are grateful for, all the experiences or events that happen on a daily basis helps you acknowledge them and register a positive aspect of life which in turn boosts your subjective well-being. It is hassle free, fun, and easily doable, there are a lot of online diaries available for you to download and start journaling.
Mindfulness
Backed up by scientific data, mindfulness practices are an effective and productive method of building gratitude habits. It is known to have many benefits. There are a number of ways you can practice mindfulness for gratitude. You can use and tune into your five senses and acknowledge what a wonder your body is. Using your sense of sight, touch, hearing, taste and smell you can remind yourself of the beautiful things life has to offer and the blessing of being able to do so. Daily practicing can help rewire the brain and make you a more thankful, joyful and optimistic person.
Set Reminders
Setting reminders is an amazing way of keeping yourself in a grateful mindset. There are a variety of ways to do so in the form of setting visual reminders on the phone to taking sticky notes and displaying them or setting audio reminders according to your preferences.
Volunteer work
Doing volunteer work to show your appreciation towards life, society and people is a nice way to give back, to show your gratitude and appreciation. You can set goals such as doing a kindness for someone every day or helping someone in any way possible or voluntary working whichever works for you.
Quality time with loved ones
Spending quality time with pets, good friends and family helps increase positive feelings and develops a sense of gratitude. Having experienced moments of laughter, joy, love, affection, healthy relationships increases a sense of self-worth and happiness.
Gratitude letter
Writing a gratitude letter helps shift focus on the positive feelings, what you focus on grows, if you keep your attention focused on the positive events, people, experiences in life, your sense of gratitude, happiness, compassion increases.
Repeat thanks
Keep saying “ thank you” to show appreciation, human brains are creatures of habit with repetition habits develop, which boost the positive feeling of gratitude.
Little things matter
Often counting the things we take for granted helps us realize how blessed we really are in life, make it a daily practice to list two things which you often take for granted.
Appreciation games
It’s a fun activity which can help break ice and elevate connection within relationships. Making your loved ones feel appreciated naturally creates feelings of gratitude.
To conclude, there are many ways to practice gratitude. You have to work your way around and find out what suits your personality and you can add in your routine.
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