We live in an exceedingly competitive world that’s very fast-paced, which makes it difficult to stop and identify what’s lacking in our daily lives. We are driven to achieve success and that blinds us to everything else that we need to or should be doing. Our focus shifts to materialistic things like money, sneakers, collectibles and other material objects.
We start to become obsessed with the things we don’t have like a perfect relationship, a great body, etc. However, when you look at the world around you through this lens of desired perfection you tend to measure your worth, not by your successes, but by your deficits. Feelings of envy, insufficiency, and imperfection can easily become a barrier to true happiness.
5 Ways You Can Develop An Attitude of Gratitude
When you harbor these kinds of feelings, it limits your capacity to gain happiness from the things you have. This is why it becomes important to form habits that will help improve your attitude of gratitude and help you evolve into a healthier and happier being:
- Maintain A Gratitude Journal
Keep a journal of all the things that go well for you. This is a proven way of improving health and happiness. When you focus on your gratitude, you will feel better about your life and become more optimistic too. In that journal, make note of 5 things that went well, every single day.
- Send Out Thank You Notes
When you show others gratitude for the things they have done for you, in the form of a ‘Thank You’ note, it will make you feel better inside. Aside from this, it’s also a great way of nurturing your relationship with that person. Acknowledge people in your personal and professional life and see how much better you feel about yourself.
- Giving Mental Thank You’s Is Important
There are times when you do have the opportunity to thank people and show your gratitude, but just don’t get the chance to voice it. When this happens, simply practice saying a mental thank you as this will help you feel more positive about yourself.
- Pray or Practice Meditation
Praying and meditating are the other ways to practice gratitude. You can practice expressing your gratitude for things like feelings of calm, great weather, a pleasant smell or even the warmth of the sun.
- Use A Gratitude Jar
Use your own gratitude to nurture more around yourself. When you write something in your gratitude journal, put a dollar in a ‘gratitude jar’. Once it’s full, use the accumulated amount to pay it forward. Do a good deed, help someone with food, give the money to charity or simply buy flowers for someone you think deserves them. It’s a proven fact that those that receive your good deeds are far more likely to pay some forward too.
It doesn’t take much to improve your attitude of gratitude and spread happiness around you. In the long-term, it will help you develop contentment and peace. Another way to improve your attitude of gratitude is by donating to a special cause like clean water initiatives. At PalmEraMia, we donate 10% of our profits to help communities without access to clean water.
