Gratitude is the expression of appreciation for what an individual receives, whether tangible or intangible. Gratitude is practiced by showing and acknowledging appreciation. I like to think of gratitude as returning kindness. There is power in pausing and reflecting, for example, being grateful for a warm cozy bed to sleep in at night or being thankful to the bus driver for safely getting you to your destination.
Gratitude helps us to connect to something larger than ourselves. For some, that may mean connecting to others, nature, or a higher power. Below are five benefits you can expect when practicing gratitude:
- increased happiness + positive mood.
- greater resiliency.
- encourages the development of patience.
- increased life satisfaction.
- decreases the potential of burnout or disconnect.
I personally think gratitude involves intentionality. I highly recommend creating a gratitude jar. Creating a gratitude jar is an easy, quick, and inexpensive way to practice gratitude. See steps below on how to create a simple gratitude jar.
- Buy a jar or repurpose an old jar.
- Decorate the jar as simple or as extravagant as you’d like.
- Buy, print, or create uniformed notes to add to your jar.
- I like writing out the prompt I am grateful for… on each of my notes.
- Consider adding the date to the back of your notes for future reference.