What if I told you there was something you could rely on to improve your mood and outlook at any given moment? It requires no study, deep understandings, or complicated practices. It’s free, comes without ads or subscriptions, and will improve your overall wellbeing immeasurably. Would you believe me? Does it seem too good to have a hope of being true?
It absolutely is true. And the seemingly magic practice is….Gratitude. Now don’t roll your eyes at me, please. 😉 If there were a pill we could take that would do all the amazing things gratitude does, we’d all be stumbling over each other to get to the closest pharmacy and grab a bottle. (Does it come in gummies?) Let’s consider for just a moment what happens when you engender a feeling of gratitude –
You are immediately in the present moment. When you pause to feel gratitude you are in the now, and that’s always a good thing; no sad reflections on the past or scary possible scenarios in the future. Just grateful right now.
You are focusing on what’s working in your life. If you’ve been following me for long, you know we talk a lot about “where attention goes, energy flows.” When you’re grateful, your powerful attention is directed to the good in your life – eyes that see, legs that walk, food on your plate, clothes on your back, a comfy bed at night, people whom you love, and those who love you. As they say in metaphysical circles, what we think about, we bring about, so focusing on all the reasons you have to feel thankful will attract even more things about which you can be grateful!
Gratitude resets your mindset. If you tend to see the glass as half-empty, a regular gratitude practice will retrain your mind to look for what’s right, what’s working, and over time your “factory setting” for your mood will drift towards more lightness, more happiness.
Stress subsides when we are grateful. Our physical state improves when we are grateful because the happy hormones of oxytocin, dopamine, and serotonin are released. We shift out of a fight or flight state and into one of rest and digest. Our shoulders drop away from our ears, our jaw unclenches, and we might even smile.
Gratitude is that impactful, but permit me to add a quick disclaimer: Please know I am not saying we shouldn’t feel irritated when we have a flat tire, or shouldn’t feel frustrated when we’ve been on hold for 20 minutes. Gratitude isn’t about denying your natural emotions. It is about seeing the good in the situation, when you’re ready to, and then you can be thankful your phone was charged so you could call for a tow truck, or glad it wasn’t raining when you got your flat.
There is always, always something to be grateful for, and choosing to find new reasons to feel grateful each day is a huge step in the ultimate measure of success – how much fun it is to be you.
If you would like some help in cultivating gratitude or any aspect of creating the life you desire, please reach out to schedule a free 30-minute call. I would love to discuss how life coaching can empower you!
