Hi guys and welcome back to my blog!
This Thursday, I wanted to talk about being grateful
Given that it is Thanksgiving (Happy Thanksgiving to all my American readers!), I thought it might be a good time for us to start being more thankful for the things we have in our life.
WHY SHOULD WE DO THIS?
Well, to answer simply- it's a nice thing to do.
To answer in a more complicated way, just keep on reading:
When you are grateful for the things you have, you start to truly appreciate things that are mundane in your life.
Sometimes, we take things for granted. Things that you may have in your life, someone else may not. By keeping this in mind, you get yourself to be grounded.
Grounding yourself is an excellent technique to manage your anxiety.
By grounding yourself, you make yourself more present!
Now, I realize that it is really difficult for people to just randomly start saying "thank you" to a cup of coffee.
Don't worry guys, I do have your back!
Here are my tips to practice gratitude:
1. Start a journal
I don't have a separate journal for gratitude, although I know this is quite a common practice.
Whatever that you choose, get yourself a notebook in which you can write down things you are thankful for. Make it pretty and make it achievable. I mentioned in one of the previous posts that I set out my things so I see them and therefore it's so much easier for me to do the thing. Do the same thing with your journal! Put it next to your bed, so you can do it first or the last thing in your day! For me, my journal is on my work desk, and every day before I start my work, I take my journal and write down 3 things I am grateful for!
2. Make a jar
I saw this thing on Pinterest, and I loved that idea! You get a jar, and you write one thing you are grateful for that day. You take the little piece of paper and you put it in a jar! After 365 days, you go back and you reread all of your little notes! I guarantee you will feel gratitude after reading those papers!
3. Tell the actual things "thank you"
When you see your mom doing something nice for you, tell her "Thank You".
When the cashier tells you "Have a good day", say "Thank You".
When a person from work gives you a compliment, say "Thank You".
Chances are you already do some of those things. I bet my ass you can do it a bit more.
But don't stop there. While you're drinking your cup of coffee, say a little thanks. You absolutely do not have to say it out loud, but even just thinking that little phrase, you will get that surge of positive feelings. Try to do that with the sun hitting your face, with your water being deliciously cold, with your comforter being cozy, with yourself completing your to-do list! Trust me, it is life-changing.
Now... How to find things to be thankful for?
I get it, it's ridiculously difficult to find things to be grateful for.
I mean, you're always surrounded by the same things. Things tend to blur into a sort of white noise around you through which you're just swimming, going, not paying attention.
And that is the key, and that's why this is a great grounding technique, and what makes it so life-changing.
Pay. Attention.
Get to the point where you pay attention to the way things feel, smell, taste, look.
Do you really know how your favorite meal tastes? Can you describe it?
What about a hug from a loved one? Did you actually pay attention?
How does your favorite scent smell? What vibe does it have?
Make it a personal goal to set aside a time of the day to actually pay attention to the things around you, especially the things you see all the time.
When you start doing this, you will see your mindset change.
Not only will this mind practice ground you and calm you down, but it will also help you visualize better, it will make it easier for you to raise your vibrations and to think positive, and to achieve your goals!
HOW IT'S GOING FOR ME?
I'm not new to this, I've been doing this for a while now except I have a different name for it nowadays.
When I was in college, there was an app that I used (for the love of God, I cannot remember the name of the app, sorry) that would just give you small reminders to pay attention to small things around you (like a shimmer in the trees on a sunny day, or the smell in a coffee shop, etc.)
I strongly suggest you at least give this a try! What are you grateful for?
Comment down below, or let me know on my socials!
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