Gratitude

During November, I have noticed a lot of Facebook status updates of people giving thanks for things in their life. Each day, they post a new status expressing their gratitude. While some may find this to be a little cheesy, it is a very effective way to put your mind in to a place where you notice the good around you.

In The Happiness Advantage, Shawn Achor argues this is one of the best ways to get stuck in a "Positive Tetris Effect" and bring happiness to our lives. Every day, write down three good things that happened to you in the last 24 hours. These can be small or large things, but the goal is to take five minutes each day to write down just three things for which you are grateful. By doing this, you become more adept at noticing the good happening in your life. When you focus on the good, the negatives don't seem to matter as much.

What would happen in the word if everyone started focusing on the good, started noticing the things which bring happiness and started to pay less attention to the things which bring negative thoughts and frustrations to our lives? Would we be able to do more, create more, make more lasting change? If nothing else, wouldn't the chance to be a little happier and help to make those around you a little happier bring positive change? What if we all made the decision to express our gratitude, not only on Facebook, but face to face with the people we want to thank?

Start out by setting five minutes aside each morning or evening and write down three good things that happened to you each and every day. As you begin doing this, you will see areas in your life where you can express gratitude to the people who bring you happiness. It's simple, takes very little time and could improve your outlook, your mood and your work. It may be a little difficult for some of you at first, but if you keep on writing, it will become habit. Are you really too busy to give up five minutes each day? Try it and feel free to let me know how it works.