Do you practice gratitude?
How about showing gratitude?
Some Back Story
Well this time there isn’t going to be much Back Story as this happened not that long ago. As a matter of fact the situation that occurred that inspired this article happened was just the other day from the time of this writing.
What happened was my mom's business, a laundromat, caught fire at 830pm PT, and was reported to her. We rushed down as firefighters were on the scene taking control of the blaze.
Afterward we both went to social media to express our gratitude to those who put their lives on the line potential to save her business, and the residence above. The outpouring of support was nothing short of remarkable.
It took hours to thank and like comments and replying to let people know where everything is at. We were all so grateful for everyone, and what they said, and did. Especially grateful to those who fought the fire, the insurance adjuster, the restoration company, and the insurance adviser who first moved quickly to male sure the business was insured correctly in case of such an event.
What is Gratitude?
Grat•i•tude
noun
the quality of being thankful; readiness to show appreciation for and to return kindness.
Gratitude is also a way of helping create a better mindset to enter your day with. So few people practice the art of gratitude. They end up going through the days of their lives not realizing what they have at their finger tips, and how amazing their life really is.
How Do You Practice Gratitude?
The art of gratitude is fairly easy to practice, but just as easy not to practice!
Excellent! So how do we practice gratitude? The way I’ve practiced gratitude is by writing a short list of what I am grateful for that day; it can be either for what’s been that morning, or what has happened the day before. The lists I’ve done typically range from 5 to 10 items that I am grateful for that day.
This practice can can be a little time consuming if you’re new to it, or if you’ve had a bad day or days. I usually give myself about 5 minutes to come up with ideas and write them into the list. My list can be people, situations, and weather related. My lists have had one word per item up to full sentences per item.
Gratitude makes sense of our past, brings peace for today, and creates a vision for tomorrow.
- Melody Beattie
Other ways I practice gratitude is by responding to others in a positive manner. Showing them gratitude in ways that truly express my sincere gratefulness towards the individual and what they’ve done to help, or a lovely comment they may have provided. This is a powerful tactic as it opens you up to loving and seeing others more as to who they are or could be. Easy? Not always. Rewarding? If done correctly yes.
Wait! What? What do you mean if done correctly? Like with any new habit, or exercise there is a right way, and a wrong way. They can sometimes be a little difficult to distinguish between the two; however when you are done look back at what you've said or written, and double check it. Are you telling a negative in a positive manner? So as example re-framing an experience that hasn't had good outcomes, no matter what you do, into a positive light so you can feel good about it. Honestly I did gratitude journaling wrong for a couple months, and tried to re-frame a situation into a positive to make myself feel better in all the wrong ways. Believe me it didn't help... then; however, looking back at it now as learning lesson it has helped me realize the mental, and emotional state I was in and what i need to do to keep myself in a better frame of mind, and slow negativity down.
Slow negativity down? Yes, slow it down. Not a lot can prevent negativity from seeping in; however, we can slow it down, and help move it along with the power of gratitude through the words we speak, and words we write.
To learn some more about Gratitude from a master click here.
It's been a true pleasure writing this for you as always. If you enjoy reading this give it some love with a like, a share, and a comment. Every little bit helps.
Ride Hard, and Live Long
Sincerely,
Rob Hicks
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