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It
became
obvious
to
me
that
this
week
a
myriad
of
people
are
talking
about,
thinking
about
and
feeling
the
love
all
around.
However,
not
only
this
emotion
should
fuel
our
hearts
in
this
Valentine's
Day
period,
because
when
we
love
we
are
also
grateful
for
our
loved
ones,
our
day-to-day
experiences
together,
their
smiles
and
support
in
both
the
bad
and
the
good
times.
This
is
why
I
encourage
you
to
spend
maybe
just
a
few
minutes
today
on
pondering
– what
are
you
grateful
for
in
your
life?
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Research
showed
that
gratitude
is
connected
with
healthier,
happier,
and
more
hopeful
lives
and
relationships.
That
grateful
people
feel
more
connected
with
others,
are
engaged
in
more
altruistic
behaviors
and
on
the
other
hand,
are
less
anxious,
depressive
or
lonely.
Being
thankful
can
help
you
also
to
forgive
and
sleep
better,
as
Dr.
R.
Emmons
suggests:
'we
should
count
blessings,
not
sheep'
to
start
a
day
with
more
energy.
If
you
still
have
not
decided
whether
it
is
your
cup
of
tea
to
be
gracious,
let
me
tell
you
one
more
thing.
Generally
speaking,
gratitude
feels
good,
both
for
you
and
the
person
toward
whom
you
are
grateful.
Like
Dr.
M.
McCullough
explains
:
'Gratitude
is what
happens when
someone does
something that
causes you
to realize
that you
matter more
to that
person than
you thought
you did'.
I hope
there is
no need
to assure
you that
such a
feeling will
benefit your
life. Therefore,
if you
would like
to see
'how grateful
you are'
and what
consequences it
has for
you, just
log into
your account
on our
site and
take one
of our
surveys – the
gratitude
disposition
scale.
Remember,
that you
can always
try to
experience more
thankfulness in
your life,
as it
always pays
to strive
to be
a better
version of
oneself. The
best thing
is that
it really
does not
require much
effort of
you to
become more
grateful, because
most gratitude
techniques demand
just a
couple of
minutes a
day.
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For
example, you
can start
with running
a gratitude
diary
(you can
do it
electronically at
http://thankfulfor.com/,
http://1thingapp.com/,
use an iPhone app, or just write in your notebook).
This activity
consists of
writing things
for which
you feel
grateful in
a certain
day, week,
or month.
Research has
shown that
after a
few weeks
of such
practice people
report more
satisfaction and
happiness in
their life.
Going
further, you
can write
a 300-word
letter
to someone
who changed
your life
for the
better and
then pay
them a
visit to
read it
to this
person. We
guarantee that
both of
you will
benefit from
such a
positive
experience.
Try
to savor
the beautiful
moments and
your surroundings
(e.g. nature,
architecture) in
your daily
life. Cherish
in your
memory the
positive past
events, of
which occurrence
you are
appreciative.
Recently, one
more intervention
has been
explored by
Dr. M.
Koo,
who argues
that 'imagining
away'
blessings
(i.e., imagining
what would
have happened
if something
good that
happened to
us did
not happen:
if you
did not
get into
your school,
did not
meet your
spouse, etc.)
may be
an even
better way
to feel
grateful and
satisfied than
counting them,
as it
provides higher
levels of
positive
emotions, making
us even
happier for
the good
things we
have in
our lives.
For
more detailed
descriptions of
these other
types of
gratitude
intervention go
to the
book 'Thanks.
How
the
New
Science
of
Gratitude
Can
Make
You
Happier'
by Dr.
R.
Emmons
and the
website
http://www.gratefulness.org/readings/practice_gratitude.html.
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For
those of
you who
are interested
in engaging
in gratitude
increasing
techniques, I
recommend to
read a
personal
description of
a 6-week
gratitude
challenge
undertaken by
Catherine
Price
at
(http://tinyurl.com/7ecszhs).
There, you
can find
out, how
she managed
her 'gratitude
overdose', what
conclusions she
reached, and
whether Dr.
M.
McCullough
had
to
'eat
his
hat',
as
he
had
promised,
should
this
intervention
fail.
Take
home
note:
'Gratitude
is many
things to
many people
, it
is an
antidote to
negative
emotions, a
neutralizer of
envy, avarice,
hostility, worry,
and irritation'
citing words
of Dr.
S.
Lyubomirsky.
But most
importantly, it
is
a
key to
your
happiness,
so would
you take
a chance
to find
gratitude for
yourself?
Best
of luck
and THANK
YOU
for
reading :)
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