Key 3: Manifest the Power of Gratitude
Key Points:
1. Being grateful is associated with a variety of health benefits, ranging from reducing mental health disorders to improving our sleep and reducing inflammation.
2. There are several components to gratitude: appreciating others, focusing on what you have, feeling awe towards beauty, focusing on positives, appreciating that life is short, and making positive social comparisons.
3. Three simple gratitude practices to try out are: telling someone you appreciate them, using a gratitude journal, and writing thank-you notes.
“Gratitude is not a passive response to something we have been given, gratitude arises from paying attention, from being awake in the presence of everything that lives within and without us.”
In the past two decades, researchers have learned that gratitude is strongly related to all aspects of well-being. Gratitude has also been shown to reduce mental health disorders such as depression, anxiety, and post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD). A person who has suffered a traumatic experience, for example, is able to recover better and even achieve a higher level of emotional well-being afterward if they are oriented toward noticing and appreciating the positive in the world.
Adopting a “gratitude attitude” reduces stress, lowers heart rate, decreases inflammation in the body, improves sleep, strengthens relationships, reduces conflict, and triggers reciprocally helpful behaviour. This last finding means that a person who shows gratitude—for a friend’s input, a home-cooked meal, a parent’s help with homework—increases the likelihood that the recipient will show more care and compassion toward others. Gratitude generates kind-hearted acts (referred to in the scientific literature as “prosociality”) like the ripples of a pebble dropped in water.
Photo from Arc’teryx
Let’s start with understanding the component parts of gratitude:
Appreciation of other people: “I’m lucky to have David as a friend/teammate/brother.”
A focus on what you currently have: “I’m thankful for my family/for the healthy food available/for a safe and warm home.”
Feelings of awe when encountering beauty: “This waterfall is a wonder!”
Focusing on the positive in the present moment: “I’m going to sit here on this park bench for a moment and take in the autumn colours.”
Appreciation arising from understanding that life is short: “I will die and people I know will die, so this day matters so much.”
Positive social comparisons: “There are so many people who have less than I do.”
Considering this list, you can see that gratitude is not naïve, immature, or disconnected from reality. In fact, it’s mostly generated from the very real, sometimes even serious, features of our lives.
A powerful benefit of practicing gratitude is that it helps to build a supportive community around you. When you are aware of how people are helping you and you recognize that better connections are made and you will craft a network of wonderful people around you.
Check out this amazing interview with gratitude expert Steve Foran on my podcast!
Three Simple Gratitude Practices
Here’s how to activate the power of gratitude in your life:
Let someone know you appreciate them. When I was working with the national swim team, we spent a lot of time on the road at training camps and competitions, which was sometimes stressful. A key habit we developed in daily meetings was to have each team member say what someone else had done to help them that day. Expressing gratitude helped to bring the team together and make everyone happier. Feeling gratitude helps you recognize the good parts of life and appreciate them even more. Once a day (at least) let someone know that they have helped you. You don’t have to be mushy about it, just clear. For example: “You helped me finish this report on time. I really appreciate it.”
Start a gratitude journal. Another simple routine you can adopt is a gratitude journal. I love The Five-Minute Journal: A Happier You in 5 Minutes a Day. The idea is that at the end of every day, we write down three to five things that we are grateful for that day. Keeping a journal as one of the most powerful gratitude interventions. It’s easy to do, takes little time, and really works. The only trick is to keep it up and do it on a regular basis. It can be helpful to make a pact with a friend or to join a group that engages in the activity.
Write thank-you notes. Pen and paper notes are great, but a quick thank-you by email, text, voice, or video message works great, too. Friday afternoon thank-yous are a simple and powerful practice to build into your life.
Today’s Call to Action: Time Shifts - I have a Day to Recharge
Refer again to the Time Shifts on page 36 in your Rest, Refocus, Recharge Workbook for some ideas on what you can do if you have a full day to recharge. If you have a full day off in the next couple of weeks, try out one of these suggestions! Or write down your own ideas in the Embrace the Extraordinary Notes section on page 37 of the Rest, Refocus, Recharge Workbook. Good luck!
Today’s Bonus Podcast & Video
Click Here for a podcast with former football player Orlando Bowen, who was falsely accused of a crime, before later being acquitted and is now an extremely sought after speaker on the topics of adversity, empowerment, and passion. To learn more about gratitude, you can also check out this TED talk Here on how gratitude can lead to happiness in life.
The information and advice provided in this program is intended to assist you with improving your performance, as well as your general health. It is not intended and should not be used in place of advice from your own physician or for treatment or diagnosis of any specific health issue. By participating in this program you acknowledge that undertaking any new health, diet and/or exercise regime involves certain inherent risks, that you assume such risks, and that you release Wells Performance Inc. from any responsibility or claim relating to such participation.