“What if today we were just grateful for everything?” – Charlie Brown
It’s the week of the Thanksgiving, which has been discussed in class debates, is the overlooked holiday in the fall and winter seasons. Halloween gets the entire month of October, and many put up Christmas decorations as soon as November 1st strikes. Whatever your stance on Thanksgiving as a season vs a holiday, it is a great opportunity for us to take a moment and reflect on one the most powerful mental skills that directly impacts the quality of our life, gratitude.
The research, books, classes, and programs that are dedicated to the field of gratitude make it abundantly clear how meaningful this practice and mental framework can be. So why is gratitude such a powerful tool for us to incorporate into our lives beyond just one day or week?
For starters, our brains are wired in such a way that we tend to notice, remember, and give more time and energy to things that happen in our lives that are difficult or negative. It’s a way for us to survive, and avoid those things in the future. Unfortunately, it also means our brains spend more time in this state, than in a grateful, joyful state.
In an effort to overcome this, we actually need to be intentional and give our brains a mental workout in joy, gratitude, and optimism. How do we do this? It starts by giving ourselves a workout plan to exercise our mind. Similar to the development of strength or cardiorespiratory endurance, we can give ourselves sets and reps of gratitude to build joy and optimism.
Here is a workout plan for building gratitude. Start by picking a specific time of day where you have a couple minutes, and identify one thing you are grateful for. Once you bring that specific person or event to mind, allow yourself to explore why you are grateful for it. To create changes in the brain, we have to do more than just notice. It’s time under tension, except in this instance it’s time under joy and optimism. The more time we spend experiencing these powerful mental skills, changes in the brain occur.
Thanksgiving is an awesome opportunity to remember to give thanks and increase the gratitude in our lives. Like Charlie Brown said, what if today we’re grateful for everything?
