What are you grateful for?
That may be a difficult question for some, especially in today’s world.
But I really want you to think about it.
What are you grateful for?
May has been a really good month for me, and it will continue to be.
I’m really grateful for that.
My oldest son got engaged.
My youngest son (not my youngest child, but my youngest son) just celebrated his 18th birthday.
I had a really fun speaking engagement in Toledo, Ohio.
I’m headed to London for a few days.
And when I return, I get to celebrate my middle daughter, Olivia, at her graduation from Fordham. Then she will be going on to law school in the fall at Belmont University in Nashville.
I have a lot to be thankful for. And I don’t ever want to let that idea of being grateful get overlooked.
We should always remember what we’re grateful for.
No matter who you are, gratitude should be an important and even essential practice.
Studies have shown that gratitude can actually change your brain and improve your mental health and happiness.
Whether we are grateful for the big things that are happening in our lives, or the simple moments of joy, being grateful can change everything.
I have found this is especially true when I am in a challenging situation.
Sometimes, life throws us curveballs, and we struggle to stay in the game. In times like these, it can be incredibly hard to seek out the good and find things that we’re grateful for.
Still, if we make an honest effort to find those good things in the struggle and show gratitude for them, it can change our perspective.
What we look for, we will find. So, when we look for the good things in the challenges, we will find them because that becomes our focus.
For example, rather than focusing on the challenges and hardships around us, we can focus on the lessons we are learning. And we can be grateful for them.
Even just simply being grateful for what we have and who we’re surrounded by can make such a huge difference.
Evening gratitudes is great practice.
I know I talk about positive affirmations and mirror moments a lot. They are a great way to start your day.
But if you want to up your game even more, I would like to suggest evening gratitudes.
With mirror moments in the morning and evening gratitudes at night, it’s like two positive bookends to sandwich your day.
I love evening gratitudes. It is time set aside each evening to really reflect on your day and find something that you’re grateful for.
It can be that you had a really great cup of coffee.
Or it could be that your child is graduating from college.
Maybe you got your dream job.
Whatever it is, it’s important that we find something each and every day that we’re grateful for.
Some people use a gratitude journal to write down what they’re grateful for.
Another great idea is writing down what you’re grateful for and putting it in a little jar.
Then, when you’re having a hard day, pull out one of those pieces of paper to remind you of what you’re grateful for.
This practice can bring back such wonderful memories. And it can help to brighten even the toughest days.
We need to show gratitude to others and ourselves.
Sometimes, the world can be a very difficult place. That’s one of the reasons I believe it’s so important to see the good around you.
Show gratitude for your family members.
Tell your friends how grateful you are for their friendship.
Show your gratitude to strangers who you see doing a good deed.
Smile at the grocery clerk and thank them for their service.
Give a generous tip to your server.
There are so many ways to show your gratitude for the people around you. Once you start looking for the good others are doing, you will be surprised at just how much good there is to see.
Above all, be grateful for who you are and the things you’re able to do.
There is no one else in the world quite like you. Be grateful for that! You are unique and extraordinary.
Your strengths, your challenges, and your characteristics are valuable and important. And they can help change the world.
Make every day a day of gratitude.
When we take a moment each and every day to find something to be grateful for, it can change the trajectory of our day.
Even if everything that could go wrong does, in fact, go wrong, being able to find one thing during your day that you are grateful for can change your outlook for the next day.
It gives you the momentum to keep moving forward.
So, I challenge you this week to make gratitude a habit.
Make it a habit to think every night before you go to sleep about what you’re grateful for.
Ask yourself, “What’s one thing that I am grateful for today?”
Write it down. Think about it.
However you want to approach it, and whatever method works for you—make sure to do it.
Find something that you’re grateful for.
I promise you that this simple practice will help you move forward.
And above all, it will change your outlook on life and your overall mindset.
In the end, being grateful may not change the world. But you can be certain that it will change yours.
