How would you like a simple daily 1-5 minute practice that will immediately improve your life? Sounds too good to be true, huh? Well, it’s so much easier than you think.
Practicing daily gratitude has become very popular recently and for a good reason. There are many articles out there that show it to be the strongest factor in our happiness level. With quite a small investment of time and energy, you wouldn’t think there would be that many benefits.
But there totally are!
And you can literally start practicing gratitude right now. I’ll tell you more about that later though.
First I want to talk about the major benefits of gratitude, because why would we want to start doing anything if there are no visible benefits, right?
There are so many benefits that you’ll notice in just the first week of starting a gratitude practice. And some even right after your first practice!
Alright, I’ll stop blabbing on, let’s get into the benefits of gratitude!
5 Amazing Benefits of Gratitude Practice
Here are 5 benefits you will start to notice within your first week of practicing daily gratitude!
1. Puts you in a good mood
This benefit is instant! (and probably my favorite one!)
As soon as you think of something that makes you happy, you are immediately thrown into a more positive mindset. Just one minute of joyful gratitude thinking can completely turn your day around.
And being in a good mood is linked to a happier and healthier life. Now, who wouldn’t want that?
2. Puts things into perspective
So what about when we face truly big troubles, how can gratitude fix that? Often when things we don’t plan for happen, we can get stressed or frustrated when those troubles aren’t actually bad.
Like when it rains when you planned to go for a walk. Or when your friend cancels on your coffee date.
At times like these, gratitude can bring us some much-needed perspective.
Take the rain when you didn’t want it example; we haven’t gotten rain in a while; now I don’t have to water my plants; this saves me money this month. The sound of rain is soothing and makes a perfect atmosphere for a rainy day project that you’ve been pushing off.
Or what about the friend canceling on you example; now you have time to do something else that you may have pushed off; or turn that already blocked out time into a self-care session and go out by yourself.
We often take things for granted so easily, but it’s actually pretty freaking cool that we have access to all these things in our life.
When you realize this and feel grateful for it, you’re less likely to make it a big deal the next time it happens.
3. Rearranges your priorities
After a few days of your new gratefulness practice, you’ll notice small things you never really did before.
Like that warm cup of coffee in the morning, or a moment of peace and quiet to yourself. Or the beautiful sunrise coming through your living room window.
Once you realize how much you love these little blessings, you can start making them a priority in your life. This may mean you spend less time on social media or doing things that don’t necessarily bring you joy.
By focusing on prioritizing the things you enjoy, your day will completely change.
4. Break Negative Thinking Cycles
When you notice yourself getting upset or starting down a negative spiral, do a short gratitude practice.
Gratitude has the power to shift your negative thoughts to more positive ones.
When you focus on forcing yourself to think about things you are grateful for, your brain will push out the negative thoughts.
As you do this multiple times, it’ll become a new shift in your mindset that makes it easier to break negative spirals whenever they come up.
5. Makes you a more fun person to be around
Think of that coworker that you just can’t stand to be around. Is it because they are always complaining? Or that they always see things in the worst-case scenario?
Now think of a coworker you do enjoy being around, someone who is always uplifting and positive and has so much energy.
Which coworker do you want to be? The uplifting and inspiring one, or the down in the dumps one?
As you practice gratitude more and more, you’ll notice that you will become a more positive person and people will genuinely want to hang out with you.
How to Practice Gratitude Daily
Now that you know some amazing benefits of gratitude, you’re probably itching to get started, right?
A quick disclaimer though; there is no right or wrong thing to be grateful for. You can be thankful for anything and everything.
No one else needs to know about your gratitude list. So who cares what you write down each day. Maybe one day you’re grateful for just being alive, and the next day you are just so grateful that someone invented the dishwasher.
No matter how big or small – you can be grateful for it.
Alright, now here are my 3 favorite ways to practice gratitude:
1. Write down 3 things in the morning
If you already journal in the morning, this is the easiest way to implement a new gratitude habit. At the beginning or end of your journaling session, write down 3-5 things that you are grateful for.
If you don’t journal in the morning – don’t worry. This new simple habit will only take 3 minutes.
Find somewhere you want to write down your gratitude list, (your phone, a smaller notebook, a scrap piece of paper) and write down what you’re grateful for that day.
Quick tip: don’t just jot down a few things and forget about them. Really spend some time thinking about each point. It doesn’t have to be some deep thought, just ask yourself – why are you grateful for this thing?
2. Meditate in gratitude
Here is another practice that you should try in the morning to set you up for a positive day.
Take some time to sit in silence. Close your eyes and picture 3 things that you are grateful for and meditate on that feeling of gratitude. As you do this you may even notice you start to smile a little bit.
I like this practice when I just need some peace and quiet and more positivity in my life. It’s a super simple practice that doesn’t need any props.
3. Share with your partner / family before bed or at dinner
You don’t need to keep this new exciting practice to yourself. Share it!
You can do this either right before bed or while everyone is at the dinner table. Have everyone take turns sharing what made them happy or grateful today. This will not only help you get to know your family or partner more, but you’ll also end your day on a positive note.
Hearing what other people were grateful for that day will also inspire you to look at those things differently. And you now know how to cheer up a family member more with things that they enjoy.
And the last benefit to this practice; things become more powerful when you speak them out loud, instead of just thinking about them. They become more real when you speak them out into the world.
How I Practice Daily Gratitude
For those that are curious, here is how I practice gratitude every day.
My gratitude practice happens during my morning routine. I have a small journal just for my practice. Every morning before I do my usual journaling, I write the date on a new line in my gratitude journal and then write 3-5 things that I’m grateful for that day.
Then I like to close my eyes and think about why I am grateful for each thing I wrote down that day. Pausing after each one to just sit and meditate on it. This calming 5-10 minute practice every morning sets me up for a very positive day.
Final Thoughts About Gratitude
However you choose to practice daily gratitude, you’ll start to notice many benefits right away. And over time your mindset will grow to be more positive than you ever thought possible.
I hope this article convinced you to start a gratitude practice. Let me know how you are going to incorporate gratitude into your daily routine and what you are grateful for today in the comments below.
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