It happens to me every year without fail. Just as I sit down to enjoy a wonderfully prepared Thanksgiving meal, my mom gets this big smile on her face and says “So, what is everyone thankful for this year”? She’s been doing it ever since I have memories of Thanksgiving. You would think I would have caught on earlier, but every year I would freeze at her question; I’m not good at on the spot questions like that. I have to pick just one thing out of the whole year to share with everyone at the table?!? I would get so anxious that I would not be able to collect my thoughts all while listening to everyone else’s awesome and thoughtful answers. When my turn came I would just say something that I perceived as funny like, “I’m thankful for pumpkin pie.” To be honest, I really am thankful for pumpkin pie, it’s not a joke. Anyways, as it turns out, there really is a method to my mom’s tradition.
Practicing gratefulness or intentionally thinking about things that you are thankful for in life is actually an extremely useful tool to boost our feeling of overall happiness with our life! Check out all of these benefits:
The cool thing about gratitude is that you can practice it in whatever way best fits you and your lifestyle! Plus, you don’t have to limit it to just this time of year. In fact, I challenge you to be thankful all year around! Since I started practicing gratitude on a regular basis, my Thanksgiving table answers have gotten a whole lot more meaningful than just pumpkin pie…except I will still keep that on the back burner just in case. Here is a list of just a few ways you can incorporate gratitude into your life.
- Write out at least one thing that you are grateful for each day and keep an ongoing list.
- Call, visit, or send a message to those that you are grateful for.
- Be grateful at dinner; have everyone share something they are grateful for.
- Say thanks with a random act of kindness.
- Pick one part of your day where you can’t be distracted by outside sources and thoughts about the past or the future, and focus on the good things that are coming out of that moment.
- Make a Grateful Gobbler.
