Posts

Living In Gratitude: Simply Grateful for Today

/in /by

Each day, we have 24 hours. That equal 1,400 minutes or 86,400 seconds. Throughout each precious day, we make choices on our attitude, our behavior, our thoughts, actions and words.  These can be hurtful or helpful, both to ourselves and others. During each of those 86,400 seconds, we choose.

Make the choice to simply be grateful for today. Notice how that gratitude spirals both outward and inward, embracing others as well as lifting us up as well.

Buddhist monks begin every day with a gratitude meditation. This helps to awaken their joy, kindness and compassion in spite of everything, reminding them of the blessings of being alive. Read more

Living In Gratitude: 6 Tips To Composing Heartfelt Thank You Notes

/in /by

Saying thank you is more than good manners.  It is good spirituality.  ~Alfred Painter

People like being appreciated. Every gift deserves a thank-you, whether it is a material object, a referral, or to express your appreciation for someone’s friendship, acceptance or support.

Although occasionally a thank you email or text message will do, a handwritten note expresses a completely different level of appreciation. It takes added effort and planning (but not much) to actually pen and mail a thank you card, letter or postcard. Even if your handwriting is poor, still hand-write your notes. Do not type them or use a word processor.

Writing thank-you notes is easier than you remember them being as a kid (when your mom had you write thank you cards for every birthday gift received).

The 6 Points for a Perfect Thank You

  1. Greet the Giver

Dear Aunt Maye,

Although it’s the easy part, you’d be surprised how many people forget it.

  1. Express Your Gratitude

Thank you so much for the delicious homemade berry pie you brought to dinner the other night. 

  • Avoid beginning with, “I’m writing to thank you…” That’s stating the obvious. 
  • When thanking someone for money, use phrases like, “Thank you for your generosity,” or “Your kindness is greatly appreciated.“
  • When writing to thank someone for an intangible (such as allowing you to stay with them for a weekend), define what the intangible thing is:  ‘Thank you for your hospitality last weekend.”
  • Don’t worry if it sounds too simple; the point is to create a simple expression of a heartfelt sentiment.

Read more

Living In Gratitude: Graciously Accepting Compliments

/in /by

Everyone appreciates a compliment but many of us don’t know quite how to accept them gracefully.

Compliments can make us feel uncomfortable. We don’t want to appear as though we are ‘tooting our own horn’ by accepting a compliment yet at the same time, we want to enjoy it.

Below are a few tips to graciously accepting the gift of compliments.

Compliments are gifts. 
The best response when someone compliments you is simply: Thank you.

If that doesn’t feel like enough, try to keep your response short and sincere.

“Thank you, my parents gave this to me and it’s always been one of my favorites,” or 
”Thank you, I really enjoyed presenting to your group,”
 or “Thanks so much, that means a lot to me.“

Accept All Compliment
s
When we deflect or turn down a compliment, we are basically insult the giver.

Giver: I love your outfit. It was the perfect thing to wear to this event.

Receiver: Oh, this old thing? I grabbed it out of the back of my closet.  I don’t really like it, but it was too late to find something better.

That response informed the person who complemented you that they have poor taste. Now they are wondering why they offered you a compliment to begin with.

What should you have said? Thank you. Read more

Living In Gratitude: 6 Steps to Living in the Moment

/in /by

We live in an age of constant distraction. Every day, we are bombarded with a myriad of interruptions, which have only gotten more frequent thanks to ever-evolving technology. We can be consumed by self-consciousness, anxiety and stress. These disturbances often have us fretting about the future or contemplating past mistakes. They take us away from living in the present moment.

We’re living in a world that contributes in a major way to mental fragmentation, disintegration, distraction, decoherence. ~ Buddhist scholar B. Alan Wallace

Our thoughts often control us, “coursing through our mind like a deafening waterfall”. Buddists refer to it as the Monkey Mind, because our consciousness vaults from thought to thought like a monkey swinging from one tree to another. This inhibits our ability to live in and enjoy the present.

Mindfulness is when we learn to quiet our monkey mind and live in the moment in a state of “active, open, intentional attention on the present.” Being mindful allows us to observe our thoughts without judgment. Rather than letting our thoughts control us, being mindful awakens us to experience life in the here and now.  Read more

Living In Gratitude: 20 Things You Will Be Glad You Did In Life

/in /by

I don’t want to get to the end of my life and find that I just lived the length of it. I want to have lived the width of it as well. ~Diane Ackerman

1. Traveling 

Traveling broadens our horizons. It exposes us to new cultures, food, languages and ways of thinking as well as the awe-inspiring beauty of the world.

2. Learning another language

Being able to communicate in languages other than your native tongue is a wonderful gift.

3. Being brave enough to do new things

Not letting fear hold you back enables you to experience new adventures and learn new things. After all, you had to do everything for the first time…

4. Making physical fitness a priority

Your body is amazing. Take good care of it so it will carry you through life, to new places, up hills and into valleys. Read more

Living In Gratitude: Just For Now

/in /by

Just for now, without asking how, let yourself sink into stillness.

Just for now, lay down the

weight you so patiently

bear upon your shoulders.

Feel the earth receive

you, and the infinite

expanse of sky grow even

wider as your awareness

reaches up to meet it. Read more

Living In Gratitude: 6 Ways to Grow Gratitude at Work

/in /by

Gratitude can have such a powerful impact on your life because it engages your brain in a virtuous cycle. ~Alex Korb Ph.D

On a surface level, appreciation is good for employee engagement, motivation and retention. Employee recognition and appreciation can create a unique company culture and strengthen employee relationships. Companies can deliberately infuse their cultures, from top to bottom, with the proverbial “attitude of gratitude.” Employee appreciation boosts performance and engagement as well as the employee’s well-being and health. When coworkers show appreciation or gratitude towards one another, a more social and prosocial interaction is created.

By implementing gratitude into company culture, employees are more willing to spread their positive feelings with others, whether it’s helping out with a project or taking time to notice and recognizing those that have gone the extra mile.

The greatest psychological effect of appreciation is the happiness and other emotions immediately felt when we either give or receive gratitude. Gratitude creates good feelings, cheerful memories, better self-esteem, feeling more relaxed and more optimistic. All of these emotions creates a pay it forward and  “we’re in this together” mentality in the workplace, which in turn, makes your organization more successful. Plus, the dopamine effect will encourage a continuous cycle of recognition if everyone participates. All of these emotions, plus many more, are what most employers want out of their staff to again, create unity. Read more

Living In Gratitude: 7 Ways To Train Your Brain To Be Happy

/in /by

Neil Pasricha is a Canadian author and speaker who advocates positivity and simple pleasures. He is known for his New York Times best seller, “The Book Of Awesome”, as well as his TEDx talk, “The 3 A’s of Awesome”.

Backed by loads of research, his book, “The Happiness Equation”, discusses how we can train our brains to be happy. Happiness is something we do to make life ‘awesome’ rather than the result of everything being awesome. It comes from conscious awareness and thought using practical, effective and enjoyable strategies.

1. Three walks a week

Researchers have found that the more physically active we are, the greater our overall feelings of excitement and enthusiasm. And it doesn’t take much: just 30 minutes of brisk walking, three days a week will do it.

2. 20-minute replay

Taking 20 minutes each day to write about a positive experience allows you to relive the event. It can be anything but the focus is that it was something that made you feel good. The purpose is to rekindle those happy feelings. Read more

Living In Gratitude: Finding Your Zen at Work

/in /by

When we know how to take care of our strong emotions and to establish good relationships at work, communication improves, stress is reduced, and our work becomes much more pleasant. This is a huge benefit not only to ourselves, but also to those we work with, to our loved ones, our families, and the whole of society. ~Thich Nhat Hanh

Each of us spends a considerable amount of our daily lives at work and we should use this time to create a better world, challenge ourselves and creating a sense of personal growth and enjoyment.

Zen Buddhist master Thich Nhat Hanh, credited with being the father of mindfulness in the West, has developed a checklist to ensure that we stay in balance and are able to see our work in the context of creating a better world.

Here are Thay’s 15 practical steps to bring mindfulness to our work:

Read more

Living In Gratitude: 4 Things That Make Us Happier

/in /by

Neuroscience has proven that gratitude makes us happier, affecting our brain at a biological level.

The benefits of gratitude start with the dopamine system, because feeling grateful activates the brain stem region that produces dopamine, the chemical that makes us feel happy.

Another powerful effect of gratitude is that it can boost serotonin, which helps maintain the balance of moods as well as contributing to wellbeing and happiness. Thinking of things for which we are grateful  forces us to focus on the positive aspects of life. This simple act increases serotonin production in the brain.

It’s not finding gratitude that matters most; it’s remembering to look in the first place. Read more