“Reflect Each Day On All You Have To Be Grateful For And You Will Receive More To Be Grateful For.” -Chuck Danes
How do you start your day? Do you always wake-up with a positive outlook? Are you always thinking how grateful you are for just being alive? I know this sounds a bit Pollyannaish, but it is amazing how starting off the day with gratitude can change your entire perspective on decisions your make, reactions your have and just your overall happiness. Some days I have to remember this, but when I do, it is amazing what space I created for myself and others around me when I do. My entire day is likely to be happier, less stressful, and more productive. Daily gratitude can be cultivated in numerous ways. When thoughts of gratitude are cultivated daily, you operate on a higher energy vibration that can attract increased positivity and abundance into your life.
Why is Gratitude Important?
Gratitude involves giving thanks for the good things in your life. When the day is started in a mindset of gratitude, happiness comes easily as you are reminded of all the blessings in your life; getting caught up in the daily grind can cause you to forget the simple beauty of life. When you direct your mind toward thoughts of gratitude, the resulting higher vibrations can cause the circumstances, events, abundance, and conditions you desire to be attracted into your life. Starting the day off in gratitude sets the tone for the entire day and can lead to increased levels of productivity.
Praying
Prayer can be an effective way to begin the day with gratitude. Prayer should be done in whatever way is most comfortable to you and is directed toward giving thanks for all your blessings. Starting the day with a prayer of gratitude can help remind you of all you have as well as set the foundation for a happy and grateful day. Meditation is often considered a form of praying and is typically done by focusing your mind on a mantra, word, or feeling. To use meditation for cultivating gratitude, it is useful to choose a word or mantra that reflects thankfulness. Meditation can be a powerful tool to center your mind on feelings of gratitude as well as offering a host of other health benefits.
Gratitude Journal
A gratitude journal can be a helpful tool in forming the habit of starting each day with gratitude. An effective way to start a gratitude journal is to list 10 things each morning that you are thankful for. Once you get in the habit of doing this daily you will notice how easy it is to find 10 things each day to be grateful for, this is because your mind begins to automatically think with gratitude. Things as simple as a flower in bloom or enjoying a thunderstorm can begin to grace your daily lists as you move deeper into these feelings. Abstract journaling about gratitude can also help cultivate it; this type of creative writing allows you to expand on your ideas and feelings of gratitude as well as initiate deeper thinking. Also, try using Gratitude160.com. It is a gratitude journal that gives you an email or SMS/text up to four times daily. You reply with an email or text of your own with a short example of gratitude which they store in your journal. Then each week they send you an email summary of all your journal entries over the course of the week or you can access your journal online. Now that is a good habit to keep!
Quotes
Cleverly placed written quotes can help you start the day off with gratitude. Write down a few quotes that remind you of your blessings and then place them in areas that you pass or see every day. Areas such as bathroom mirrors or a wall beside your bed can be useful places as they will allow you to see the quote every day. Another way to use quotes is to keep one folded in your pocket each day, when you notice it there throughout the day it will instantly remind you to cultivate gratitude.
Starting the day off with gratitude can lead to increased happiness and productivity each day; it can also create the attraction of positivity and abundance into your life. When you start the day with gratitude, this attitude is reflected in all the encounters and situations you experience throughout the day.
Go ahead and try it. Ask yourself, what are you grateful for today?
