An Attitude of Gratitude
An attitude of gratitude can be a powerful tool to help nourish your spirit both professionally and personally.
Giving thanks and identifying goodness need not be limited to individual occasions, like Thanksgiving Day, but can help you live your whole life – body, mind, and spirit – throughout the year.
Sharing Gratitude with Others
Consider starting a gratitude jar. Write on slips of paper the many things for which you feel grateful. Place each slip in a jar. Any time your spirit needs a lift, pull out a message and read it. Return slips to the jar so others in your household can benefit.
Giving Thanks throughout the Year
What can you do to give thanks year-round? Share an example of something for which you are thankful for at the dinner table, at the end of team meetings at work, or at bedtime. When you share your gratitude, be sure to include why it is meaningful to you.
Families may want to place a gratitude jar on their kitchen table for children to share their thankful moments. Identifying how you or others contribute to more goodness helps you recreate these positive experiences on a more frequent basis in your home and work life.
Whereas stress and negativity cause us to focus inward, showing appreciation and acknowledging the positives causes us to focus outward and actually lowers levels of stress. In that shift we gain pleasure, happiness, and a greater sense of control just by appreciating, being grateful for, and celebrating the positives in our lives.
Living life well becomes more effortless when we mindfully focus on keeping our jars fuller all year long.
This article originally appeared in the Pulse Community colleague newsletter at Trinity Health. Pittsburgh Mercy is a member of Trinity Health, serving in the tradition of the Sisters of Mercy.