“To live content with small means; to seek elegance rather than luxury, and refinement rather than fashion; to be worthy, not respectable, and wealthy, not, rich; to listen to stars and birds, babes and sages, with open heart; to study hard; to think quietly, act frankly, talk gently, await occasions, hurry never; in a word, to let the spiritual, unbidden and unconscious, grow up through the common – this is my symphony” [William Henry Channing’s Symphony: some background, and its appearance in an Arthur Brisbane editorial – from the 1906 collection, “Editorials From The Hearst Newspapers”].

As we head into the Season of Giving, we should give some thought to the importance of gratitude on our lives. Consider the following reality check: If when you get up in the morning with a roof over your head and a choice of what to eat, a choice of what to wear, a job to go to and a way to get there, in terms of the population of the world, you have abundance! This definition of abundance puts things in perspective, doesn’t it?

So why “gratitude”? Well it’s simple really. Gratitude is an important way of boosting your levels of happiness. While on the topic of gratitude, we must remember that at the heart of gratitude is less to do with selfishness (more to do with us forgetting about ourselves), turning to a power and mystery bigger than ourselves, to a beauty and a mercy, so much greater than ourselves. Gratitude, too, it turns out, is a gift.

I found the following two definitions on Dictionary.com:

    • Attitude: A state of mind or a feeling; disposition
    • Gratitude: The state of being grateful; thankfulness.

I like that. Attitude is a state of mind, and gratitude is a state of being. You’ll be hearing a lot in the coming weeks about gratitude and the importance of having “an attitude of gratitude.” And then by the first of the year it will pass. I don’t like that. Here are a few ideas to take gratitude from a state of mind into being a long-term state of mind and then into consistent action.

Research shows that taking the time to conscientiously count blessings once a week significantly increased subjects’ overall satisfaction with life over a period of six weeks, whereas a control group that did not keep journals had no such gain.

Gratitude exercises can do more than lift one’s mood. At the University of California at Davis, psychologist Robert Emmons found they improve physical health, raise energy levels and, for patients with neuromuscular disease, relieve pain and fatigue. “The ones who benefited most tended to elaborate more and have a wider span of things they’re grateful for”, he notes.

Another happiness booster, say positive psychologists, is performing acts of altruism or kindness – visiting a nursing home, helping a friend’s child with homework, mowing a neighbor’s lawn, writing a letter to a grandparent. Doing five kind acts a week, especially all in a single day, gave a measurable boost to Lyubomirsky’s subjects.

Seligman has tested similar interventions in controlled trials at Penn and in huge experiments conducted over the Internet. The single most effective way to turbo charge your joy, he says, is to make a “gratitude visit”. That means writing a testimonial thanking a teacher, pastor or grandparent – anyone to whom you owe a debt of gratitude – and then visiting that person to read the letter of appreciation to him or her. “The remarkable thing”, says Seligman, “is that people who do this just once are measurably happier and less depressed a month later. But it’s gone by three months.” Less powerful but more lasting, he says, is an exercise he calls three blessings – taking time each day to write down a trio of things that went well and why. “People are less depressed and happier three months later and six months later.”

On a more humourous note – don’t forget the Gratitude Coma – that state of being after you eat a huge Christmas meal and right before you fall asleep while watching TV.

To whom and what is your life saying Thank You? This is your life, are you who you want to be? Go use this stuff!

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