There are many benefits of gratitude and adding time to think about this in your daily routine. Forbes Magazine recently published 7 scientifically proven benefits of practicing graduate. If these are not good enough reasons to be thankful then I don’t know what are!

• Gratitude opens the door to more relationships.
• Gratitude improves physical health.
• Gratitude improves psychological health.
• Gratitude enhances empathy and reduces aggression.
• Grateful people sleep better.
• Gratitude improves self-esteem.
• Gratitude increases mental strength.

The daily gratitude jar

Pav and I make sure to say what we are thankful for every night before bed. We have a super simple method, and all you need is a jar of any kind (even an empty pasta sauce jar will do). I will then write one thing that I am grateful for on that day on a small piece of paper and put it in the jar. I always structure the note by date and name (as Pav and I share a jar).

“Gratitude is one of the sweet shortcuts to finding peace of mind and happiness inside.  No matter what is going on outside of us, there is always something we could be grateful for.” Barry Neil Kaufman

 

This helps you to reflect on your day and find the positives amongst all of the craziness and distractions there may have been. For me, each gratitude note will range, for example one day I was grateful for the compliments I received on my new haircut, on another I was grateful for the recognition I received for a great presentation at work and another for a delicious home-cooked meal. It very much depends on what made you feel a sense of positivity, even if only for a few seconds in your day.

Don’t forget to reflect!

If ever I’m having a low day, I will pick a few notes out of the jar to remind me of the positives – this always lifts my spirits up! At the end of the year, Pav and I always make time to sit down together and read each note as a reminder of things that made us happy throughout the months – we tend to couple this with a date night and a bottle of red.

It’s very simple, easy to implement and makes us realize how much joy each day can bring. Now it’s over to you, go on, give it a go!

All my love!