Making gratitude a daily habit, no matter what, is guaranteed to increase your happiness and well being.
Wealth and materialistic aims do NOT make you happier, according to latest research from a Baylor University team led by psychologist Jo-Ann Tsang.
Why?
Because materialistic people tend to focus on what they DON’T HAVE …finding it harder to be grateful for what they DO HAVE.
“They often get caught in a negative spiral in which they have unrealistic expectations of how happy material goods will make them. When their experience falls short of those expectations, their instinct is to seek out something new to purchase, putting them in an endless loop of anticipation and disappointment that does not leave room for gratitude”.
By contrast, many experts in the field of Positive Psychology – and inspirational leaders like Oprah Winfrey and Louise Hay – teach that Gratitude:
- Activates the Law of Attraction in a most powerful way – what you focus on you get MORE of…good or bad.
- Reduces stress, helping us reframe our losses and see the glass half full rather than half empty
- Improves health – grateful people visit their doctors less often and live longer than others. Thankfulness helps us sleep better, control our blood pressure, and generally reduce physical complaints.
- Boosts our relationships at home and work – we love to bask in the warmth of a positive person and steer clear of the moaning minnie.
- Helps us handle negative experiences with less envy, resentment and regret. To really make gratitude a habit, we need to move to a deeper level of thankfulness. This means being grateful for things that are independent of how things appear on the surface.
[Tweet “Aim to bathe in a sea of daily thankfulness, no matter what life throws your way.”]
Oprah Winfrey, who influenced thousands to write “5 Things I’m GRATEFUL for” in a daily (or nightly) Gratitude Journal says: “If you concentrate on what you don’t have, you will never, ever have enough.”
Instead…
[Tweet ” Be thankful for what you have; you’ll end up having more.” Oprah “]
I am sure you agree – it’s up to you to practise making gratitude a daily habit – today, and every day! Your life will improve dramatically, I promise.
I am so grateful for YOU dear reader and friend in my life…
Let me know one thing you are grateful for today – either in the comments on my Facebook Page