Gratitude definitely became somewhat of a trend word last year, and I have to admit, it does have a hint of eye rolling attached to it, right? Especially when it’s talked about online by people who seemingly have a lot more to be grateful for than us. But the truth is, it’s all relative, and whoever you are, practicing gratitude every day can drastically improve your mindset.
Defined by the Oxford English Dictionary, Gratitude is:
The quality of being thankful; readiness to show appreciation for and to return kindness
For me, it was the 2020/21 winter lockdown (sorry to bring it up, I know it was a dark time) that made me actively start working on my mindset and focusing on gratitude. At that time it was easy to get stuck down a dark rabbit hole as it felt like everything in life had been turned upside down. I made a conscious effort to go for a walk and list all of the things I am grateful for, from my home, and my relationship, to the health of my family, my dog, and even the fact I have food in the fridge and a coat on my back. Everything and anything that you are thankful to have, acknowledge it. You’ll be supposed how long your list gets, and once you luck over that list then you can’t help but feel lucky. Spending time thinking about that gratitude list each and every day really does help shift you into a positive mindset.
In practice, once you get the hang of it, I feel like gratitude becomes ingrained into your state of mind, and has nothing but positive effects. It makes it more difficult to let yourself get down in the dumps, in my opinion. It really has changed my life and mindset for the better. Do you practice gratitude?
K x
