The benefits of gratitude are well-documented. Spending just 10 minutes a day thinking about what you’re grateful for helps you focus on the positive and drown out any negatives – and not just in the moment. In as little as two weeks, a daily gratitude practice rewires your brain to make you happier and more optimistic.[ref url=”http://journals.sagepub.com/doi/abs/10.1177/1052562911430062″][ref url=”https://www2.warwick.ac.uk/fac/soc/economics/staff/eproto/workingpapers/happinessproductivity.pdf”][ref url=”http://psycnet.apa.org/?&fa=main.doiLanding&doi=10.1037/a0037895″]
Related: 11 Ways to Practice Gratitude in Daily Life
It’s no wonder that some of the most successful entrepreneurs and thought leaders make gratitude a part of their routine. Here’s what some recent guests of Bulletproof Radio have had to say on the topic of gratitude:
Gratitude builds resilience
“It’s very difficult to be grateful just for yourself …Most people are grateful for their friends, their family, for things outside of them. Even if it’s their health, they’re grateful for the circumstances that allow their health to be optimal or Bulletproof. And that allows them to know that, and always stay resilient to obstacles [and] to mistakes.” — UJ Ramdas, co-creator of The Five Minute Journal [Listen to the full podcast episode here]
Be grateful for the bad things, too
“There is a gift in every single thing that happens, no matter how horrible it feels at the moment. If you can find that gift and then learn from it — what’s the gift, what do we want to learn from it and then express gratitude for that gift actually happening… It’s going to teach us something for the future.” –Anese Cavanaugh, creator of the IEP Method and founder of Intentional Energetic Leadership [Listen to the full podcast here]
Sometimes, you need to fake it till you make it
“The thing with gratitude is sometimes it will feel a little forced in the beginning, especially if you’re wound up or angry or miserable. The more you practice and the more you look for things to be grateful for, the more that muscle grows and expands.” – Stella Grizont, The Work Happiness Method [Listen to the full podcast here]
It’s never a bad time to start counting your blessings, and the holiday season is especially full of opportunities to step back and appreciate all the good in your life. Need a little help getting started? Check out the video below of strangers who took time of out their day at the Bulletproof Conference to talk about the things they’re most grateful for. Then, share your daily gratitude in the comments below.
