I read a post this morning, written by a longtime acquaintance and colleague, discussing gratitude as a perspective.  He had taken a day off but ended up working on a customer problem instead of what he had originally intended.  Despite this, he was grateful for his work, his life situation and his opportunity to do something good for someone else.  

Why did he take the time to post this on his profile on a professional network? (this was not Facebook or Instagram, but rather LinkedIn)  I believe it’s because it is part of his practice of gratitude.  He was intentionally focusing on the most positive aspects of his experience and regarding the benefits of it as they apply to his life and outlook.  

A popular definition of gratitude is: ‘a feeling of appreciation by a recipient of another’s kindness.  This kindness can be gifts, help, favors or another form of generosity…’

The common Wikipedia definition of gratitude (excerpted above) is a ‘feeling’.  But I would submit that gratitude can and should be an intentional practice.  We should find something to be grateful for every day.  Why?

Being grateful focuses our minds on the good things in our lives.  It may be gifts, it may be love, companionship, employment, money, food, our positive displacement in the world, our personal situation or anything really.  You can be grateful for a beautiful sunrise, or simply that you were alive to see it.  Or that you had a warm, yummy cup of coffee or tea to enjoy while you admired it.  A good friend of mine often makes reference to his gratitude to the ‘Kind and Generous Universe”. 

Having a posture of gratitude can alleviate anxiety.  It can guard against depression.  Being grateful makes us better people, partners, family and friends.  Being grateful protects us from our culture’s constant drive to purchase and consume more.  The antidote to the false narrative that ‘having it all’ is the definition of happiness.  

Best of all, being grateful is free.  You don’t have to pay anyone or anything for a sense of gratitude.  It’s something you cultivate in your own mind/spirit/soul.  And, as my colleague demonstrated today, it can be contagious.  

Hint:  That’s why I’m sharing this now.