In another blog post last month, I wrote, “Being thankful for things is a crucial feeling that can actually reprogram your brain to process information differently. The more grateful you are, the more you appreciate your life and loved ones, the happier you will be on a deeper, lasting level.” Since then I have made it a point to be more grateful for basic things in my life, as well as spread gratitude to others in an effort to somehow calculate my results.
Here are a few things science says about gratitude and its benefits. Gratitude can affect people in a variety of ways, but five main categories seem to stand out the most:
- Personality
Gratitude can mold and shape your personality, improving your quality of life in a multitude of ways. By allowing for a more optimistic view on life, being grateful can increase your lifespan by several years, and that is just one benefit that has already changed your life in a major way. Gratitude can also can increase spiritualism, increase self-esteem, and even reduce our materialistic obsession and self-centeredness. I could go into every detail about how, but I feel like the benefits are self-explanatory, and whether you agree or disagree the only way to know for sure is to try it out for yourself.
- Health
I already touched on the idea that gratitude can actually help you live longer, and that is true, but there is more to it than that. Gratitude can improve the quality of your life and health in many ways. Thankful for more means stressing about less. Your body will notice a difference in sleep quality, allowing you to sleep better, longer. This more restful sleep gives you more energy, more energy to do the things you love, giving you more to be grateful about. This also (based on 137 diverse research studies) can drastically improve your immune system and overall physical health.
- Social
It’s no secret that gratitude can make you feel better, and in turn act friendlier. A stronger connection between random strangers means that the spread of gratitude is bound to come full circle. Some may call it karma, others may just see it as a chain reaction of events, but either way it can be globally powerful if we want it to be. It makes you look better, everyone around you look better, and if spread far enough can make the world better. Enjoy the benefits of a better marriage and deeper friendships today with gratitude.
- Career
People want to work with good, kind, friendly people. Spread the gratitude, increase the bonds in your office, and you will notice more people opening up. More ideas means more goals achieved. Creating a safe and welcoming place to work can improve your networking, increase your managerial effectiveness, improve decision-making, increase productivity, and more.
- Emotional
I saved this one for last because it seems like the most obvious, but it in no way detracts from its significance. If you were happier with your life, feeling physically better, having a better marriage, enjoying stronger friend connections, absolutely killing it in your career, you would feel better emotionally.
The best way to increase your own gratitude is to give a little to others. Tell people something good about themselves, and watch their face light up with gratitude. Gratitude is contagious, and the proof is in its application. Only one way to find out, give it a try, today!
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