Remembering to be Grateful in 5 Minutes or Less

Most people tend to express their gratitude as November rolls around. Having a national holiday that encourages us to remember all the things we are grateful for is awesome, but once the holiday season is over, we often forget about all the positive things we have in our life. What’s funny is that more often than not, our lives don’t get worse, we just get so caught up in preparing for the future that we sometimes lose sight of the amazing people and opportunities around us.

Post holiday season, I tend to fall into this slump where I unintentionally focus on the negatives and forget all the things I have to be grateful for each day. To help myself when I am feeling down, there is one thing I have found to be extremely helpful: making a gratitude list!

Okay so you might be thinking, “I already know I have things to be grateful for.” And you’re right. If we were to be questioned, “What are you grateful for?,” we would be able to come up with an answer on the spot. Typical responses might include access to food, shelter, family and friends. And these are all valid answers.

But there is one key component to making a gratitude list that will have a positive impact on the remainder of your day. Taking the time to make this list. All you need is five minutes! By carving out a short five minutes to come up with a list of everything you consider a blessing in your life, your attitude will change completely. I highly recommend using a pen and paper to physically write down this list. You will realize how quickly you can write down the obvious things like friends and family, but coming up with smaller appreciations may be difficult at first. With practice, you will be more mindful of everything you appreciate in your life and continue to add more and more to this list.

Another alternative I have found to be incredibly helpful, especially in times of stress and anxiety, is reciting my gratitude list aloud with a friend or family member. Having a small one-on-one with someone I love and talking about the things we are grateful for brings me reassurance that there are so many amazing people and opportunities in my life. Because we all have busy schedules these days, it makes the conversations that much more meaningful. So I highly encourage you to reach out to a loved one or take five minutes for yourself and jot down all the things, big and small, that you are grateful for. You’ll be surprised how many things come up on your list!!

• gratitude
• happiness
• life
• opportunities
• positivity