What’s All This Buzz About Gratitude?

For the last several months, I’ve been listening to a lot of motivational speakers—something I do to help nourish me emotionally and spiritually. And the word I’ve been hearing most often is gratitude. Everyone from Gary Vaynerchuk to Tyler Perry talks about how much gratitude is a major driving force behind their success. And as if that wasn’t enough, I opened my new Elle magazine to find an article about…you guessed it—gratitude. It was a piece by writer, Gina Hamadey, entitled the Gratitude Boom; and she talks at length about how practicing gratitude regularly gave her peace and calm during the pandemic.

I’d been hearing so much about gratitude I started to think it was a sign from God—speak to me Jesus. And as a self-confessed, recovering pessimist, maybe I needed to listen. In fact, the principal of gratitude goes as far back as biblical days. It was King David who said, “I will give thanks to you, Lord, with all my heart.” (Psalm 9:1). Even ground-breaking psychologists espouse the principle of gratitude. Humanistic psychologist, Abraham Maslow said, “the most fortunate are those who have a wonderful capacity to appreciate again and again, the basic goods of life, with awe, pleasure, wonder, and even ecstasy.” Ecstasy? Wow, that’s intense and probably very satisfying.

I must admit I don’t always practice gratitude like I should, even though the positive effects of it are well documented. Many studies show that people who count their blessings, even those who struggle with mental health, tend to be happier and less depressed than people who don’t. So why don’t all us of do it? Speaking from both personal and professional experience, I know that practicing gratitude is something that does not come easily if you don’t do it on a regular basis. It’s like working out at the gym. We may go once, but it takes effort and tenacity to keep at it. Each time we work out, we have the same hurdles to overcome (the feeling of not wanting to go, not wanting to push your body to the max) just to experience that “I’m-glad-I-did-it-feeling” feeling at the end. And with gratitude, you have to make a deliberate effort to overcome your usual negative way of thinking in order to feel the calm and peace that gratitude brings.

The other day I was walking with my family; and just decided to be grateful for that moment. Yes, there were a lot of things I could have been complaining about, but something came over me and I wanted to thank God for what I had. I was thankful my family was healthy and we were all together. I was thankful they loved me and I loved them, and that I can give myself to them. The peace that came over me in that moment is not something I connect to often, but something I am committed to doing more of. This doesn’t mean I ignore my problems or stop desiring more for my life. But I recognize that gratefulness is the ingredient to feeling okay while still trying to accomplish goals and create the life I want. What’s your experience with gratitude?