Thanksgiving in Five Minutes or Less

Gratitude Practice For Busy People

– Marie Wetmore

Celebrating Thanksgiving once a year is nice, but practicing thankfulness every day can change your life.

It all comes down to gratitude. People who practice gratitude are more optimistic, happier, less anxious, less angry, and generally feel better about their lives. They even tend to have more positive memories of their past.

Grateful people also enjoy better relationships and are more socially integrated.

Not only that, gratitude is good for your health. Grateful people exercise more and have fewer visits to the doctor.

Gratitude is even beneficial at work. Supervisors who thank their employees create real, measurable improvements in the workplace – they’re employees feel more motivated and work harder. Grateful people also experience less burnout.

So this Thanksgiving you have a chance to kick off a lifestyle change that benefits you emotionally, socially, physically, and professionally. But what if you’re short on time? The following gratitude strategies are designed to be quick, so you can fit them into your busy life.

Five-minute strategies for gratitude practice

Thank someone in the moment. Do you express your thanks to everyone that deserves it? If not, commit to thanking one person every day. That means more than just a quick “thanks” as you rush by. Take a moment to make eye contact, say thank you, and explain what they are gesture meant to you.

Meditate. Carve out five minutes to reflect on one good thing in your life. Create a clear picture of it in your mind. Simply focus your awareness on the feeling of gratitude for that blessing. Or, you can repeat a simple fill in the blank gratitude mantra, such as “I’m thankful for __________.” Many people find that mantras help them stay focused during meditation.

Post a sticky note at work. Most of us spend at least eight hours at work, so a visual reminder of gratitude can keep you thankful all day long. Every morning, jot down one thing you’re thankful for on a sticky note, and put it on your computer or desk. Every time you glance at it, you’ll remember what a great life you have.

Say thanks at dinner. Giving thanks at dinner is an easy way to fit gratitude into your day. If you say a prayer before your meal, call to mind something you’re thankful for that happened that day. If prayer is not for you, create a secular gratitude routine. Everyone at the table can share one thing they’re thankful for, or you can reflect on it quietly.

Write a thank you note. Invest in a large box of thank you notes and a nice pen. If you challenge yourself, you can write a touching thank you note in under five minutes. Not only will you get the benefits of saying thanks, but the recipient will get the rare joy of an unexpected thank you note.

That’s it, five quick and easy gratitude strategies you can do in under five minutes.

Marie Wetmore, life coach for women
www.lionssharecoaching.com
marie(at)lionssharecoaching.com