HOW PRACTICING GRATITUDE DAILY WILL CHANGE YOUR LIFE

It’s rare that a new idea or concept comes along completely out of the blue and revolutionizes your life. When it happens, you should grab hold of it with two hands and embrace it as much as you can. Since I discovered the life-changing benefits of practicing gratitude, everything has improved beyond recognition.

It started with a book. The Magic by Rhonda Byrne. I had read her first book, the Secret, a few years before and although everything in it made complete sense to me, over time my memory of it faded and so did its impact.

The Magic, on the other hand, has stayed with me. My mind is now bathed in positivity and thankfulness, which has lead to one thing we all want…happiness. Don’t get me wrong, I still have bad days and negative thoughts and feelings but I’m now better equipped to let them go, in the knowledge that everything is temporary.

Before I discovered the benefits of practicing gratitude on a regular basis, I would have described myself as a grateful person. I had lovely manners after all. But at my core was the belief that happiness was  dependent on external factors.

I went from one goal or dream to another, believing that when I arrived at the next stop I would be happy. Each time I got what I desired – be it a house, car, job or relationship – the happiness was short lived. It lasted until I wanted something else. I wasn’t paying attention to all the wonderful things in my life, instead I was focusing on what i didn’t have.

In fact there have always been so many blessing in my life, which have completely bypassed my conscious. Cupboards full of food, electricity, heating, drainage to name a few. These are pretty huge necessities for a comfortable life and yet until I read the Magic, I had not once said thank you for any of them.

I think the Magic resonated with me because, for the first time in my life, I opened my eyes and saw all the blessings I receive on a daily basis. Finding and appreciating vitally important things such as good health are crucial to sustaining long term happiness. I can see, I can hear, I can walk and I have a healthy heart and mind. And if I were ever to lose my health, I have access to fantastic healthcare in the form of the NHS. How lucky am I? How did I go so long without noticing any of this?

Plenty of research  has shown that those who practice gratitude regularly are happier than those who don’t. When you are continually finding things to be thankful for, how can you not be happy?

I used to look around my world and see only problems and hardships. Now I see a life filled with blessings, gifts and love. So many people around the world would die to live the kind of life I lead. In fact many do – the European Refugee Crisis has highlighted this.

Practicing gratitude takes time, discipline and effort. It’s something I make an effort to do everyday because I know if I stop being thankful my happiness and positivity levels will plummet. Gratitude leads to a long term happiness – the kind that can’t be bought or influenced by external factors.

Of course I still have downs with my ups, but I can recognize the temporary nature of everything and return to my appreciation for the staple blessings in my life.

On the blog tomorrow, I’m going to share a few easy gratitude practices you can perform daily. If you are consistent in your gratitude and really feel the thankfulness for your blessings I can guarantee you that you will only see positive results.

I strive to share this knowledge with my with my children so that gratitude will be second nature to them. I want them to reap the rewards, as I have, but without having to even think about it. If I can teach them to grow in gratitude, I’ll spare them the years of effort I have put into changing my ways.

My mission is to achieve a state of continuous gratitude and to help others do the same. Will you join me? I’ll be posting often about this topic over the coming weeks so please make sure you follow the blog and don’t miss out.