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Gratitude Is Something You Cultivate
“I’m not feeling very grateful today,” said this friend of mine. Sometimes is hard to “feel” gratitude, I completely understand.
But while we all would like to “feel” grateful, we forget to “be” grateful in the first place.
I’m reminded of a Gretchen Rubin’s quote, from both her books on happiness: “Act the way you want to feel.” (let’s make that a tweetable)
"One of the most surprising, and useful, things I’ve learned from my happiness project is my third commandment: Act the way I want to feel." – Gretchen Rubin Share on XWhen I first read that, I realized what a mindblowing truth it was. And what inherently wonderful solution it brought to light. The choice is mine! (and yours.)
Whether you are “feeling” grateful or unappreciative, you are making that choice, and by choosing to be one or the other you are thrusting those feelings on yourself.
If you want to feel grateful and reap all the benefits that come from cultivating a grateful heart and mind, you need to act like it first.
How Do I Act With More Gratitude?
You can show gratitude in an outwardly way with your words and actions, or inwardly with your thoughts (self-talk + beliefs) and mindset.
Outward forms of gratitude:
- These include saying “thank you” to anyone who has served you today, during this 24 waking hours.
- Saying thank you to someone in your life, even for doing something you think he/she ought to have done in the first place.
- Doing something for someone else, aka. being of service to others.
- Striving hard for what you want and what your life’s purpose is. This is also a way to show you’re grateful for the opportunities you’ve been given and the love you’ve received.
Inward forms of gratitude:
You can harness the power of gratitude in the quiet and stillness of your own mind.
In fact, the people who practice gratitude consistently move from outward forms of expressing their gratitude, tapping into a deeper source that’s manifested in the way they behave and speak.
Why If I’m “being” grateful and yet the “feeling” won’t come?
If/when this happens, the problem may lie in your authentic reason (for being grateful) and your authentic way of showing it.
You and I are different people, with different values and priorities in our lives. You cannot live by my values, and you won’t necessarily find the same level of connection with the things I’m grateful for.
Each one of us must find the source of our gratitude, and therefore, of our joy. Because, as the next tweetable says…
“Joy is the simplest form of gratitude.” – Karl Barth Share on XBeing Grateful is a Prerequisite for Creative Flow
If you want to be consistently creative, gratitude is the way to go.
- Give thanks to the potential you have for creativity.
- Show and express appreciation for the opportunity to create something today.
- Think of what you could do with the tiniest seed of inspiration.
- Be grateful for every small creative breakthrough and personal win you’ve achieved so far.
When you cannot find anything to be grateful for in your creative life, be grateful for life itself. The blessing of going through ups and downs, fertile windows and droughts that reel your ego in and put everything in perspective.
“Gratitude helps you to grow and expand; gratitude brings joy and laughter into your life and into the lives of all those around you.” – Eileen Caddy Share on XYes, you can be grateful, even when you don’t feel like it. You can make the choice, and give your creativity a reason to be fired up by coming with new ways to thank the universe for your lucky stars.
You’re on your way to a more grateful and creative self!
I said it above, and it’s worth repeating: the best way you can express, manifest and multiply gratitude is by pursuing your goals, while appreciating the fact that you are here, right now, to do it!
You’ve been given the chance. How does it make you “feel” to think and focus on that?
Grab hold to that thought, fully, for a couple of minutes…enjoy the peace of mind of knowing what you have and what you are, here and now, is one great place to start.
Remember to visit that place of gratitude every day. Eventually, it will turn out to be wherever you are.
“Be grateful for what you already have while you pursue your goals. If you aren’t grateful for what you already have, what makes you think you would be happy with more.” – Roy T. Bennett Share on XTake the chance to express some more gratitude right now! and share with me below: What are you most grateful for today?
More quotes about Gratitude from the team at Shutterfly to inspire your own journey toward a gratefully creative life.
Awesome post! Keep up the great work! 🙂