handwritten thank you Archives -

Gratitude Strategy: How to Develop One and Why You Need One

Gratitude Strategy

The Law of Attraction fascinates me. When I first heard about it, it sounded so, well, dumb for lack of a better word. How could gratitude change anything? How could a positive feeling change someone’s luck or business? And yet, after incorporating gratitude into my personal life and then professional life, it has changed everything.

Just because you don’t know how something works, doesn’t mean it doesn’t work.

Daily Gratitude

I must admit, I’ve been out of the habit of daily gratitude. I’ve had to restart it. However, it’s easy enough to do! Simply start listing things you’re grateful for. Pick a small number at first, say three. And if you’re a cynic, welcome to the club! In fact, here’s a post I wrote about being a gratitude marketing cynic.

It’s Easy to Dwell on the Negative

It’s easy to focus on the negative: the bad waitress who insulted your mother at the mediocre restaurant. The person who cut you off in traffic. The stupidity of politics. All these things–and many more–can easily weigh you down and make you feel bad.

Three Small Things

A practice I really like is very simple: focus on three small things that went right every day. Simply write down the small things that went well in as much detail as possible. Here are more details, from Three Good Things: Practice. It’s like meditation.

Here are three of mine from today:

The red-headed woodpecker that showed up at the birdfeeder
The ability of the garbage truck driver to back up all the way down our steep hill
Robust health

The Savoring Walk

While we’re on the subject of meditation, the savoring walk is a way to notice the things immediately around you and feel gratitude for them. Rather than going to an exotic location (or wishing you were somewhere else), noticing what’s directly in front of you can make you savor those little things you might see every day and overlook.

A3b: And if you want to make a non-digital surprise to a colleague you could mail a letter saying "Have a great day!" #DigiBlogChat

— Val Vesa (@adspedia) July 25, 2017

Thank You, Version 2.0

We’ve all been taught to say thank you. But how do you say thank you? Is it a short text message? I’d like to put forth the idea that a letter is a wonderful way to thank someone, as Val Vesa put forth in a recent chat. And if it’s handwritten? So much the better. By the way, here’s an article about developing some gratitude muscle that you might like.

Do You Have a Gratitude Strategy?

I would love to hear about it. Really! Leave me a comment and I’ll be very grateful.