Can an Attitude of Gratitude REALLY Change Your Life?

We’ve all heard people tell us to be grateful for what we have. Some examples you might have heard growing up are, “Be grateful you have this much – other people don’t have what we have,” or “Don’t eat until you give thanks for your food – children in Africa are starving.”

These common expectations were implanted into our psyches for religious, as well as social, reasons. Science has backed up the idea of “having an attitude of gratitude” as being healthy for us on a number of different levels, including being able to virtually rewire our brains.

Traditions may not have known why gratitude works to improve life, but they were positive that it did.

Our brains are intricately wired. Thoughts are the driving force to how the electrical impulses work and what hormone levels are produced. When we smile, laugh, or sing with joy, "feel good” chemicals are released and we feel better than we did - and sometimes so good that we’re on top of the world.

But no one can decide what thoughts we focus on except us. We are so very powerful!

We have the Power of Choice. Each day we make thousands of choices about our thoughts, feelings and actions. Each choice produces its own consequences, actions and reactions. If we make the choice of having thoughts of gratitude, we are deliberately choosing to change our brain activity, our hormones and our outcomes.

“Be thankful for what you have; you’ll end up having more. If you concentrate on what you don’t have, you will never, ever have enough.”— Oprah Winfrey

Have you ever known anyone who kept having amazing things happen to her? Business deals magically came through, positive relationships were the norm, and she was a magnet for the generosity of others? And you wondered what kind of fairy dust was sprinkled on her. You would love just a little of her dust to land on you.

Yes, sometimes we have connections that others don’t have, and opportunities come to us more often. But in most cases, it’s also the fact that we “expect” good things to come our way. Everyone experiences ups and downs, but it’s the people who FOCUS on the UPS even when they’re in the depth of the downs, that rise to the top and stay there. They literally ignore the downs as much as possible and sometimes even seem in denial that they are in one!

They simply won’t let negative thoughts and emotions in. They focus on what is working and give thanks for that. The universal law is that we get what we focus on, so these people receive the positive that is their driving force. It’s the realtor that makes record breaking sales in a buyer’s market; the teacher whose students score the highest test scores in a school that traditionally scores in the bottom percentile; the scientist who proves a theory which no one else had ever been able to prove; the writer who some would say doesn’t have talent, yet sells a million copies; or the entrepreneur who failed 20 times and then launched a billion dollar business. A real life example is Airbnb, which was turned down by venture capitalists numerous times before being funded, and at last glance was worth $35 Billion, 11 years later!

Studies have shown that when people focus on gratitude, their level of anxiety and depression decrease and their happiness quotient goes up. When we’re happy, what do we do? We get up off the couch for one thing! We engage our brains in activity. We seek out friends and social outings. We get exercise and breath fresh air. All of this activity leads to MORE happiness.

“Happiness cannot be traveled to, owned, earned, worn, or consumed. Happiness is the spiritual experience of living every minute, with love, grace, and gratitude.”— Denis Waitley

But sometimes those negative or sorrowful thoughts still creep in. When that happens, here are some ways you can trigger yourself to incorporate gratitude and keep those positive brain signals and hormones working:

Set your phone to beep once every 60 minutes during the day and when it goes off, take a moment to reflect on one or more things you are grateful for.

When you are driving, find two things you are grateful for at every red light.

Before falling asleep, recite a few things that went well in your day and your life blessings.

Write a letter to someone and tell them why you appreciate them (you don’t have to mail it) or make a journal entry.

I read a story about a woman who had a friend who always said, “sorry”. This woman got so fed up with her friend’s habit that she said, “For every time you say ‘sorry’, you have to tell me five things that you like about yourself.” Apparently, the friend even said “sorry” when she couldn’t think of five things! It got to the point where the friend owed 20 or more statements and they just started laughing. But the friend finally “got it” and really began working on those statements. She ended up letting go of that habit and increasing her self-esteem along the way.

I also read about someone who decided to post on Facebook something she was grateful for every single night for the last 4 or 5 years. She wouldn’t allow herself to go to bed until she did her post. She said her life changed dramatically because the habit kept her accountable to others. Dozens of people look forward to reading her nightly post. She started this habit because she had too many negative thoughts that kept her awake at night. By doing this one thing, it reset her frame of mind so she could sleep better and set the tone for the following day. She said, “I’ve never looked back! It’s been life changing.”

We all know that music affects our mood, and when we’re in a higher vibratory state, it’s easier to focus on our blessings instead of our problems. Here’s a great piece you can watch, or simply listen to. I guarantee you’ll be smiling and releasing those “feel good” hormones before it’s over!