7 Easy Ways To Be More Grateful

Practicing gratitude can strengthen your immune system, bring more joy and increase your happiness. There are two root causes of our life’s problems: the feeling of “not being good enough” or “not having enough”, and the notion that we will be satisfied once we become something or get something. But the frenzy for material possessions can take over, and that’s when all sense of gratitude vanishes and we simply fail to count our blessings. What seeps in here is the destructive sense of worry, ingratitude and dissatisfaction with our present life.

What we probably do not realize is that being thankful for what we have is not merely our state of mind. In fact, when we choose to fret and fume over what we don’t possess, we actually stand at a risk of losing whatever we already have. After all, it is our mind that rules our body. There is no way we can go on to being successful in life unless our mind is first happy and satisfied and then yearns for more.

Want to know how to be more grateful on the daily basis?

It is the sense of gratitude that is the driving force of a happy and successful life. Here, we give you a set of 7 time-tested ground rules that guide you on how you can be grateful for what you have before you set to strive for what you don’t.

1. You get what you deserve and need

Nothing more than you need and not before you deserve; that’s indeed the unspoken universal rule! Be thankful for what you have today, be it the people around, your circumstances or your possessions. Know that the Universe knows exactly what you need and deserve, and sends it your way at the right moment. Sense this in your life, be aware of it and above all, learn to be thankful for it.

2. Choose to be grateful

Well, whether to complain for what you don’t have or to be thankful for what you have is a conscious choice you make yourself. You can choose to be happy over what you have and then strive for what you need next. Worrying over what you don’t have or can’t achieve in the present is merely a way to waste the precious present moments.

3. Look around you

When in fear or frustration, look around yourself for examples of resilience, patience and gratitude. Learn to observe how birds are grateful to Mother Nature for their homes, food and life. Observe how trees stand tall and brave the fury of storms, rains and the ever-changing seasons. More you look into it, more you will find examples of how being grateful has helped various living things survive and prosper happily.

4. Watch your language.

Grateful people have a particular linguistic style that uses the language of gifts, givers, blessings, blessed, fortune, fortunate, and abundance. In gratitude, you should not focus on how inherently good you are, but rather on the inherently good things that others have done on your behalf.

5. Count your blessings…each day

By being thankful and satisfied doesn’t imply that you don’t need to work any harder for bigger achievements. All it means is that you stay away from the dreaded feeling of anxiety and frustration that stems for being ungrateful. Count your little blessings every day, be it good health, four square meals a day or people you love. Know that there are many people in the world who are not even blessed with that much!

6. Think positive to achieve the positive

You might not have heard this, but its’ true. Your thoughts can shape your life. Have you ever noticed that if you keep telling yourself that the present tough times shall pass and you are happy with what you have, you actually get the courage to deal with the crisis? The human mind is a powerful machine. To think positive and steer the course of actions that way is a power that lies absolutely within!

7. Look for the hidden ways to be thankful!

Once you have the mindset to be first thankful for the life you have, you will find hundreds of ways to do that. As you live your normal daily routine, you will find an umpteen number of hidden opportunities to be thankful for the bounties you have. Being capable enough to work and earn, being amiable enough to make friends and relationships, being capable enough to be able to help someone are just a few of these!

Remember, people who practice gratitude tend to be more creative, bounce back more quickly from adversity, have a stronger immune system, and have stronger social relationships.

“Do not spoil what you have by desiring what you have not; remember that what you now have was once among the things you only hoped for.” ― Epicurus