How To Practice Gratitude And Love Yourself
# Lifestyle # Life Hack

How To Practice Gratitude And Love Yourself

post by David Blog

by David Blog

Nov 12, 2019
at 2:20 PM

Life is all about the ups and downs. You know what’s funny though? We always let the ups pass us by without appreciating it, while always dwelling on the downs. When we are happy, we are very “meh” about it, then when we are sad, we keep thinking about it. Why do we do this? It boils down to gratitude. Being thankful for every small thing everyday, and being thankful for your life. It is an easy concept in theory, but I know execution is pretty difficult, but here are 8 ways to start practicing gratitude and start being happy with yourself.

 

1. Appreciate everything, small and big details.

Gratitude doesn’t mean that you should only be thankful for the big things that happen in your life.

  • Instead you should be grateful for all the little things as well, for example…

    Instead of just being grateful for graduating, be grateful for the opportunity to learn things everyday, the friends you make, and the growth you get when you attended class everyday.

  • Instead of just being grateful for getting the job, be grateful about the process of finding the job, your efforts you put in to make this happen and that your hard work has paid off, little by little.

  • Gratitude can be even simpler, like how nice the weather is, or how fast your shipping from Lazada came in the mail. 

     

    2. Find gratitude in your challenges

    Gratitude is not only about being thankful for positive experiences.

  • Sometimes the negative and difficult situations also deserve to be thanked. Why?

    Because you faced such a hard challenge, you grew as a person.

  • You are a better person now than before because of the new experience that you have gained.

  • Through the bad experiences, you realize how great your good experiences were.

  • For example, if you go through a breakup, most people are sad that they are no longer together, and dwell on the sadness. But the fact of the matter is, when you were together you had great times, and made amazing memories, for that, you should be grateful.

  • Like the old saying “Don’t cry because it ended, smile because it happened.”

     

    3. Practice mindfulness

    Take some time out of your day to think of 5 to 10 things you are grateful for.

  • Picture it in your mind and experience the feeling of gratefulness.

  • Do this everyday and you will will rewire your brain to be more grateful about your life and your experiences. 

  • Your happiness will slowly improve over time as you feel more natural about being grateful for everything.

     

    4. Take note of your life

    After you have thought of what you are grateful for, write it down and take note of it.

  • After a while, you will have compiled a list of what makes you happy in life and you can revisit these reasons why you shouldn’t be sad when you are down.

  • Writing down why you are grateful also solidifies your belief in it as you have to carefully think about what you want to write.

     

    5. Volunteer

    Sometimes, happiness and gratitude comes not from ones’ self but the ability for one to give back to the community, for example

    Going to the soup kitchen to help out the homeless. 

  • Volunteering at the local orphanage.

  • Donating to charity.

  • You may be giving up a few hours of your life and it may not mean much, but it may mean the whole world to those that you are helping out. You will feel grateful for what you have, and what you have done.

  • It is a known fact that helping others also means that you are helping yourself.

     

    6. Express yourself

    Sometimes, it isn’t enough to just keep your gratitude to yourself.

  • By sharing your gratitude with others, you will amplify your feelings and also be spreading good vibes to everyone.

  • By showing someone you genuinely care, you help them out and you help yourself out. For example…

    Being there during a friend’s time of need may mean the world to them, and you also feel great to be a beacon of light for someone.

  • Showing someone in your life that you care makes them feel special, and makes you feel loved.

  • By expressing yourself and your gratitude to others, you spread it out like a lit candle helping other candles light up.

     

    7. Spend time with loved ones

    If you’re struggling with feeling the gratitude in the moment, go spend time with your friends and family. 

  • Of course it will help you grow closer to them and strengthen your relationship, but it will also give you a chance to practice your acts of gratitude on people that you care about.

  • Start small if they’re having trouble finding ways to support your friends and family. For example…

    Listening to someone seriously the next time they share you something.

  • Give genuine compliments to friends and family.

  •  It is the small things that count, and it will help you build up to bigger things and slowly but surely improve your happiness.

     

    8. Improve your happiness in other areas of your life

    Being grateful can make you happy, but being happy can also make you grateful. 

  • There are plenty of other ways to get your mood up such as…

    Exercising

  • Picking up a new hobby

  • Doing something you like

  • By practicing self-love, you increase your gratitude and happiness, and they will keep affecting each other positively.

     

    Once you are feeling the endorphins flow, showing gratitude will become even easier and you’ll start to be able to make list after list of all of the things in your life you’re thankful for.