Why Gratitude Brings Greater Happiness

And how you can practice gratitude in life.

Why Gratitude is Associated with Greater Happiness

According to Harvard Health Publishing, studies have shown that those who show gratitude are more optimistic, happier, build better relationships, and feel better about their lives.

In addition to the psychological and social benefits, gratitude is shown to improve physical health such as a stronger immune system and lower blood pressure (Greater Good Magazine by Berkerly.edu).

Why is gratitude so magical to our lives?

Gratitude is a great way to battle entitlement — the feeling that we inherently deserve rights, privileges, or special treatment. Entitlement is manifested in jealousy, anger, frustration, prejudice, narcissism. Being entitled places us in an endless war against ourselves and the people around us. We become stressed, anxious, angry, frustrated when we do not get the things we believe we deserve. This vicious cycle puts us in mental and physical distress without recognizing the problem lies in ourselves. We thus get stuck in the mind jail we created ourselves.

Being grateful, on the other hand, helps us recognize how incredibly lucky and privileged we are. It frees us from the materialist things we desire by focusing more on the precious things we already own — our relationships, health, and many simple everyday moments in our lives.

Studies have shown that gratitude is an attainment associated with emotional maturity (Harvard Health Publishing). One possible explanation is that, as we age and experience more ups and downs in our lives, we start to realize what truly matters to us in life. After certain losses, we start to cherish more the people and things that are in the present. Being grateful is a mindset, a worldview, and a practice.

How to Practice Gratitude to Enhance Happiness in Your Life

There are many ways to practice gratitude. To feel happy and experience the joy of giving gratitude, you have to truly mean it. Superficial acts of gratitude may benefit the person who receives the thank-you note, but not necessarily helps the note giver.

Often, we teach our children the good manner of saying “thanks” after receiving help or gifts from others, but we never teach them why we need to be thankful. It is more than simply a good manner; it is a way to acknowledge our privileges- the privilege of receiving help when needed; the privileged of having family and friends; the privilege of living in a household where food is abundant.

Many bloggers have discussed the different ways to show gratitude to others and ourselves. In addition to meditation, keeping a gratitude journal, and praying, what else can you do to show gratitude?

1. Make a list of your privileges.

Privilege refers to the special rights and advantages granted to a certain group of people. We all have our privileges. Sadly, not many of us have realized that, yet.

I used to teach an Educational Equity course as part of a teacher certification program at a college. In one unit where we discussed our privileges, many of my students wrote in their discussion — “I earned everything I own, hence I am not privileged.” This is a typical example of entitlement — taking things for granted, believing that we deserve it.

Many of us, including myself, come from single-parent families. Some of us lost or were abandoned by one or both our parents. Some of us, including myself, never met at least one of our grandparents. Some of us had been homeless and had to rely on different family and friends’ houses until finally settling down. So if you have both parents, never went homeless, met most of your grandparents, then you have the privilege of having, at least, a complete family.

But, I am incredibly lucky to have my maternal grandparents who raised me and taught me everything I know. I am privileged to be born in a country where hunger is not an issue for the majority of people. I am grateful that I had help when I was homeless, so we did not have to live on the street.

Making a list of privileges can help you gain perspective of how lucky and fortunate you have been in your life. This practice can help us to become more resilient, happier, and more content with our lives. Remember, what you take for granted could be someone else’s lifetime wishes.

2. Be mindful when giving a thank-you gift to someone.

As cliche as it may sound, picking up a small “thank you” gift for someone may bring you joy.

Regardless if it is a pretty thank-you card or a small present, the process of picking out this gift is key. While you are shopping or making this gift, try to visualize the kindness you received from the person who helped you. Acknowledging that no one, at any point, is ever obligated to help you. But they chose to be kind, and now you too.

Practice this mindfully gift-giving can remind you of the kindness you received. This is also a reminder to choose to be kind to someone else. This positive energy can help you become more positive in your life.

3. Be grateful for things that are missing in your life.

It seems that there is always something missing in our lives that everybody else possesses.

For example, while the majority of people have the privilege of being cared for by both mom and dad, I do not have a father. Yes, I sure missed out on a lot of possible moments in my life. I was too short to see the shows when other kids rode on their dads’ shoulders. There was no father-daughter dance at my wedding. I walked down the aisle with an Ipad in my hand while video-conferencing my 92-year old grandpa.

But I am grateful that I never had a father. I learned so much from my dad’s failure in his career and my mom’s relationship failure in her marriage. I would never be the person I am today if I had a happy family growing up. It was tough, but it made me the tough person I am today.

Instead of dwelling on the unfairness in our lives, choose to accept and be grateful for the challenges we face. We become who we are not only because of the people and things that are present in our lives, but also those that are missing. This mindset can change your perspectives and become more resilient in the case of future setbacks.

4. Thank your body.

We take our bodies for granted. We overwork ourselves and rarely provide our bodies enough rest and nutrients.

It was my first year in Junior High, I noticed that a boy in our school only had one arm. But he participated in almost all of the sports teams in our school, even though he was usually the backup player. Out of curiosity, I approached him and we became friends. He told me that he lost his arm in elementary school due to a bad car accident. But he was so grateful that he still has his dominant right arm and is still alive after the accident.

It was a wake-up call for me. I have two arms and still complained about not being born more athletic. Not everyone has this privilege. I hardly took care of my body and what it had done for me. I was constantly body shaming myself and compared myself with the models on social media.

Choose to be kind to your body. Take care of it. It will treat you well too.

5. Be present.

My favorite day has always been Saturday, even though I always have to work half a day on Saturdays. I always hated Sundays, only because I know the next day would be Monday.

Maybe it is just me? Actually, no…

Recently, when I was teaching days of the week to some 5- to 6-year-olds, I asked them what their favorite day was. All of them answered they loved Fridays and hated Sundays. The reason was simple. Friday was their favorite because the following day is Saturday, while Sunday is always followed by a school day — Monday. As a result, most of the kids spend their Fridays thinking about what they would do on the weekends and waste their Sundays worrying about Monday.

Little do we know, we often let the present precious time slip from our hands when worrying about the future. We failed to be productive on Fridays thinking about the coming weekends and were not able to enjoy the day off on Sundays when worrying about Mondays. In other words, we wasted our lives just thinking and worrying, not living.

Take a deep breath. Start to notice what you are experiencing as of this moment. Show gratitude to whatever and whoever that is present now. Let the past go and stop worrying about the future. Focus on what you are doing right now and live every moment of your life to its full.

Thank you for reading my perspectives!