10 Powerful Ways To Feel Grateful In Life

It is extremely important to nurture the feeling of self-love and appreciate the good things unfolding each day. Here are some powerful ways to feel grateful in life that you can practice on a daily basis. Start today and see the changes.

“When you’re grateful for the things you have, no matter how small they may be, you will see those things instantly increase.” ― Rhonda Byrne, The Magic.

We often say ‘Thanks’ to others when they gift us something or do good to us. But how often do we say ‘Thanks’ to ourselves? – Or the Universe, for that matter?

On today’s date, we are so caught up amidst the hustle & bustle of life, that we often forget to express gratitude for the good things that we are blessed with.

To say the least, gratitude is one of those qualities that can get you closer to the magic of life. And to experience this magic, we need to believe in it and practice it in our daily lives.

It has been observed over time that people who are more grateful towards life, are happier and healthier in general.

Not only does the act of gratefulness improves our mental health but it also leaves an impact on our relationships with others.

Practicing ‘gratitude’ will help us to notice the little things in life – like, our partner getting you a cup of coffee in the morning (which we mostly take for granted!); a stranger helping us pick the heavy bag at the grocery store; so on and so forth.

Each of these small (yet valuable) incidents will help us to create a web of well-being, and help us to be more mindful in life.

I know that it’s difficult to bring about massive changes, all at once, in life. But taking little steps and practicing gratitude on a daily basis will surely turn out to be a blessing.

Powerful ways to feel grateful in life:

1. Keep a note of the difficult times & challenging circumstances.

In order to be grateful for our current state, it is essential that we remember the hard times that we’ve experienced and lived through.

When I lost my parents at the age of 27, I used to be depressed and often questioned why life has to put me through such difficulties.

I had a real tough time coping, was diagnosed with PTSD, and had to undergo therapy.

During that time, I got an opportunity to volunteer at a childcare center in Nairobi, Kenya, where I was working with orphans and abandoned kids.

Within a few days, I started feeling grateful – to have lived 27 beautiful years with the most loving parents, as I saw little children who would never know what mom’s love feels like or the pampering of dad!

It’s only when we look back at the hard times and understand how far we’ve come, we set up an explicit contrast in our mind and that creates the base for nurturing the sense of gratefulness.

2. If you like/love someone, tell them.

Communication is one of the best means of expression and you can always choose to share your gratitude for others by complimenting & appreciating them.

If you admire someone’s intelligence, let them know. Say ‘Thanks’ as often as you can, and feel it when you say it.

You can also express yourself differently – like, cook a meal for someone, or send a handwritten note.

Tell your partner that you love him/her, every day, and how blessed you feel to have them in your life.

As we express love for others, we enhance the sense of joy within ourselves and that nurtures our mental balance.

3. Avoid talking negatively about others.

Gossip almost always complicates our lives rather than simplifying. When we gossip/bitch about others, we attract a lot of negative vibes in our life.

Rather than criticizing someone else, we can try to look into ourselves and focus on our personal faults.

If someone hurts you, then try to forgive & forget – or else, go and tell that person about your feelings; have a conversation to sort out the differences, rather than gossiping about it with others, who are (perhaps!) not even involved in the scene.

When we talk negatively about others, there are chances of damaging the relationships, breaking trust, and most importantly, we’d end up disturbing our mental peace.

4. Maintain a Gratitude Journal.

Just imagine how wonderful it would be, if we can all pause for at least 10 minutes a day and pour our heart out – writing about all the little things that made us smile and expressing gratitude for every single person who made today a tad-bit easier for us, helped us enjoy a meal, made us feel loved and all those beautiful moments that conspired to make us happy?

Well, the first step towards feeling grateful is to identify the goodness encircling your life, and appreciating it.

Start maintaining a gratitude journal, and on the days when you feel low, flip through the pages – trust me when I say this, you’ll feel better for sure.

5. Cultivate the habit of gifting.

And by gifting, I specifically mean ‘donating’ here. You can express your gratitude for whatever you have by sharing it with others.

For example, give a pair of woolen clothes to your house-help, or pay a few extra bucks to your driver for a meal.

Donate your old clothes (clean & wearable) to any charitable trust, buy some books for kids who can’t afford them, so on and so forth.

We are blessed to have more than what we need, and we must always be grateful for that.

6. Develop the habit of writing letters.

I’m a lover of handwritten letters and I always make sure to write postcards to people I love.

Off late, as the pandemic hit the world and we were all stuck indoors, I started writing open letters for strangers whom I’ve met on the roads, and that felt like bliss.

We often fail to speak up our minds and struggle to get the appropriate words to express our feelings while talking to someone.

But when we write, we tend to have more time to pour our thoughts nicely.

Write to people you feel close to – your grandparents, parents, friends or teachers – and tell them about their little acts which made you smile.

Appreciate their presence in your life. You’ll soon realize how notes of love can generate a sense of gratitude.

7. Keep your ‘Home’ clean & tidy.

We often take our homes for granted – and that’s quite obvious, right? But now is the time to make a change.

Think of all the homeless people across the world, and understand that you are blessed to have a roof over your head and walls to protect you.

It’s time to show gratitude and respect towards your home, by keeping it clean and nurturing it with love.

Make sure to clear up the mess in the kitchen, after every meal you cook. Get some plants, water them on a daily basis and see them grow.

Lights some candles, brew some coffee, bake cakes and cookies, invite friends over and let the laughter echo within the four walls.

Make you ‘home’ feel alive – and it’ll give you enough warmth that you deserve.

8. Change your perspective to look at life.

As I mentioned before, we often fail to appreciate the good things that we are blessed with.

When you feel low about yourself, or sulk about the difficulties you’ve been facing in life, try to put yourself in the shoes of someone who’s experiencing greater misfortunes than that of yours.

Think of someone who’s suffering from an illness – that would inspire you to feel gratitude for your own healthy body.

If someone’s facing financial difficulty, count your blessing for having a job. One of the best means of practicing gratitude is by changing the way we look at life.

9. Focus on your strengths and cherish them.

We tend to get too critical about our own selves, forgetting to cherish the strengths we are blessed with. Each of us has something special, something that makes us unique.

Every time, when life pushed you down, you had the strength to rise up again – so feel grateful for that.

Praise yourself for all the good things you’ve done, and make a note of all your achievements.

10. Meditate and celebrate the joy of being alive.

Last, but not least – it is extremely important to celebrate this life that we are living. Last year, millions of people died due to the spread of Coronavirus, and we lived through one of the hardest times that humanity has ever faced.

But, today, here we stand – you and me – alive and healthy. Isn’t that enough a reason to feel grateful? Well, yeah!

Take some time out, every day, and meditate. Focus on your breathing, appreciate the fact that we are here, now, at this moment.

Declutter your mind, relax and breathe. There can be no better practice to feel more grateful in life, than meditation.

To put it in the words of Dietrich Bonhoeffer, “In ordinary life, we hardly realize that we receive a great deal more than we give and that it is only with gratitude that life becomes rich.”

If you have been thinking of embracing the good things in life and wish to practice gratitude, then now is the time to start.

And in case you know of any other means to express gratitude, do let us know in the comments below. We’d be more than happy to hear from you 🙂

[optin-monster slug=”ofzgfgq5ljbqtukramsl”]