“If you want to find happiness, find gratitude”
-Steve Maraboli
Have you ever felt eternally happy about anything? Happiness comes in fits and bouts. You may have jumped with joy when you got the offer letter from your dream company. Your happiness knew no bounds when you had your first child. But, how long did that feeling last? Months? Years, perhaps? Think about it. The level of happiness resorts back to its standard level after a certain period of time.
Everyone has a set point of happiness. It is an inborn level of happiness, which is most likely to remain the same no matter what life throws at you. This indicates that all of us have a stationary amount of happiness throughout our lives.
Then, why bother trying to be happier if your set point won’t let you relish the same over time? Good question.
Here’s good news for you. Feelings of acceptance, openness, and trust can increase your happiness set point. Gratitude alone can help you raise your happiness set-point. It is the right fit for people who want their happiness to last longer.
6 Gratitude Practices to Elevate Your Happiness Set Point
The feeling of gratitude transforms our brains and elevates our moods. It floods us with oxytocin that leads to the creation of more oxytocin receptors that makes us feel happier.
Enough of science. Now, let’s give you an example that you can relate to.
Try adopting a method of writing the words ‘Today I was grateful for’ before hitting the sack. As you pen down the trivial things you feel grateful for, you will feel a warm, comforting, and settled feeling in the pit of your stomach.
Over the following weeks, you will feel grateful while reading a book or while your child is narrating a poem to you. Being grateful will make you feel happy about things you might have taken for granted.
Do you remember the time when you had to write thank-you letters after receiving thanksgiving gifts or birthday gifts from grandparents, friends, or neighbors? If a small list could make you that happy, imagine the happiness you must have shared through your gratitude letters.
As per researches conducted by the Harvard Medical School, it is scientifically proven that gratitude improves relationships and makes one happier.
Being grateful not only raises your happiness set point but also has a positive impact on the people around you. Check out the top 6 gratitude practices that will increase your happiness set point.
You may also want to read:
- Why Mothers Need Some ‘Me’ Time and How to Get it.
- 7 Fun things to do at Home with Kids to Make Life More Exciting.
1. Begin your day with a gratitude practice
Before you join the daily grind of your life, find at least three things to be grateful for. Make it an unavoidable part of your morning ritual. Try this for a few days, and you will find the urge to do this without forcing yourself. Practice this ritual every day and let your kids chime in too.
As you practice the gratitude prayer every morning, you will start cultivating more resilience to deal with the difficulties of life. You will appreciate the small delights that life has to offer. Elaine Smookler, explained in her blog ‘A 5-Minute Gratitude Practice,’ how gratitude helped her feel the beauty of sight and sound in her neighborhood.
Early morning gratitude practices will help you feel measurably happier within a week (at the least). It will constantly raise your happiness set point as long as you continue practicing.
2. Write a gratitude journal before going to bed
Research reveals that a gratitude journal enhances positivity, promotes sound sleep, and elevates the happiness set point. Keeping a gratitude journal also boosts energy, lowers anxiety, and increases alertness. It will take approximately fifteen minutes to record your thoughts in a journal.
Grab a diary, get a pen and sit somewhere comfortable. Reflect on the events of the day. Jot down at least six things that you feel grateful for. It can be anything from your promotion at work to having a delicious pie at a restaurant.
Maintaining a gratitude journal can be quite of a challenge. However, with regular practice, words will flow from your pen. Lauren Jessen discussed several benefits of keeping a gratitude journal in one of her blogs on HuffPost. Increasing happiness quotient is one of them.
Do you prefer a touchscreen over a pen in your hand? These gratitude journal apps suggested by Positive Psychology will surely help you out!
When to start writing the journal? Just like Lauren Jessen said in her blog, you can start working on the journal tonight.
3. Find a moment for your kids and feel appreciation for them
How did it feel to hold your firstborn in your arms for the first time? Remember how the docile touch of your child made you feel like the luckiest mother on Earth. Don’t let this precious moment go to waste with time. Appreciate your kid whenever you get the slightest opportunity to make yourself and your child happier and healthier.
Whenever daily worries try to get the better off you, remind yourself of how much you love the kid. How much does he/she matter in your life?
Start with ‘Thanks for giving me a hug!’ or ‘Thanks for picking up your toys.’ Take some hints from Abi Cotler who appreciates her kids for the little things they do.
Shower your kid with love and appreciation every day. Repeat this on a daily basis to raise the happiness set point of your child and yourself.
4. Take some time to appreciate nature
Nature provides an inexplicable sense of tranquil awareness. I personally feel that there is nothing quite like being in a forest, completely separated from the hustle and bustle of the city.
The only sounds I hear are those of my own footsteps, the rustling of trees, the wind, and the movement of creatures who call the wild their ‘home.’ Nature reduces my stress and eliminates anxiety from my life.
As per recent research conducted by Amanda Gardner, the closer we are to nature, the happier we feel. You don’t have to pay a visit to the forest in an attempt to feel happier. You just need to appreciate it and you can do that in a number of ways.
According to a blog on Omtimes, you can simply eat outdoors or prepare food directly from the Earth. You can even try exercising outdoors or join a sports league.
5. Make a hand-made gift for your loved one
Why wait for Valentine’s Day to gift something special to your loved one? Don’t you love your special one every day just the same way? Go ahead, prepare a DIY gift, and surprise him/her.
Let your loved one know the things you are grateful for. You can prepare a gratitude jar and put gratitude notes in it every day.
Send random notes of appreciation on decorated notecards to thank the person for being there in your life. You will never go out of gift-making ideas as long as Pinterest is there for you.
Buying gifts from a shop may take less time and cost a few bucks. But, it will lack the special touch, effort, and gratitude that your hand-made gift will have. Increase your happiness set-point and improve your relationship at the same time. Be that happy couple everyone is jealous of.
6. Don’t take the good things in your life for granted
How often do we appreciate our home or our ability to hear or walk? Probably, never. We realize the significance of something only after it’s gone.
We all have things that we have taken for granted. It can be our family or our friends or any other thing. This is the time to identify the things that comfort you the most and yet receive no appreciation.
Start finding joy in the little things rather than holding out for big achievements. Feel gratitude towards the trivial things that you failed to appreciate. This will prevent you from being dissatisfied and increase your ability to feel happiness.
To conclude,
The attitude of gratitude will definitely raise your happiness set point. But, you must not try to change things that aren’t worthy of being grateful for. Can you be grateful to someone who has hurt you? No. You can’t just walk up to the person, smile, and say ‘You have hurt me so well. I appreciate it.’
Accept the truth that life can be hard. You need to let go of your negative emotions to make way for the positive ones. Try solving assignments and exercises on gratitude to share good feelings wherever you go.
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