Gratitude journals are pretty much what they say on the tin, but like most things that I’ll probably love, I avoided them for ages. Two months ago I finally grabbed a spare notebook I had floating around and sat down to write a few sentences about what I was grateful for that day. What a difference it’s already made.
The thing about gratitude journals is that you don’t have to write novels every day about what you’re grateful for. It doesn’t even have to be anything overly special. More often than not I find myself writing about being grateful for Alex, but putting those thoughts down on paper has really changed my way of thinking. I’m actively expressing feelings and emotions, bringing them to the surface, and making them known to myself. That’s caused me to make them known to other people too.
Every night I grab this journal and write a sentence or two about whatever I’m grateful for that day. Just a few thoughtful words and off to bed I head. Yet when I wake up I still remembered what I wrote the night before and I find myself in a better mindset.
Putting gratitude first seems like a no-brainer, but it’s pretty hard to do on a constant basis. The gratitude journal makes it so much easier to keep thankful thoughts coming. Plus it just feels good to write happy things down rather than focusing on the bad things.
So there it is. My “ah-ha” gratitude journal moment and my not-so-subtle push for you to start one too. It’s good stuff, I’m tellin’ ya.
