World Gratitude Day: 6 Ways to Express Gratitude Every Day

Brother David Steindl-Rast, an Austrian-American Benedictine monk often referred to as the ‘grandfather of gratitude’, perfectly encapsulates the essence of World Gratitude Day. He believes that gratitude is not just a fleeting emotion or a one-off activity. He believes it is a fundamental attitude towards life.

In his wisdom:

Scientific research into gratitude (and other positive emotions) only began to increase rapidly in the early 2000s, when positive psychology became more popular. Initially, psychology focused on fixing problems and disorders. Now, however, the focus is on strengths, growth and happiness.

As Brother David Steindl-Rast says, to experience the many positive effects of gratitude, you must change how you perceive it. Gratitude is one of the most positive energies, possessing healing and creative powers. It raises your vibration, helps you find inner peace, and shifts your outlook to a more positive one.

Everyone’s relationship with gratitude is different, and there are many ways to strengthen it — both ordinary and extraordinary. Although World Gratitude Day is a great opportunity to focus on this, it’s something we should all be thinking about every day. The important thing is not how many things you list, but rather the positive effects of the feeling itself, which will rewire your brain over time. The more you experience gratitude mentally and physically, the easier it will be to recall the feeling.

Keep a gratitude journal or create a gratitude box to collect your daily gratitude statements until the end of the year. If you need a boost of positivity, you can reach in and take one out at any time. At the end of the year, take a look at what you’ve collected.

If you’re a visual learner, try creating a gratitude collage or tree. Cut out pictures of the things you’re grateful for and use them to create your own collage by pinning or gluing them to a corkboard or piece of cardboard. Alternatively, you could make a large tree and add ‘leaves’ to show what you’re grateful for.

Make sure you say “thank you very much” as often as possible – good old verbal confirmation always works. Words have power and can carry energy. A heartfelt thank you can brighten someone’s day and bring people closer together. Remember that you can also say ‘thank you very much’ to yourself and to life itself — for being here today, for the lessons you have learned, and for the little moments that make each day meaningful.

Try gratitude meditation. Think about the things you are thankful for and appreciate them fully. These could be small things, such as a warm cup of tea or a smile, or bigger things, such as good health or loving relationships. As you breathe in, imagine breathing in peace, and as you breathe out, imagine sending gratitude to the world. Through visualisation, you can make this feeling of gratitude grow inside you and spread to the people around you.

See the bigger picture with the help of nature. The wind, the sun and the clouds all make you feel connected to something bigger and inspire gratitude for your place in the universe. When the wind blows, for example, it takes you out of your own little world of problems, stress and conflicts.

Practise gratitude for just five minutes, anytime, anywhere. For example, while waiting in a queue, think about everything you can be grateful for. Allowing yourself to fill your soul with gratitude rather than annoyance can make those five minutes feel much clearer, more refreshing and liberating.

World Gratitude Day reminds us that the key to achieving a sense of wholeness and peace is to feel grateful every day, rather than relying on consumerism. As Brother David Steindl-Rast teaches, gratitude is a way of life that brings harmony to the body, mind and spirit in the present moment. Indeed, positive psychology studies confirm that gratitude can improve relationships, health, sleep and happiness. While there are many ways to practise gratitude, the most important thing remains the same: when you live with a grateful heart, you grow closer to yourself, to others and to life itself.