How to Keep A Gratitude Journal

If you’re like me on most days, you’re thinking ahead about what you need to do, where you need to go, and what you want to achieve.  That’s okay, of course.  We have to think ahead, plan and have goals or we wouldn’t accomplish anything.

However, I started a practice that has helped me tremendously in keeping what is most important at the top of my mind and even more so, in my subconscious.

Someone suggested I keep a “Gratitude Journal” back in 2011 and it’s something I continue to do now.

Gratitude is a powerful emotion. It can transform your life and open up incredible opportunities for love, joy, and success. It shifts your perspective and helps you find the good in each and every moment. When you’re overcome with grief, sadness, disappointment, anxiety, or anger, it’s hard to see what’s going right in your life.  This is when you need gratitude the most.

Here’s a simple formula on how to keep a gratitude journal:

Pick a quiet time in the morning, afternoon or evening and reflect on what is happening in your life in that moment.

First write down three things you are grateful for.

In the beginning you most likely will be generic and write something like:
1. I’m grateful for my health.  2. I’m grateful for my family.  3.  I’m grateful for a career I love.

But, when you do this more often, you’re going to need to get more specific so as not to repeat yourself. Reflecting on all the positive things in your life in the moment you choose to write, you elaborate and it might look something more like this:

1. I’m grateful that I took time for myself yesterday to go on a bike ride. 2. I’m grateful my kids had a great first week of school and my Husband and I had a wonderful conversation last night. 3. I’m grateful my colleagues and I worked together on the presentation to our prospect and we secured their business.  

When you do this every day, you will start to dial down to specific and thoughtful aspects of your life that you are truly grateful for that you might not take the time to notice during the busy-ness of life.

Second write down three things you are grateful to receive.

This is when you put those good vibes out there, visualize and get specific about what you want.  Again, in the beginning you may be generic -because this takes LOTS of practice. You might start out saying:
1. I’m grateful to receive continued good health.  2. I’m grateful to receive my friends and family stay safe. 3. I’m grateful to receive a promotion.

As you continue to think about what you want to receive in your life, you get more and more specific. And every day is different.  You can ask for WHATEVER it is that you need to receive in your life at that moment in time:

“I’m grateful to receive a good night sleep tonight; I’m grateful to receive patience as I drive to work in rush hour traffic; I’m grateful to receive peace and forgiveness in my heart; I’m grateful to receive that tomorrow I’m going to try harder to be in the moment with whatever I’m doing; I’m grateful to receive will power to save for the vacation I really want to take with my family; I’m grateful to receive time to finish this project that’s important to me .”  

You’ll also notice there will be days in which your gratitude journal is not about YOU at all.  You will begin to write about others and what you are grateful for about them, and what you’d like to receive in relation to THEIR life, health, well-being, achievements, etc:

“I’m grateful for Jack passing his test and feeling successful; I’m grateful Pat had a fun golf trip with his friends; I’m grateful my Grandma still drives and feels independent; I’m grateful to receive a successful surgery for my friend this week; I’m grateful to receive that my neighbors sells their home and are able to retire to their dream home on the beach; I’m grateful to receive my kids teachers don’t feel too overwhelmed this week with back to school activities; I’m grateful to receive my in-laws have safe travels to Ireland.”

I could go on and on 🙂

Be Specific.

Most important to this exercise is don’t just go through the motions.  First make the conscious decision to become happier and more grateful with where you are in your life and elaborate in detail about a particular thing for which you’re grateful and for which you’re grateful to receive.

I promise it will change your life!

Have you ever kept a gratitude journal?  If so, how often do write in your journal?

Shawna O’Brien
shawna.obrien@talktotucker.com
F.C. Tucker Geist
The Tumbarello Group