This week is Thanksgiving an important season where we are encouraged to slow down, take stock of our lives and be thankful for our blessings. Research shows that gratitude is important to both our mental and physical health. Today, we are going to explore the nature of gratitude, why it is important and how we may integrate being more thankful into our daily lives.

What is Gratitude?

Gratitude is much more than saying thank you. It’s a practice that requires acknowledging others actions towards us and the things happening in our lives. Gratitude involves recognizing both the events and the outcomes. Learning to appreciate the moment can lead to a much greater appreciation of the final outcome.

“The real gift of gratitude is that the more grateful you are, the more present you become.”
– Robert Holden

Why is Gratitude Important?

Research suggests that people who consciously count their blessings tend to be happier and less depressed. Feeling grateful boosts positive emotions like joy and compassion while encouraging us to look for and connect with what’s good in life. Research indicates that just a single thoughtful appreciation leads to an immediate 10 percent increase in happiness and a 35 percent reduction in depressive symptoms. When gratitude becomes a habit, it can help prevent anxiety and depression. 

Gratitude is important in the workplace as well. Researchers at the Wharton School at the University of Pennsylvania found that workers were 50 percent more efficient when they had managers who actively expressed gratitude.

We think too much about what goes wrong and not enough about what goes right in our lives. Of course, sometimes it makes sense to analyze bad events so that we can learn from them and avoid them in the future. However, people tend to spend more time thinking about what is bad in life than is helpful. Worse, this focus on negative events sets us up for anxiety and depression. One way to keep this from happening is to get better at thinking about and savoring what went well.

Positive Psychology Center and the University of Pennsylvania

How to Be More Grateful

Being grateful requires us to be intentional in our actions and our thoughts. Here are a few small steps we can take to become more thankful for the people and events in our lives:

• Each day, think of three things you’re thankful for
• Start a gratitude journal
• Thank someone new every week
• Meditate
• Focus more on others’ intentions, visualize their wiliness to help you and make you feel happy

At Condustrial, we are grateful to all of the people that contribute to our ability to connect great people with great companies. We wish all of you a great Thanksgiving season and appreciate the opportunities given to us to serve all of our partners.

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