Unfortunately, our brains don’t seem to be built to pay attention to what’s good in life, but more to what seems urgent or threatening. That makes sense as fundamentally safety and security trump happiness and well-being. However, having our minds roll around in past hurts and regrets of the past or potential catastrophes in the future isn’t really keeping us safe nor is it making us happy. It’s more likely stressing us out. It’s a lose, lose. At times it’s skillful to grab hold of our minds and incline them in ways that create a reinforcing spiral up to feeling good.
One of those ways is to build a wall of gratitude and here’s how.
Every day I get a Daily Now Moment (DNM) in my inbox and today I received one that said:
Wall of Gratitude – Day 1:
Here we start another week of gratitude, but this time it’s going to be slightly different.
Every time you get this email, with a single click, reply in the community with what you’re grateful for:
Writing these down will not only support you but by checking back in you can watch a communal wall of gratitude grow.
Here’s the method behind this madness.
We need more than just ourselves to make a habit stick. If we want to prime our minds toward happiness, it’s skillful to not only intentionally consider what we’re grateful for in our day to day, but also to get inspired by others who are doing the same.
Here’s the kicker.
When you contribute to the wall of gratitude, it’s going to inspire others and it’s crucial for you to know this because being of service to others, a form of altruism, is one of the greatest factors to our health and well-being.
Why?
Because when we’re of service to others we feel connected to something greater than ourselves which studies show is a direct correlate to feeling good.
Go ahead, take 1-Minute right now and see what others are saying and also contribute to what you’re grateful for in your life and let the ripple effects follow.
Watch the wall grow and let it continue to inspire more and more of this in your life.
As always, please share your thoughts, stories and questions below. Your interaction creates a living wisdom for us all to benefit from.
Drawing in the sand image available from Shutterstock.
