Gratitude is a
powerful tool to unlock abundance. Appreciating the aspects around us does not
come very easily, especially if you are on a downward spiral; you would find it
a herculean effort to unearth the positives.
But the moot
point is—are we trained to be grateful?
The constant
chase
Fundamentally
we all are trained to worry because the survival mindset kicks in every time we
are on to something. So even if we have gained something, for example, success,
it is hard for us to feel good about it; forget about being grateful. Even
before the warmth of the moment mellows, we are on the lookout to chase the
next thing and put all our efforts into attaining the unattainable. Every time
we achieve something, we are on a next chase. To level up and accomplish more.
Pause and
reflect
We are not
taught to pause ourselves, take a moment to feel the joy that our
accomplishments have offered us, revel in the moment, and feel grateful for it.
This is what is called a ‘pause and reflect.’. When we pause and sit with the
joyful moments, we become aware and appreciative of the things around us. It
allows us to look around, observe the space around and within us, and be
thankful for the journey we have travelled so far.
If
gravitational force pulls us towards the ground, gratitudinal force pulls
us towards abundance.
The following
lines are so true—
Every time you
praise something, every time you appreciate something, every time you feel good
about something, you are telling the universe,
“More of this,
please
More of this, please.
The ‘Two’
defining barriers
Firstly, the
lack of awareness poses a barrier to being thankful for our blessings. Second,
we are induced with a guilt—thanks to societal conditioning, which has taken
root in our subconscious—we think feeling joy is selfish. These two are the
main impediments to letting the gratitude in our thoughts.
How can we make
this ‘gratitudinal shift’ in our attitude?
1. Track the moments—Being observant of
the happenings helps us be more mindful of the moments that we should feel
happy and grateful about. Just keeping track of them as we go about the day by
journaling it in our diary. Using pen and paper is better for the brain than
using a digital means to articulate your thoughts.
2. Pausing, Sitting, and
“Reflecting—‘Stillness helps heal our nervous system.”. Moments are fleeting
and short-lived. Allowing some time in the day to sit with your moments is a
first step towards reflection. Let the mind wander. It doesn’t matter if it highlights
the low moments—sitting with them will help us heal from them. Stillness
reveals a lot about us to us, and in the moments of stillness, the gratitude
finds its way into our lives.
3. Training our subconscious to say ‘Thanks’ - Thanks has become very uncommon these days. Even though that is one of the magic words that we learnt in our formative years, we easily give in to the racing moments and glide past them without mouthing thank you. The above two practices will make it easier to say thanks more consciously. Starting to say thanks to all the moments of joy will automatically get into our subconscious.
What do we get
out of it?
- Activates the law of attraction—if a deeper sense of contentment is the outcome of believing and practicing in gratitude, we are also increasing the chances for the universe to throw in more such moments on our way to being grateful about.
- Happy brain = optimal functioning brain—studies say that the ones who regularly show gratitude show greater neural sensitivity in the medial prefrontal cortex, a brain area associated with learning and decision-making (Ref: https://greatergood.berkeley.edu/article/item/how_gratitude_changes_you_and_your_brain).) , This tells us that being grateful has lasting effects on our brain.
Summing up:
Slowing down the chase and reflecting on the moments help in grounding us to the present - the space where we all feel connected to the higher self.
