The Power of Gratitude in Its Different Forms

There’s a book that Oprah introduced us to way back in the day. The book is called Simple Abundance and it was released in 1996.

Oprah was jumping up and down at the time, emphatically expressing what a game-changer this was for her. To be honest, at the time, I didn’t get it. Not at all.

The privilege of youth is that with time all is revealed and our more mature minds soon come to discover and understand what previously felt random and of little consequence.

Nearly 30 years after the launch of this seminal book, we now have concrete scientific data to prove that practising gratitude is more than the occasional passing thought.

Adjust To Suit

Twice a month, I host a free group coaching session for beginners. 

At the end, I close off my presentation by quoting Bruce Lee: “Absorb what is useful, discard what is useless and add what is specifically your own”

This is exactly what I did to find a gratitude practice that works for me.

I added a few nuances to gratitude that allowed me to see the forest for the trees and take in the moment’s significance.

The three nuances I added are awe, accomplishment lists and pronoia.

Being Awestruck

Experiencing awe is a profound way to practice gratitude. 

Awe is when something happens that nearly takes our breath away. A magical moment that feels surreal, magical, and ephemeral.

Collectively we all experienced a sense of awe during the last big solar eclipse that crossed North America in April of this year.

Witnessing the overlap of the moon and the sun, watching the sky change to dark in broad daylight had people weeping and overflowing with emotion. I still get chills watching those videos.

Awe can be felt in nature, in the kindness of strangers or the magic of synchronicities.

The benefits of awe-inspired gratitude include:

• Perspective Shift: Awe helps us realise how small we are in the grand scheme.
• Increased Generosity: Research has shown that awe can make us more generous and willing to help others.
• Enhanced Creativity: Moments of awe can unlock untold depths of creativity in the way it alters our perception of our place in the world
  

Accomplishment Lists

My second most favourite form of gratitude is recognising and celebrating our achievements, no matter how small. 

Making a list of our accomplishments becomes a fact sheet of the events that took place. The things we ticked off our list. 

The email that took forever to reply to. The new country we moved to. The new skill we learned. The ability to not lose our temper in the moment. The compliments we received and the compliments we paid. 

All of these listed on a sheet of paper become absolute evidence of our impact on the world around us and a gentle reminder of how we are showing up for ourselves daily.

The benefits of this practice include:

• Boosted Self-Esteem: It’s a lot harder to be mean to ourselves when we have a factual document listing all the things we already accomplished (aka evidence)
• Motivation and Goal-Setting: It’s easier to set new goals and feel motivated when we have already harnessed a sense of accomplishment for previous tasks
• Resilience: Recognising our accomplishments helps us remember our ability to keep moving and maintain momentum
  

Powerful Pronoia

Pronoia is the opposite of paranoia; it’s noticing when the conspiracy is in our favour

Remember the last time you had a toothache? Remember how you swore you would be happier once the pain was gone? Conversely, do you notice how much we take for granted when we do not feel physical pain? 

Noticing the lack of pain, injury or bad luck is the definition of Pronoia.

A million different things could have gone wrong in our lives—a wide range of sliding door events where the worst did not happen.

Being grateful and not taking for granted all these not-so-little mercies is a fun and potent practice.

Benefits of practising pronoia include:

• Positive Outlook: Finding the evidence that the universe is on our side is a beautiful way to live
• Reduced Stress: This belief can reduce stress and anxiety by framing experiences in a positive light. Maybe things didn’t go as planned but they could have been so much worse
• Focus On The Good: Pronoia is the leg up we need to focus on the positives in our lives rather than have a tantrum because things didn’t go as we thought they should

Integrating The Different Forms of Gratitude

As you guys probably know by now, I am a big fan of journaling and for those who prefer lists to long-form journaling, these three types of gratitude journaling might be perfect for you.

Alternatively, you can incorporate them into your time with your therapist/counsellor/coach.

It can even be done as a family affair. Prompting each family member to speak on their moments of awe, accomplishment and pronoia for that particular day.

No matter if you do it on paper, or with others, it’s potent.

Or as Erykah Badu says: “Write it down on real paper with a real pencil and watch sh*t get real.”

Personally, I remind myself to use certain triggers like every time I take a shower, sleep in a warm bed or drive on the road. 

I am grateful for the plumbing and hot water. I am grateful for having a warm bed and I include acknowledging all I’ve accomplished to have this privilege. 

Driving on the road and arriving at my destination safely and without incident is pronoia at its best.

The magic of benevolence is there for us to see, appreciate and receive.

All that’s needed is for us to notice when they happen.

How do you like to practice gratitude?

Is there anything I’ve left out? 

Share with me in the comments below.

As always, 

Shine bright. Do good. Flow strong.

Asha ✨