Gratitude changes everything
Gratitude changes everything
Gratitude changes everything
“If one more person appreciates me, I quit! If I get one more compliment, I’m done!”, said no one, ever. Gratitude has been found to be the #1 predictor of well-being and a strong determinant of resilience.
Resilient people proactively cultivate positive emotions like humor, gratitude and optimism. You don’t even have to find anything to be grateful for. The simple act of looking for the positive decreases the stress hormone cortisol by 23%. Just looking for something to appreciate increases serotonin and dopamine, the feel-good neurochemicals in most antidepressants.
Gratitude affects your brain at a neurological level. A gratitude practice has a positive impact on: sleep, mood, alertness, physical risk markers for future disease, happiness, better financial decision making, problem solving, optimism, productivity, and goal orientation. People who practice gratitude are perceived as more likeable, have fewer aches and pains, have increased self esteem, and make friends more easily. Practicing gratitude lowers stress, enhances empathy, lowers your risk of cancer, high blood pressure, and diabetes, and it improves your immune system and cardiovascular health.
Gratitude has been found to be the #1 predictor of well-being and a strong determinant of resilience.
Still not convinced?
When we have a negative experience, it encodes itself into our neural structure immediately. Your brain doesn’t give the same weight to positive experiences because they don’t have an immediate impact on your survival.
Our brain has a negativity bias, causing it to constantly scan the environment for what’s wrong. Mind Over Moment is a way to help it find the things that are right. In order to offset negativity bias, when you have a great moment (I call it a delicious moment), savor it. Savoring is the ability to step outside of the moment to truly appreciate it.
You can encode positive experiences and retrain the brain by sitting in a positive experience for 15-20 seconds. Really soak in that beautiful moment, appreciate it, and relish the feeling. You have to deliberately sustain and internalize positive emotions to transfer them from short-term memory to long-term storage. You can’t just have the experience. You have to install it.
There is literally no downside to practicing gratitude.
- Journaling for 5 minutes a day about what you are grateful for can enhance long-term happiness by 10%.
- Write a letter, send a text or email thanking someone. Give a compliment.
- Create a gratitude jar, or simply recount the best parts of your day when you fall asleep at night. We are so busy in our constant search for happy that we forget happiness isn’t a trait, it’s a skill.
You have the power to change your brain and your life. I am incredibly grateful for you! Thank you for inviting me to be a part of your week.
Stay brave and resilient,
Anne
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Anne breaks down the daily habits and skills needed to grow and cultivate RESILIENCE.
When it comes to taking care of yourself, take the advice you would give your kids or your friends.
It may be exercise, meditation, regular time with a friend, snuggling with a pet, taking time to read for fun, or dancing around your house while jamming out to music. Whatever it is, make it a ritual and part of your resilience-building routine. #mindfulmonday #resilience #productivity #priorities #mindfulness #mindovermoment
What I used to not understand about meditation is that when your mind wanders, you know it's working. Meditation is not some Zen-like calm experience. It's hard work because your mind doesn't stop. Your thoughts will wander because your brain is always looking for something to grab onto.
Expect it and let the thoughts roll by. 🙏 #mindovermoment #meditation #mindfulness #resilience #innerpeace #fridayvibes
#ThrowbackThursday to last October when I got my first tattoo!
I wanted a visual representation to remind myself to stay in the present moment. Every time I look at it, I take three deep breaths (that’s all it takes to reset your entire nervous system) and think of something I’m grateful for.
It may not be a tattoo, but I would love to know what visual reminder you will create to come back to the moment, take a deep breath (or three), and focus on gratitude. Tell me in the comments! 👇 #resilience #mindfulness #reset #tattoo #tinytatsatx #unalome #mindovermoment
The last year has been a defining period in history. So many people have faced incredible setbacks, challenges, and trauma, but we have to be careful that we don't define our lives by "before the pandemic" or "after the pandemic".
This can become the new normal, and we can easily get stuck in a rut. Unfortunately, a rut is nothing more than a grave with no ends, and if you aren’t deliberate, it’s easy to stay stuck there.
If you have found yourself stuck in a rut, here are 5 ways to get unstuck:
1️⃣ Identify what thoughts are supporting/sabotaging your success.
2️⃣ Remember that your thoughts are not facts.
3️⃣ Create a replacement thought.
4️⃣ Make visual reminders.
5️⃣ Talk to yourself rather than listen to yourself.
If you’ve fallen in a rut, you don’t have to stay there. As one of my favorite musicians Ray Wylie Hubbard says, “Get out of a rut and get into a groove.” #resilience #getunstuck #definesuccess #personaldevelopment #selfleadership #liveonpurpose #positivemindset #optimism #newnormal
Thank you for the support James! We love working with you and your teams at @yum_brands!! #mindovermoment #resilience #speaker #author #truthbombdropper
Hey, it’s okay. #resilience #yougotthis #fridaymood
📷: @positivelypresent
Anne Grady is a Speaker, Author, and #TruthBomb Dropper.
Anne shares practical strategies that can be applied both personally and professionally to improve relationships, navigate change, and triumph over adversity. And she’ll make you laugh while she does it. Anne is a two time TEDx speaker, and her work has been featured in numerous media outlets, including Harvard Business Review, Entrepreneur, Forbes, Fast Company and Inc. magazines, CNN, ESPN, and FOX Business. She is the best selling author of 52 Strategies for Life, Love & Work and Strong Enough: Choosing Courage, Resilience and Triumph.