Expressing Gratitude

Six New Ways to Practice Gratitude
Tis the season, so there’s no better time to start – or re-ignite – your gratitude practice!

Judi Sheppard Missett, Founder and CEO of Jazzercise, is no stranger to practicing gratitude. “Practicing gratitude helps keep the focus on the positives instead of negatives,” she writes in this essay. “That itself will make life more enjoyable!”

Judi is in good company when recognizing the power of gratitude. According to the world’s leading scientific expert on gratitude, Robert Emmons, gratitude has numerous benefits, including:

• Improved sleep
• Increased energy
• A greater sense of optimism
• Reduced loneliness and isolation

While the Gratitude Journal is the classic tool, we’ve rounded up even more ways to bring gratitude and joy into your everyday life.

• Spend time outside. Whether it’s a contemplative walk through the woods or a 20-minute coffee break, being in nature helps us reset.

• Take up a new hobby, or revisit an old one. What did you love to do as a kid, or what new skill would you like to develop as an adult? Chances are, there’s a class – or an app! – for that.

• See friends and family. From coffee dates to Sunday dinners, the possibilities are endless.

• Give back. Here’s a secret: volunteering isn’t just good for your community, it’s good for your health, too!

• Focus on your strengths. Not your weaknesses. By developing those characteristics that make you successful, you have the potential to increase self-confidence.

• Say thank you to someone who helped you recently. In a world of texts and emojis, a hand-written note is a treasure.

What are your favorite ways to practice gratitude?