12 Apr For Happiness In Tough Times, Be More Grateful
via Forbes by Greg Orme
When my two sons were in elementary school, my wife and I created a supper time ritual called The Grateful Game. Every evening, Sophie, the boys, and I would take turns to briefly describe one aspect of our day for which we were thankful.
It’s strange to think I now conduct similar gratitude exercises with senior executives on my leadership programs at London Business School. In the intervening years, scientists have revealed the remarkable psychological, physical, and social benefits of building gratitude into our lives.
Studies show that practicing gratitude for just 5-minutes each day can make you 25% happier. Appreciative people feel more joy, pleasure, and optimism in their existence. This leads them to become more generous, compassionate, and forgiving towards others.
Fascinatingly, the pioneering work of psychologists Robert Emmons and Michael McCullough goes further. It shows people who are more grateful build stronger immune systems, experience less pain, and have lower blood pressure. They’re better at taking daily exercise and looking after their health. They even tend to get a better night’s sleep and are more relaxed when they wake up. On a social level, they feel less isolated. Particularly relevant now as more people have suffered from loneliness during the pandemic…
… keep reading the full & original article HERE