Words for Wednesday

This post inspired by something M shared from his subscriptions: practice your gratitude. The idea is to spend two minutes or so every week, jotting down five things you are grateful for.

I love how the post also talks about evidence that this works: one study found that “Participants took the time to write down 5 things they were grateful for each week, for 10 weeks. At the end of the study this group were 25% happier than a comparison group who simply listed five events from the week.” Another “compared practising gratitude three times a week with once a week. They found that only those who carried out the exercise once a week were happier. This suggests overdoing the gratitude is not beneficial – perhaps because of habituation.” Given this evidence, I will try and do this once a week, for the next ten weeks or so.

My list for this week:

  1. Hot cups of tea
  2. M, my loving husband
  3. Paco and Peppi, who remind me that happiness is in the simplest things
  4. Broadband access (one of my team members told me she only has dial up at home)
  5. Holidays! (I am feeling super worn out at the moment, are we there yet?)

3 Comments

Kate 17 December 2008

ooh I love this *stealing idea*
My 5 things this week:

1/ my kids and husband
2/ my health (well shear stamina at this time of year)!
3/ having a roof over my head
4/ fresh fruit – peaches, cherries
5/ people who look out for me
K

CW 17 December 2008

Great practice, innit! I could extend it to thinking about all the people I know who are sick at the moment:
Close family friend
Relative
Workmate’s partner who has a badly broken leg
Workmate’s husband who has injured his hand at work

If I was the praying kind I would be praying for them!

Rachel 17 December 2008

Thanks for sharing this idea. I think I will give it a go as well.

Week 1
1. My loving partner who does more than his fair share of housework.
2. Working in a library that has a compulsory shutdown between christmas and new year.
3. 3 month uni holidays.
4. The money to add teddy bears to my collection whenever I want to without feeling guilty.
5. Chocolate.