Last week we held our “Won’t you be our neighbor?” party with the major themes being gratitude, empathy and celebration. It was amazing to come together as a neighborhood and be reminded of all the things we have to be grateful for.
We’re all going through stuff, hell there are countless studies pointing out how bad this past year has been (like the one below).
A global study by Qualtrics found 42% of people have experienced a decline in mental health. Specifically, 67% of people are experiencing increases in stress while 57% have increased anxiety, and 54% are emotionally exhausted. 53% of people are sad, 50% are irritable, 28% are having trouble concentrating, 20% are taking longer to finish tasks, 15% are having trouble thinking and 12% are challenged to juggle their responsibilities.
Life is hard, but there is SO much to be thankful for if we pause and look.
Here are our thoughts on gratitude, they’re pretty deep. Who knew we had it in us?
- How and what people do to “show up” in your life is the way they show gratitude and kindness. For example, it can be gracious gestures like buying flowers, chocolates, etc. or it can be as simple as sending memes, videos and funny tweets to those you care about.
- Gratitude is the little ‘thank you’ here and there, and the “I appreciate the time you spent on this,” even the “This reminds me of you.” However large or small, it is you showing up for another person to show your care.
- Take the time to slow down and remind yourself of everything good. Could be as simple as a reeeeally good cup of coffee or donuts at the office. Gratitude is necessary to feel full and content.
- Gratitude means not being a shitty human. It is being grateful even when nothing seems to be going right and remembering to say thank you while appreciating how others can positively impact your life and your work. It’s taking a brief moment to appreciate the person that held the door for you, or the person that finally told you you had something in your teeth.
- This sounds cheesy, but it’s really helpful—every time you feel grateful for something, write it down or make a note on your phone. That way, when the going gets tough, you can pull out your running list of the things in life that are great to remind yourself how cool life really is. We’re going into seasonal depression season, folks. Start prepping with all that mushy shit ASAP.
- We’ve heard of waking up and writing down (or thinking about) 3 things you’re grateful for. Try doing it at the end of the day to end on a high note!
- Gratitude is appreciating the bright spots in your everyday life. Your dog greeting you at the door like you’ve been gone for years, a hot cup of coffee on a lazy Saturday morning, or the first bite of a freshly-made bagel. Give thanks for the little things in life you may take for granted. Looking for the bright spots can help carry you through some dark days.
- Gratitude is understanding what someone is sacrificing to help you or be around you. Knowing that someone is taking time from their busy schedule to climb on the crazy train that is your life leaves a warm feeling inside—and having someone be grateful for your time is a return on that investment. Never forget to thank the people around you who have given up their time for you. It really goes a long way.
In this time of giving, it’s important to remember that before you bitch because your $100 turkey is taking way longer than the label said it would to cook, that there are a lot of people that are going without, and there are a lot of people that are grateful for much less. So don’t be an asshole this Thanksgiving.
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