“I thank you” is the new ‘”I wish you”
The power of gratitude
This year, I didn’t write down greetings to my family or friends. No, I didn’t do so and I am proud to say so. Instead of wishing them “all the best”, I wrote down — on a handmade postcard — why I was grateful for and sent it to them: their help, their patience, their positive mindset, their power of creation… even their madness! And it felt really good.
“Let us be grateful to people who make us happy: they are the charming gardeners who make our souls blossom”
Marcel Proust
“I wish you” is hypothetical, “I thank you” is concrete
Being wishful does not bring you anything except being hooked on hope. You rely on something external that has not happened yet, you give the power of “make stuff happens” to an unknown force.
“Nothing new can come into your life unless you are grateful for what you already have”
Michael Bernard
Being thankful highlights a fact, something that does exist and made you happy. It is a way also to be aware of how much you are lucky with all the things around you, so easily reachable. For me, gratitude is like building the foundation of a house (I’m talking about confidence and self-esteem here), step by step, consolidate it to make it stronger. If you are grateful to someone, it will help him/her to consolidate his/her own house too!
“Gratitude is a statement of certainty”
David Cameron Gikandi
The importance of being grateful
You can be grateful to anything… You wanna try? First take a deep breath and name a person, a place or a thing… basically whatever pops into your head. Then say why you are grateful to this person or this thing. Finally close your eyes and try to see what you are feeling. Easy, right? Either if you have a regular practice or just a one shoot, this exercise enhances your mindset, reduces your stress or anxiety.
“It is not happy people who are thankful, it is thankful people who are happy”
Additional good news…
You do not need to wait until next January, you can express your gratitude all year long! I invite you to include gratitude in your daily routines starting today and will be pleased to read your feedback in a few days or weeks!
