Gratitude
Many people feel discontented with their lives as a result of a rise in lack of gratitude among them.
The lack of gratitude, eventually, causes one to have tremendous regret for the past or excessive worry about the future (or both).
Now, I am not here to lecture you on the common lack of gratefulness, as this may appear, because you have heard it from others many times before. I’ll try to express my point on this topic in greater depth.
I think the reason why most people have a lack of gratefulness in life is because we set high expectations of ourselves, based on comparisons to how others are doing in their lives. Due to this, we tend to overlook the small things that make people happy in preference for bigger things that may not always be accessible at the time, as opposed to the small things that may brighten your day if you were grateful for them, in the present.
Sometimes, despite your achievements and everything you’ve seen and had, you may have plenty of reasons to be happy with who you are right now. However, when you see someone else succeed in something that, by your standards, may be very impressive, you instantly become unhappy with yourself.
You might be wondering, “What am I doing with my life?”
For example, someone achieving something great at a younger age. Perhaps even younger than you. This becomes the reason for your dissatisfaction with yourself.
“How can somebody younger than me be more successful than me? Where did I go wrong in life?”, When such thoughts occur, your disputing mind may trouble you, deeply
I’m not saying that being grateful for what you’ve already been given as a privilege or even for whatever you’ve accomplished up to that point in life should be a justification for not wanting more from life, based on what you can achieve by yourself, realistically. You must still aspire to achieve big things, regardless.
All I’m trying to say is that we should consciously avoid setting too high expectations on ourselves based on what other people are achieving in life. Instead, alongside striving to to build stronger bonds with people personally and professionally and to develop on an emotional, mental, physical, and financial level, you should be appreciative of the small things in life that can bring you joy right now.
There should be plenty of reasons to be grateful for the wonderful present you are able to live in, without letting your past or future worries bother you. Some examples of these wonderful moments include not having to argue or dispute with others, enjoying a delicious meal, witnessing a beautiful drive on your way home from work or from any other place, laughing heartily while spending time with someone, hearing birds chirping while sitting on a tree near your present location, watching the sun rise or set, etc. These are the little things we should feel grateful for.
How do you think some people feel depressed even though they may be well-off, physically fit, well-connected, successful in their career, and own a variety of assets?
There are really people out there who feel content in life despite having nearly none of them as much as the former.
How could that be possible?
This is due to the fact that nothing in the world can ever bring you happiness, no matter how successful you are in every part of life, if you do not learn to be grateful for the moment you are in. That is even if you rise to become the richest person in the world or the most powerful politician in a certain area.
Hence, alongside to making an effort to improve yourself emotionally, mentally, physically, and financially and to strengthen your relationships with others on a personal and professional level, no matter how small, practice being grateful for everything you see in the present and refraining from comparing it with how others are doing in life, achieving in life, or experiencing life.
Do you really want to be unhappy in life, with everything you might have achieved or been privileged enough to have been blessed with, in comparison to someone who may not have had the chance to achieve as much as you did, with your circumstances, or who has had nothing in comparison to what you have, simply because you lack the ability to be grateful for the small things in the present?
