10 Ways to develop an attitude of gratitude #2
After our first post on how to develop and attitude of gratitude I started paying attention to the people around me to see how grateful they really are. Boy was I surprised and not in a good way.
Let us back track just a little bit. Yesterday was not the best day ever for me, nothing specifically bad happened it was just one of those days, you know where you just need someone to give you a hug and R50 000. However, it seemed like everybody was having a bad day. By merely moving through the hospital I could not help but over hear people complaining, and when I say complain I mean COMPLAIN. I heard people complaining from how the weather is not the perfect spring weather like it is supposed to be to complaining about how bad their leave was (I didn’t even know you could complain about going on leave).
Getting back to my point I just realized how much negativity is out there and angry people driving their big cars consumed by their road rage (That happened on my way home, but once again so much negativity) . I am sure most of those people do not have a gratitude journal, but a negative encyclopedia.
This brings me to number two on our list of how to develop an attitude of gratitude.
2. Remember the Bad. Being grateful does not mean that I now become a gold fish and forget all the bad things that have happened to me. To be grateful in your current state, it is helpful to remember the hard times that you once experienced. When you remember how difficult life used to be and how far you have come, you set up an explicit contrast in your mind, and this contrast is fertile ground for gratefulness.
Therefore, if you are having a bad day remember it, say to yourself this was a bad day, but if you feel better tomorrow be grateful for that. Bad days do not determine who we are, but if we allow them it may seem like they have the power to do so. Just be careful as remembering something bad that has happened is very different from wallowing in it and allowing it to be the only thing that occupies your mind.
