Taking a break from the study of the habits of highly effective teens, I'd like to take a moment and remind us all of the need to make gratefulness a habit of our lives. Gratefulness can be defined as giving honor or credit to someone for his or her influence on your life. It's recognizing I'm "who I am" as a result of another. Gratefulness recognizes I couldn't be where I'm at today without the input of energy, time, love, money, resources of others.
I've learned that gratefulness is much more than just being polite and having good manners. I was raised to make sure I tell people "Thank you" as most people are. However, gratefulness and its importance goes much deeper than simply giving a verbal statement to someone.
Gratefulness starts with humility. Rarely do you see arrogant, self-centered people express gratefulness. In fact, gratefulness is one of the keys to overcoming arrogance and self-centeredness! More clearly, one can't be grateful without being humble first. Humility recognizes I'm not a product of myself only. I'm a product of others' influence on my life and others' contributions also. Below are some of the benefits of regularly practicing thankfulness:
- Contentment - Practicing gratefulness ensures that contentment will reside in one's life. Without contentment, you will be subject to be in "wanting" mode. The "wanting" mode is the endless appetite of wanting to receive something to keep a "high" (such as attention, money, gifts, etc). Gratefulness brings contentment back to the forefront of one's life.
- Bonding - Gratefulness strengthens the bonds you have with those around you. A simple recognition of thanks to a parent for the simple things in life remind them of how important they are to us. Gratefulness reminds people that what they do is not a mundane, unneeded service but something important we recognize as being helpful to us.
- Honor - Expressing gratefulness gives honor to those whom it is due. It's easy to honor those who achieve gratefulness but what about those individuals helping along the way? What about those individuals that while it may be a small part, it's a really important ingredient in your success? They need recognition.
Start with those closest to you and start thinking how these individuals have impacted your life. Be thankful. There are many less fortunate than you. I guarantee there are things these individuals have done that you have taken for granted. Tell them thanks.
If I learned anything in my life until now,I did one thing and it is "If you speak with people nice and you show them that you care and show gratefulness people will be more easy to approach.I was raised to say nice and polite words to people around me and that is what I was grown with my whole life.That was influenced by my family,because they were the ones that are nice,polite,easy-going and I like a little baby started to see and absorb from them.
ReplyDeleteContentment,Bonding and Honor are big 3 things that impact our lifes or will start impacting them soon.All of them have 1 thing together and that is gratefulness but you also cant get it,you need to learn how to use it and combine it with other stuff going around and put it all together.If you just stop for second and turn around and see some things you will be sure in one thing and that is gratefulness starts with you !
I would be nothing without my family. I am sure to thank them whenever is possible. Saying thank you helps and makes others feel better too. Beingankful is very important and will help you too in life. Have honor like you said too will help and to not be greedy and always want things.
ReplyDeleteSaying thanks is one of the things we tend to overlook in our lives.we often forget because we think we deserve all the good things we get in life but that is not true because there are other people out there who would give anything to have most of the things we take for granted.i am most grateful to God for my two families.giving thanks makes a difference it makes people feel appreciated
ReplyDeleteSaying thank you makes others feel appreciated. A lot of time you hear people say "thanks", but how many people actually mean it? I even notice myself just saying thanks to people without even thinking about it, it's just the way I was raised. So I think that we need to think about things and think about what we're really grateful for.
ReplyDeleteAs I was growing up I was always taught to say thank you and to mean it when you say it. Saying thank you is what people do when they are trying to be polite but are they really saying thank you for what you have done, what you have allowed, or what you said? I think that while it is nice to say thank you it is important to be sure that you actually mean it. Some times I think we often say sorry without meaning it as well. People use sorry to get out of a situation that they don't want to be in. Sorry should be sincere because if it isn't then you have solved nothing. We need to support our words with meaning.
ReplyDeleteYou hear people say thanks all the time, but how often do the people actually mean it or realize they are saying it? People are raised to say thank you for good deeds...but it becomes a habit for many. Some people start to say thank you out of habit and not out of gratefulness. People need to stop and realize everything they have in life and be grateful for it. I think people take things and people for granted a lot. I think it is important to show your appreciation and your gratefulness everyday and not out of habit!
ReplyDeleteI will admit that i say "thank you" to people when I don't always mean it, it is just what we think is appropriate to say when we want to be polite. Saying thank you should come from your heart and not come from your brain and natural instincts. If we take people for granted they will eventually recognize that and stop being there for you so you really need to be appreciative of those people in your life and share that favor to them. Life is a two-way street and kindness needs to go both ways.
ReplyDeleteI realized how much the words "thank you" mean as i helped out with the veterans ceremony. After the ceremony and I told each veteran "thank you for your service" in different ways. They really appreciated everything we did that day for them. It made me realize what it means to some people to make a simple effort and be grateful for what people have done for you. If you aren't ever thankful you begin to become self-centered and lose focus on what people do you you.
ReplyDeleteWhen people say thank you to one another I think that sometimes it can lose it's meaning and is just something that is expected in society. Not that it's a bad thing, because I do it too, but I believe that when you say it it should actually mean that you're grateful for the deed that was done for you. Learning humility is also very important and I'm glad that I was raised in a house where it is valued and I believe everyone should learn this quality.
ReplyDeleteBeing grateful for everything you have is one of the most important things to have. When you tell people "thanks" you may not think about what you are being thankful for. Being grateful can bring you joy and contentment, it's a great feeling when someone does something for you or you do something for them. Most people that are grateful with each other show a bond of some sort of friendship or maybe they don't know each other. Honoring anybody for great achievements is a great thing, like for example anyone who served in the armed forces
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