Philosopher and Roman Statesman Marcus Tullius Cicero wrote, "Gratitude is not only the greatest of virtues but the parent of all the others." Having an attitude of gratitude may seem like a cliché, but it is an important factor in enhancing your life. Consider the following reasons why you should start a thankfulness journal today.

Renewed Perspective

Your mindset is a very powerful thing. It can motivate you forward toward achieving new goals or it can keep you stagnated in past failures. Taking the time each day to write down several things that you are thankful for can give you a renewed perspective. Henri Nouwen said, "Perhaps nothing helps us make the movement from our little selves to a larger world than remembering to walk in gratitude."

Enhanced Health

According to a study published in Personality and Individual Differences and reported in Time magazine, participants were asked by researchers to rate their "levels of gratitude, physical health, and psychological health, and how it boosted their health." These participants reported positive parallels regarding how having an attitude of gratitude helped overall health and well-being. Improve your health by increasing your level of gratitude as you start writing in a thankfulness journal.   

Better Sleep Patterns

Research completed by Web MD shows that the average adult needs approximately 7-9 hours of sleep to properly function the next day. Of course, some people can function well after only having 6 hours, while others need 10 hours. Various factors can impact sleeping time, like anxiety, stress over complications in life, and illnesses.

Writing in a thankfulness journal each day can become a calming activity that you could complete right before going to sleep at night. This process can remind you that in the midst of life's daily stressors, you do have some things to be thankful for. Each night, you should write down three or four new things that you are thankful for. Repeating this positive habit can be the turning point in relieving stress so you can focus on calming your mind and getting the restful sleep you need each night.

Passing the Torch

Developing this habit of daily writing in a thankfulness journal--whether you write in the morning at the start of your day or in the evening before bed--can cultivate in you a desire to pass on the torch. You can share your experiences with this new positive habit with others in your life who may need a mindset change, to improve their health, or to sleep better. Maybe your positive life changes can become the catalyst to help someone else make changes too.

 

Be Thankful Today

Melody Beattie said, "Gratitude unlocks the fullness of life. It turns what we have into enough, and more. It turns denial into acceptance, chaos to order, confusion to clarity, it can turn a meal into a feast, a house into a home, a stranger into a friend." Change your life today by starting a thankfulness journal to remind yourself of how much you have to be thankful for