Appreciation and Gratitude

Having the feeling of appreciation and gratitude is a positive emotional state. It shows that you are thankful and grateful.

Cultivating these emotions provide a peace of mind and positively affect your spiritual well being.

There are many reasons to feel blessed and pleased from the moment you awakened until it's time for you to say goodnight to the world. And because you know how to appreciate and value people and the gifts of life, you are bestowed with more. In return for your gratefulness you are loved and respected. You enjoy sound health. You attract more of the good in life.

There are many ways to show your appreciation and express your gratefulness. A gift, a hug, kind words, and a smile are some of the ways you can give back what you have received. Giving before you receive is very gracious. And one of the easiest ways to show your appreciation is saying "thank you."

"Let us rise up and be thankful, for if we didn't learn a lot today, at least we learned a little, and if we didn't learn a little, at least we didn't get sick, and if we got sick, at least we didn't die; so, let us all be thankful." - Buddha

How to Cultivate the Sense of Appreciation and Gratitude

Look for the best in every situation.

Good and bad things happen to us all. A few of us are more fortunate than others. Some people experience less in life. Grateful individuals look at their blessings even if they are going through unpleasant experiences.

Every situation or trouble is temporary. Appreciate and feel thankful for what you still have like your family, your friends and your job. Refuse to discourage yourself with the unpleasant. Recall pleasant memories to remind you of the good that you have had experienced.

Count your blessings.

List down in your gratitude journal, things which make you feel gratified. Write down the good things that happened and the kind people you met today. Think of the great food you ate and the peaceful sleep that you had last night.

Show your appreciation toward your family by enjoying the time with your children and spouse. Your kids will soon grow up and leave. Show your gratitude to you parents by spending more time with them. They may not live around for long.

Take a look at what you have learned, was able to teach and the remarkable things you have accomplished. If people have been kind to you today, tell or show them your thankfulness.

Contemplate and ponder about life.

Don't take things for granted. Notice the wonders that exist around you. Look up at the sky and watch the clouds. Watch the sunrise and sunsets. Smell the flowers. Listen to the birds chirping.

Notice the development around you. There are people out there who have made use of their personal powers to create what weren't there before. You too have this power within you to change your own world.

Observing the wonders of life with a sense of appreciation and gratitude are consoling and comforting. It will make you feel that you have more than enough to meet your needs. It could also make you realize that you can have more if you want them and think that you can have them.

"For me, appreciation and gratitude are two of the most spiritual emotions, actively expressing through thoughts and actions." - Anthony Robbins