Gratitude. I get it. You’ve probably heard about it before but have you ever tried it? I want to talk about how it helped me inside and outside of the classroom and how I did it.
In 2018 I was in a new role and struggling. It was an uphill battle and one that I was losing which was reflected in my mental and physical health. Finally, I got Shingles and was forced to have time off. After a week in bed, using up all my sick leave and missing social outings, something had to change.
I googled a few things and came across The Happiness Planner, a tool which helps you to reflect on where you are at and where you want to be. It provides you with monthly, weekly and daily reflections to help you work towards a happier you in a 100 days and had glowing reviews. I ordered one.
When it arrived, I diligently filled it in everyday, as well as the monthly and weekly reflections. What I found most useful was the gratitude section as it made me aware that there were great things happening each day. Within a few weeks daily life felt more thoughtful, purposeful and joyful, while at work I was able to let go of things more easily. What drove me to do better at work outshone what annoyed me because I was taking the time to recognise it and articulate it to myself.
In 2019, I ordered the extended version and the benefits continued. Ordinary things mattered as I was able to see joy in everyday activities such as cooking. As well as this, knowing what brought me gratitude, motivated me to do small acts of kindness for others like writing cards, popping flowers in the office or suggesting a holiday breakfast to colleagues. In the classroom, I was more relaxed and decided to incorporate elements of gratitude into classroom activities as well as meetings with staff, which worked well.
This year, the written daily practice of gratitude has been swapped for a mantra book and weekly reflection. The mantras get me thinking about new things while the weekly journal is a good way to summarise what you were thankful for during the week and to focus on what’s ahead.
I am grateful that you have read this post and I hope that if you are feeling meh that you give it a go. However you go about showing gratitude, keep it consistent and keep it light so that it doesn’t become something else that you have to do. Positive Education raves about the benefits of gratitude, just saying.