I am thrilled to be kicking off a brand new challenge today, #gratitudewithdrallison. This exciting, month-long challenge is designed to increase your overall level of happiness, by practicing a simple, daily exercise in gratitude. Check out the video below for more info!
Here’s how it works. Every day, take two minutes or less to name three things for which you are grateful. Now, here is an important key, these things have to be new each day, meaning you can’t say what you said yesterday or the week prior; the three things you name have to be unique to that day. As humans, we’ve gotten into a gratitude rut, meaning we have a habit of being grateful for the same “big” things in life (i.e. family, health, relationships, etc.) But the key in increasing happiness involves being grateful for the small things, the daily pleasures, and the otherwise missed moments.
Our brains are wired to focus on the negatives, and this challenge involves training our brains to notice the positives, things we might otherwise miss. By naming three new things per day, we are teaching our brain how to scan through our day and recognize the good. This exercise in gratitude is often difficult at first, because we are challenging our brain to do something new and different. However, if you stick with this exercise, every day for four weeks, you’ll be amazed at how your outlook on life starts to shift.
I started practicing this daily exercise about a year ago, and it is incredible how it has impacted my life. I noticed that after about three weeks of diligent practice, my brain started to scan for these small moments of gratitude more naturally and without much prompting. (Hear the funny example in the video!)
Check out the video for more information on the challenge, as well as examples of these small, otherwise missable moments. And to help us encourage one another, we’re using the hashtag #gratitudewithdrallison to connect us and help us be accountable for this daily practice. (Of course, if you’re not a hashtagger or social media fan, no sweat, practice on your own!)
I hope you’ll join #gratitudewithdrallison for the month of February and experience the profound impact that gratitude can have on your level of happiness!
