Make a Gratitude List

Writing a Gratitude List

Writing a gratitude list doesn’t really require instructions or steps. I mean, basically: Take a clean sheet of paper or blank computer document, and write a list of things you are grateful for. That’s it.Many people do this when they catch themselves being particularly ungrateful. Some do it every morning. It might be an assignment from a spiritual director, life coach, or a sponsor in recovery.

But here are a few tips that may help you:

• If you feel blocked and don’t know where to start, try to just free-associate one. Don’t worry about coming up with a good one. Just write the first thing that comes to mind. It might be silly, or you might not be sure about it. Just write it down. And that relates to the next tip…
• Do not censor yourself. Don’t think of something you’re grateful for and then say to yourself, “Oh, that’s silly,” or “That’s not a proper thing to put down a this list,” or “I shouldn’t be grateful for that.” If you think of it, put it on the list.
• Don’t put anything on your list that you don’t really mean. Don’t write “family” because youshould write that. This list is for you, not for appearances.
• Leave off explanations and rationalizations. You already know the backstory, so why are you writing it? Doing so suggests you feel like you need to justify the item, which suggests that either the inner censor is at play, or you put the item on your list because you felt like you should.

*Reflection from BustedHalo.com