Some of the happiest people live with an attitude of gratitude yet seem to have very little to be grateful for compared to some unhappy people who are perceived to be rich, thin and successful.

Think of the Getty Brothers (one was a millionaire and was an alcoholic) who were supposed to have written to each other with the famous words; from the wealthiest man to the richest man. You see, being rich doesn’t by any means guarantee you happiness or health.  Of course you can buy the best bed, sheets and even rooms to sleep in, but that doesn’t mean you’ll have a good nights sleep.  Like wise, you can buy the best medical care, drugs, even have a hospital wing named after you, but it doesn’t mean much if you don’t have good health!

For those of us that aren’t financially rich, it’s about time our focus was on exactly what we do have, instead of negatively comparing ourselves to others who we perceive to be richer than us.  We can learn instead to focus on the areas of your life where we are wealthy.  Try it, you’ll feel happier for recognizing all these things you previously took for granted.  Then commit to developing this new attitude of gratitude and let it deepen into a life long habit bringing you even more contentment and abundance.  Start by

1. Listing the things in your life to be grateful for which you previously took for granted, such as your health, home, family, friends, work colleagues, car, and so on, even your ability to pay your bills.
2. List all the things that you know you could not survive without, such as sunlight, air, water and food. See how many things you can come up with. Keep this list with you; refer to it anytime you get upset. See how long you remain upset then.
3. Do something for someone else for no reason other than simply wanting to do it. Do it without thought or attachment of any return i.e. pay for someone’s shopping or compliment a stranger, give up a seat or a bus or a parking space, there are lots of opportunities to practice.
4. Take the time to make and send someone a card of appreciation or a thank you note. Send it in the post, it’s bound to make someone’s day.   It could be an individual or a company, regardless of how insignificant the gesture, if it made you feel good, make them feel good that they they’ll keep doing it and others will benefit too.  Create a trail of happiness behind you, as you go forward in your life.
5. Practice mindfulness.  This means taking time to feel awe and wonder at anything and everything natural in our astonishing world. See things as if for the first time ever.  Slow down and notice the beauty around you. Stop and smell the roses, do what ever it takes to get back in touch with the innocence and happiness of your inner child.
6. Accept things as they are. No matter how much the situation has turned out differently to your expectations, it is the way it is. The outcome is just a label you attach to it so start labeling things more positively.  Also, think how much worse off you could have been.  For instance, when I fell over as a child, my mother would pick me up, dust me of and say how lucky I was not to have broken something so I naturally felt good to have survived the fall.  Savor the current moment and be grateful for what is, you are who you are today because of your experiences not despite them.
7. So focus on what is right in your life rather than what is wrong with it.  None of us are perfect or even have a perfect life.  It is craving perfection that causes us so much unhappiness.  It conditions us into noticing the negativity around us.  Consequently, we often overlook all the good in our life. Instead, count your blessings and be thankful every day using a journal to record your growing list.
8. Practice saying “thank you” as often as possible to all the people who make your life what it is. A smile and a simple thank you will often do. This will have a magical effect on the person receiving your appreciation. They will feel noticed and appreciated which is after all what all of us really want.

“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

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