Confidence through Gratitude

“Become a family filled with gratitude”, sounds like an oxymoron in 2020. However, the whirlwind, that has been 2020, has forced us to slow down and really think about what’s important in our lives. It’s been a year of fear, uncertainty and loss for many of us. But here we are, able to take a few minutes to read a blog. I truly believe that the greatest life skill we can pass down to our children is one of gratitude. Simply because it’s about the most effective guiding light – a sure way to connect you back to your happiness, no matter how dark and chaotic things are.

This attitude of gratitude – the feeling of having enough and more importantly, being enough, inevitability impacts how confidently you approach your daily life, because of the lens you see the world.

It’s one of those incredibly worthwhile practices to entrench in the DNA of your daughter. Here are a few, simple ways how you can start: Learn, Create, Share

 Learn…the meaning. What’s the difference between being Thankful vs Gratitude?

First things first, get a strong understanding of the definition and how it differs from simply being thankful for things. The key distinction is that gratitude focuses on general affirmation, whereas being thankful focuses more on one thing. You may be thankful for a great meal, but gratitude would help you recognize how lucky you are to have access to such things and to be able to share it with the ones that you love

 Create…a Gratitude Tree

Give your daughter a concrete visual of how much she has to be happy about in her life by bringing out the arts and crafts with her and make a gratitude tree! Cut out a set of tree trunks and leaves from different colours of construction paper. Help your daughter identify all the things that she is grateful for and write one thing on each leaf before attaching it to the tree. It’s amazing how many leaves we all have!

Share…Make it a daily thing

Don’t leave saying “thank you” for only Thanksgiving dinners, make it part of your family practise before every meal. Studies have found that those who feel daily gratitude in their lives are much more likely to lead happier lives and build stronger relationships with others.

Gratitude, Happiness, Confidence … all sure ways of living a bolder, bigger life – my wish for my girls and for yours too! 

It's a journey, that must start with a first step - enjoy it!

“It’s a funny thing about life, once you begin to take note of the things you are grateful for, you begin to lose sight of the things that you lack.” - Germany Kent

Sources:

https://www.health.harvard.edu/healthbeat/giving-thanks-can-make-you-happier