The Unexpected Benefits of Practicing Gratitude in Everyday Life

We are all probably used to expressing gratitude on formal occasions or holidays—when reflecting on the past year on New Year’s Eve, or celebrating a birthday or a wedding anniversary in a family circle, or giving a speech while holding an Oscar. But the circumstances in which practicing gratitude is common or expected are scarce, really, compared to the many gifts hiding in plain sight every day.

How Everyday Gratitude Changed My Life

First things first, I can’t say I’ve ever been particularly ungrateful or guilty of taking things for granted. I was simply one of those people feeling gratitude on special occasions, and in between those I believed I was grateful enough without necessarily saying it out loud or thinking it with intention, let alone writing about it. The truth is, I believed only the big, extraordinary things deserved gratitude, so if I had tried being grateful for small things on a daily basis some five years ago, I would have failed spectacularly.

I began to find my way to a consistent gratitude routine about two years ago, amid a lengthy, dark period of heartbreak and emotional turmoil. As it often happens with groundbreaking change, it came to me at a point when I was so lost that it was out of sheer despair that I turned to practices I had been deeply skeptical of before. The things that I had once waved aside as crazy or ridiculous became my last hope. My desire to find a cure for my heartbreak and discontent drove me to try things I hadn’t yet tried, and it changed everything.

Keeping a Gratitude Journal

I won’t go into the many aspects of my recovery besides gratitude, or I’ll be writing this post for a month, but one of the challenges I set for myself was to be grateful for every single thing that gave me as much as a hint of pleasure or joy—not an easy feat for someone used to being grateful mainly for things like trips abroad or expensive presents. 

I was determined to develop a habit of practicing radical gratitude for every little thing I could think of, and eventually it became clear to me that nothing good in life was too small to be thankful for. This shift in mindset happened so gradually that I don’t think I’ve realized even until now what a fundamental change I’d brought about. The version of me that used to scoff and roll her eyes is deeply humbled now.

The Benefits of Practicing Gratitude

There’s more to my becoming an ambassador for everyday gratitude than feeling blessed with the things for which I’d had little appreciation before. Beyond just feeling more appreciative, daily gratitude has had profound ripple effects in every area of my life, from mental and physical health to productivity and relationships with others. I’ve experienced those effects first-hand, and I truly feel that every skeptic out there must give it a go before they dismiss the undeniable power of daily gratitude.

1. Emotional and Mental Well-Being

I am an anxious person by nature, worrying over worst-case scenarios and agonizing over what-ifs. Practicing gratitude on a daily basis has taught me to ground myself better in the present moment and recognize my fear of the worst for what it is—a fear, not a definite outcome. It has also strengthened my emotional resilience, allowing me to stay steady during hard times and reminding me that I’ve gotten through everything so far—I’ll get through this, too.

Intentional gratitude is also closely intertwined with nature mindfulness if you only try pairing joy and beauty with gratitude. Every time you hear a birdsong, or feel a gentle breeze on your skin, or watch a stunning sunset, don’t stop at enjoying the sensation. Go beyond and say—in your head or out loud— “What a goddamn blessing it is to be able to see/hear/feel this.” And notice how your emotional health shifts day by day.

2. Increased Productivity and Motivation

It’s painful to think about it now, but I used to have a deeply rooted belief that my knowledge, achievements, or areas of expertise were impractical, insignificant, and redundant and therefore not worth celebrating, praising, or highlighting. This belief had paralyzing powers. It demotivated me and discouraged me from applying for scholarships or jobs, accepting challenges, and pursuing those of my dreams that seemed particularly hard to achieve. In other words, I suffered from a serious lack of a can-do attitude.

It was a few dozens of forced journal entries where I expressed gratitude for things like “everything I’ve ever achieved in life” or “having the courage to defend my boundaries” that contributed to a shift in my mindset and helped me finally see value in my unique and extraordinary powers. Realizing that my skills and achievements had value empowered me to reach for more and to recognize my work, growth, and progress, however small or slow. And today, I am so much closer to having the life I want for myself than I would be if I hadn’t started my daily gratitude practice.

3. Better Physical Health

My gratitude journal has a section where, at the end of the day, I write three “good things that happened today.” I do this around bedtime, which allows me to finish my day with a deep feeling of ending a day well-lived. Through this practice, the most uneventful or stressful days acquire a new meaning. Every single day of which I’ve ever written in my journal had something beautiful and enjoyable in it, and I would always fall asleep thinking of the good that day had brought. This simple bedtime habit grounds me in the present and helps me end the day on a peaceful note.

Working out was another area where my gratitude practice worked its magic. I’ve never been into physical exercises; it’s always felt like a punishment to me. My whole life I was stuck in a cycle of demanding too much from a body that wasn’t capable of giving so much because it lacked consistent exercise, and this vicious circle had the same demotivating effect on my desire to work out. 

As I learned to be grateful to my body for everything it does for me—from helping me digest food to literally keeping me alive—I became more naturally inclined to go on walks or do yoga just for the sake of keeping my body healthy. It was no longer about the ambition to be “good at sports” but about the desire to feel healthy and energized long-term.

4. A Deeper Sense of Purpose and Fulfillment

All the tiny mindset shifts from practicing gratitude shaped the person I am today. If I hadn’t learned to be grateful for the most trivial things, I don’t think I would have discovered just how much value my life—and life in general—already had. I probably wouldn’t have learned how to be my main supporter, and my self-love would still be conditional on what my body looks like or what skills and qualifications I have. I would still believe that being stuck in the corporate world is the only way, because there’s no space in adulthood for daydreaming or sensitivity or writing about life.

If I hadn’t learned to be radically grateful for never losing interest in life, or the air tasting so delicious in my lungs, or my cat’s tiny paws, I wouldn’t have found the courage to start this blog.

All the tiny mindset shifts from practicing gratitude shaped the person I am today.

I know I painted quite a picture and probably made it look as though all your life problems will be solved if only you learn to feel grateful every day, which, of course, isn’t true. Life is complicated and unpredictable; it gets hard sometimes; there are days it feels unfulfilling or pointless, perhaps. Practicing gratitude on a regular basis simply rewires our brain to look at the world in a different way and to see the things we used to ignore before, which in turn creates a solid foundation for long-lasting peace and contentment.

A skeptic or not, why don’t you give gratitude a try? You don’t need to get a journal if you’re not into writing. Start with a thought each morning as you wake up, or each night before going to sleep, if that works better for you. What happened today that you feel grateful for? 

And if you’re unsure where to begin, just start with this: be grateful for all the things that could go wrong but didn’t.