Being Grateful Can Improve Your Productivity.

“You need to be grateful”, my wife told me (during a conversation about one of my goals). “You know I’m always grateful”, I retorted. Well, I immediately used the excuse of having to go to the barber shop with our boys as an excuse to defer that conversation.

As I drove, the boys and I were chatting but they soon became busy with their devices and I had to concentrate on driving. Then, her comment came back to me. This time, I realized she didn’t say I wasn’t grateful, she actually meant, “ I needed to tune to the ‘gratitude frequency’ regarding that goal”. So I gave it a little more thought.

One thought that stood out was, “I’m always at my best when I’m grateful”. I’m at my best with family, with friends, and my productivity actually improves all round, especially at work.

I know that the last one year in particular has been very hectic for all of us but let me ask you the same question, “Do you remember to tune to the ‘gratitude frequency’ when things are not going as planned?” I’ll tell you more…

Did you know that the word gratitude is derived from the Latin word gratia, which means grace, graciousness, or gratefulness?

Did you know that in positive psychology research, gratitude is strongly and consistently associated with greater happiness and happy people are more productive? (Harvard Health Publishing, 2011)

In fact, research by Oxford University’s Saïd Business School, in collaboration with British multinational telecoms firm BT, has found a conclusive link between happiness and productivity and its the fact that happy workers are 13% more productive.

I have also read that, research has found that experiencing positive emotions like gratitude goes beyond feeling good in the moment. They also lead to increased resilience and well-being over time.

Simply put, gratitude makes you happy, improves your resilience, wellbeing and by implication, your productivity.

If your gratitude ‘fire’ is dwindling, find a reason to be grateful to fuel that fire again. Gratitude is not dependent on the size of your job or even the lack of it; it’s a state you can switch to by choice in any situation. Little wonder the Bible says, “Give thanks at all times for all things”.

So count your blessings, write a thank-you note to someone, keep a gratitude journal, pray and/or meditate. However you can, find a way to shift gratitude dial by tuning to its frequency today and always.

Please leave a comment below…can be as simple as, ‘I choose to be grateful’.