Hello Grateful Beings!

The benefits of a gratitude practice is indisputable. Our biggest challenge is finding consistency. Once we conquer consistency, then we have a natural practice and can reap the benefits. Below are 7 tips to help you have a successful daily gratitude practice.

1. Make a conscious, intentional commitment to have a consistent gratitude practice.
   Say it aloud: "I commit to practicing gratitude every single day by writing at least one Pockitude in my journal every day." You can even add a little ceremony by lighting a candle as an invitation for the energy of gratitude to come into your life.

2. Take your Pockitudes gratitude journal with you everywhere.
   Put it in your pocket, your purse, your car, take it to work with you. This journal is your gratitude companion and reminder, and will help bring gratitude to you if you engage with it. Pay Attention. Notice, in big and small ways, when you have a sense of calm, joy, happiness, relief. As soon as you notice it, write it in your journal, and add the "why you feel grateful." Notice any self judgement (like "oh that's stupid" or "that's not good enough", and let it go. All gratitude counts as long as it's a genuine feeling you have. This is a very different energy than just writing to write something down.

3. Set a Daily Schedule, put a reminder on your calendar.
   For some people, having a routine and carving a specific time in the day for their Pockitude is extremely helpful. Put it in your (digital) calendar with an alert. Put it on your daily to-do list and enjoy the pleasure of crossing it off. If you like wall calendars, cross off each day you wrote a gratitude for that visual feedback and reminder.

4. Pay it Forward with an Act of Kindness.
   This part is crucial. Why? Because gratitude is more than what we have or receive. Gratitude is just as much about giving, without strings, without needing to be recognized (this is where the ego monster wants attention), without making a big deal. It could be doing the dishes in the office kitchen. Letting someone go ahead of you in a grocery line. Buying a friend coffee or a gift, or leaving a note on their car, for no reason at all. We are so often in our heads, so often wrapped up in ourselves, we forget that giving with pure kindness is our way out of negative thinking. No act is too small. Look for the opportunity, there will be plenty.

5. Forgive yourself and move on if you miss a day.
   Gratitude is also about self compassion, as well as resisting perfectionistic thinking. Many people think they have to do it all or nothing. This is where a gratitude practice can consistently fail. Get right back into it the next day. Keep moving. If you are in a rut, and having a particularly hard time coming up with a Pockitude, use the prompts and act as if. Go to the eleven tips in the back of your Pockitude gratitude journal and change your state!! Then try again.

6. Get your family and friends involved.
   For fun, for community and family togetherness, for accountability, invite others to join you. Or ask them to support you in your gratitude practice. Have them point out or remind you what a good Pockitude or Act of Kindness can be for that day.

7. Don’t stop, keep it going.
   For real shifts in our well-being to happen, for our brains and attitude to change, authentic gratitude must become a way of living. How do you know you've gotten there? When it becomes effortless to feel grateful, thankful, fortunate, blessed. When you notice how present you are in any situation, knowing you may never have this beautiful moment again, so stay with it. This doesn't mean you don't get sad or angry, it means that you can be grateful despite the difficult things. Gratitude is not meant to fix everything, but it will help you move through all of life's challenges with grace and humility.

Let us know how it's going and post pictures of your beautiful practice on Instagram or Facebook with #pockitudes.

Learn more about how to start your own gratitude practice in our guide.