As some of you may have noticed, the start of November has inspired many of our social media friends to participate in a ’30 Days of Gratitude Challenge.’ The idea behind this challenge is to post something you are thankful for every day during the month of November on Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, and other social networks. While it’s wonderful to see friends and family express their gratitude, I want to encourage everyone to express their gratitude every day of the year, not just during the time of year we celebrate Thanksgiving. Psychologists have actually scientifically proven that one of the greatest contributing factors to overall happiness in your life is based on how much gratitude you show.
In light of this discovery, a popular YouTube channel called SoulPancake decided to put this study to the test. They created an inspiring video titled ‘The Science of Happiness’ where they gathered volunteers who each took a test that unknowingly gave researchers a good idea of their current level of happiness. Next, researchers asked the volunteers to close their eyes and think of someone who has made a big impact on their lives and had them write down why this person is important to them. Then, the volunteers were asked to call this person and read what they wrote. What happens next, you must see to believe. Watch the video here: Once the volunteers read the letter to their inspirational person, researchers gave the volunteers another happiness test. The results proved that expressing gratitude increased their level of happiness. What’s most interesting is, the person who walked in the least happy showed the highest jump in happiness after expressing gratitude.
So while it is wonderful that thousands of social media users are expressing their gratitude each day in November, I encourage you to find reasons to express gratitude each day of the year. If those volunteers showed increased happiness from one instance of expressing gratitude, imagine how much their happiness levels would increase if they did it every day?