Gratitude sprinkled generously will create fertile soil for growing a more courageous life rooted in reciprocity.
A grateful person accepts all of life as a gift, and finds the gift in all (or, at least most) situations.
Rumi says: “Wear gratitude like a cloak and it will feed every corner of your life.”
Robert Emmons, who has made his career studying gratitude says “The practice of gratitude can have dramatic and lasting effects in a person’s life. It can lower blood pressure, improve immune function and facilitate more efficient sleep. Gratitude reduces lifetime risk for depression, anxiety and substance abuse disorders, and is a key resiliency factor in the prevention of suicide. Practicing gratitude also affects behavior. Studies have shown that grateful people engage in more exercise, have better dietary behaviors, are less likely to smoke and abuse alcohol – factors that translate into a healthier and happier life.”
“Gratitude blocks toxic emotions, such as envy, resentment, regret and depression, which can destroy our happiness.”
He also has discovered that Grateful people are more stress resistant and have a higher sense of self-worth.
This is what the science says and it is pretty darn impressive, if you ask us.
We believe that by embracing gratitude as a new way of life, you not only create a stronger foundation under your quest for a bravery, but you also deeply shift something vital about how you view the world and your place in it. .
Imagine this:
You are able to live in gratefulness. You hit a roadblock, a hard patch, a situation that does not work out as you might wish. From your stand to look for the blessings amidst the curses, you are better able to find the gift in the hardship.
That gives you a kind of resilience that will sustain your experiments, risks, and brave acts. And we aren’t looking to just be brave a little bit for a little while. We are looking to make bravery a way of life.
What are you doing to make bravery a way of life?
Are you ready to wake up the sleeping giver in you?
Are you ready to open your heart fully to receive life’s many blessings?