Our brains are tricky organs.
They control our every movement, conscious or not, and guide us through our lives; from stumbling into our first steps, to hobbling through our last days on Earth. And we only use a tiny percentage of their full capacity.
Your brain can be trained to respond with certain emotions in triggered situations. That’s how post-traumatic stress disorder works.
But it can also work in your favor. You can program your mind to feed positivity into your perception with just a few conscious triggers.
Gratitude is the most powerful of these triggers.
Call it what you will; Karma; paying it forward; what goes around comes around… the concept has an amalgam of names, but it principal is simple: doing good does good for you.
If you approach your life with the intention of improving it in every moment, you’ll begin to live the best possible version of it. Being constantly conscious of your emotional and physical well-being, and always aware of how you can improve on it, will create neural pathways in your brain which trigger positive feelings and motivation.
Experts know
While I wouldn’t pull the, “Trust me, I’m a doctor,” card, I do have a solid understanding of the human brain. But you don’t have to take it from me; there are countless expert diet, exercise, and positive living gurus out there who can attest to the validity of a positive attitude’s impact.
Diet Solution Program review testimonies are just some examples of gratitude’s impact on a positive life. Furthermore, every one of my friends in the industry of improving well-being will tell you without hesitation that one of the top ways to make your life better is to be more grateful.
Make every moment a meal.
Look, when you’re about to eat a delicious meal at a restaurant, what do you do? You imagine how wonderful it will taste. You say, “I can’t wait to eat this!” You salivate every time the waiter walks by, and you take a few moments to observe its perfection before diving in fork-first when the course finally arrives.
This primal reaction gears your brain up to receive something good. By mentally and verbally preparing, your brain is laying down a walkway for the pleasure receptors to tell you, “Yes, this IS delicious!”
Acknowledging good things makes them more tangible. Start approaching every day as if it were a tantalizing dish in your favorite restaurant.
It’s simply contagious
If you’ve ever stood near a yawning coworker, you know how contagious human actions can be. But yawning isn’t the only thing you can pick up from a coworker.
In fact, facial expressions in general are contagious. We tend to mirror the emotions of those around us, in an effort to assimilate into the environment, so if you’re always frowning or scowling, you’re likely to find yourself consistently surrounded by negative, unhappy people.
On the opposite side of that same coin, if you don a sincere smile (even a small one) and make an effort to acknowledge the people you see for positive facets—whether you’re complementing an outfit or an act of kindness—you’re infinitely more likely to find yourself in a world of grateful people.
The happier you are, the happier the people in your life are. And once the happiness is pumping, it’s hard to turn off that faucet.
Be constantly grateful
Thanksgiving day isn’t the only time you should acknowledge the things you’re grateful for. An average more conducive exercise in happiness would be the fourth hour of every day, or an even more frequent tip-of-the-hat than that.
It’s easy to get caught up in negativity. You missed the early train to work. You spilled coffee on a report for your boss. The kids decided the living room wall was their own personal Crayola palette. But finding the good things in your day is more difficult, and takes practice. Get yourself into the habit of taking a few deep breaths three or four times a day and consciously—even audibly—talking yourself through the things you’re grateful for in life.
Nothing is to large or small to include on this list, and whether you use the mantra of, “family, home, health,” or personalize it on a daily basis, you’ve found a very active way to incorporate gratitude.
What’s important is that you’re training your brain to be positive.
By doing so, you’re building the foundation for a better, healthier, more positive life.
About the author: Dr. Mike Tremba has personally seen how gratitude can change people’s lives (including his own). Much a product of his own experiences, he developed his website at , www.NaturalWeightLossTruth.com. Whether it’s helping others to lose weight, or simply to find more passion for life, Dr. Mike is passionate about sharing what he’s learned. In his free time, he’s blessed to spend time with his wife (and best friend) Shari near the beautiful beaches of southern Alabama.
Leave a Reply