Practicing Gratitude: A Game-Changer For Your Career
Gratitude is an incredibly powerful, positive emotion that is seldom experienced by so many of us who are caught up in the day to day demands of life. The rise of consumerism, never ending to-do lists and the ceaseless pursuit of enhanced social mobility often means that gratitude is displaced by incessant ambition and this isn’t healthy.
As Thanksgiving approaches, we hear the words thankful and grateful a little more. From #grateful social media posts to customer appreciation pies, expressing gratitude is in the air this time of year. That’s part of what makes it such a special time. At the same rate, practicing everyday gratitude has become a more prominent cultural paradigm. Perhaps it’s because of the rise in studies on the science of gratitude, or maybe it’s just social media. Whatever the reason, with 7,000 listings on Amazon for “gratitude journal,” it’s safe to say our culture is adopting the practice of gratitude.
Why is practicing gratitude helpful every day and not just the last 6 weeks of the year? According to The Greater Good Science Center at the University of California at Berkeley, “gratitude may be associated with many benefits for individuals, including better physical and psychological health, increased happiness and life satisfaction, decreased materialism, and more.” Gratitude helps people feel more optimistic, and it helps us slow down in this rapid-paced world of ours.
Taking time to acknowledge the things you’re grateful for can be a game-changer for your overall wellbeing and health, but it can also make a big difference in your career. Here’s how:
For the job-seeker: It’s easy to lose faith in a job search, but this is where a gratitude journal can come in helpful. Take time to write down the successes of your search. Try to view setbacks in a positive light. For example, if you went in for a second-round interview but didn’t make the next cut, remind yourself that you got farther than most candidates. Acknowledge that you are doing better than when you started the search. Here are a few more tips on staying grateful during a job search.
For the manager: According to PayScale’s report on employee engagement and retention, feeling appreciated at work is the biggest influencer on employee satisfaction, and underappreciated employees are much more likely to leave the company. So taking a few minutes to show your staff gratitude year-round will improve company culture while also making you feel good.
For anyone at any point in their career: Regardless of your career status, take a few minutes to remind yourself of your accomplishments. Not only will it help you work harder, but it can also help you be better. This article from Peter Bregman at the Harvard Business Review says that “identifying the things we are grateful for mirrors the areas we are hoping to improve.” According to Bergman “your path to improvement is hidden in your pleasure, not your discontent.”
Article originally appeared on Sci.Bio Recruiting.
