The Neuroscience of Gratitude

Understanding the art of gratitude and positive thinking through neuroscience.

The world feels heavy right now. So much violence. So much hate. So much division. It’s exhausting and frankly overwhelming. The ripple effect world events have on organizations, their people, and their performance can be intense. I for one find it impossible to ignore what’s happening especially when it’s in my back yard. As I listen and watch news stories unfold, I find myself filled with sadness and dread. But I also know the energy for initiating positive change doesn’t come from a mindset of sadness and dread. It comes from a mindset of optimism and hope. Gratitude can be a pivotal factor in achieving that shift.

The neuroscience of gratitude

Shifting our mindset to focus on the good acts as a natural antidepressant. Neuroscience research has found a link between positive thoughts and the activation of certain neurotransmitters (chemicals released from our nerve cells that inform other parts of our body).

When we focus our thoughts on good, we feel good, which then informs our actions. Feeling good is what enables us to engage in activities that fuel us. It helps shape our essence, how we perceive the world around us, and our ability to analyze and reflect.
4 graphics on each side of a square that resemble the neuroscience of gratitude
You know those people who, no matter what, always see the glass as half empty? Well, they’ve trained their brains to revert to negativity. The field of neuroplasticity tells us that our brains continue to evolve as we respond to different situations, which gives us the ability to create new patterns of thinking based on the situation. This means we can reshape our thoughts by being intentional and using repetition, giving our brains a new pattern to follow.
We have the power to change our mindset by focusing on gratitude. Here are three simple ways you can start developing a gratitude mindset today.

Say “please” and “thank you.”

What’s the magic word? If you’re like me, you’ve used this a few times with your children. Saying “please” and “thank you” are the foundation of good manners. But many times, we forget the power they possess, especially in a corporate setting.
At our core, what binds us together is a desire to feel valued and appreciated. We all want to feel appreciated. And showing appreciation for others is the place to start. It projects an attitude of gratitude. It tells others that we appreciate and value their actions. Not only have you made them feel good, but you’ve reinforced their behavior.
Saying “please” is about asking permission. Saying “thank you” conveys our gratitude. If your team isn’t doing this on a regular basis, begin to slowly introduce them. Find ways to show appreciation that is meaningful to each individual. See what happens.

Use self-talk to redirect your thoughts.

To successfully create an attitude of gratitude, we must learn how to redirect negative thoughts. For me, sometimes those negative thoughts seem to take over, usually as self-criticism for something I did (or didn’t do). I have grown to accept that these feelings are natural and provide space to appreciate the good even more.
Now when I hear negative thoughts in my head, I use self-talk to point myself in a different direction. It’s my choice how to handle these thoughts. I can either allow these thoughts to perpetuate or I can talk myself into a different direction.
Self-talk might look different from one person to the next. For me, I literally tell myself to stop going down the rabbit hole. I then conjure up the many things I’m grateful for, such as my loving family, my amazing children I’ve raised with my husband, and the incredible community of people I get to collaborate with daily. Try it—you may like it!

Keep a gratitude journal.

Developing a journaling practice is a simple way to shift to a gratitude mindset. It does not have to be time consuming. Devote a few minutes each day at the same time to write down two or three things you are thankful for. Implementing a cadence around focusing on gratitude is what helps us create that pattern in our brains that we want—seeing the glass half full instead of half empty.

A gratitude journal also promotes mindfulness. In a time when we’re constantly racing to the next thing on our to-do list, it can be challenging to stay present. Mindfulness is the practice of focusing our attention on the present moment, which has also been linked to neuroplasticity. There are many ways to intentionally focus on being mindful, but starting with a gratitude journal is an easy way to begin. Just the act of devoting a few minutes a day to writing down what we are thankful for means that we are being mindful. Remember, you don’t have to keep this practice to yourself. Teams can benefit by celebrating individual moments of gratitude before meetings or on your internal social platform.

The life-changing importance of gratitude.

The current events of our world can invoke sad, even despairing, thoughts. My hope is that we can begin shaping our thoughts to focus on gratitude to help promote more happiness in our communities. By developing a gratitude mindset that focuses on the good, we will have more energy to do good things—at work and beyond.

Would you like to connect with Elise? Give us a call at (859) 415-1000 or drop us a line in the form at the bottom of this page, and we’ll put you in touch with her.

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<strong><a href="https://tier1performance.com/author/e-margol/" target="_self">Elise Greene Margol</a></strong>

Elise Greene Margol

Elise Greene Margol is a Principal in the Atlanta office. She is a passionate problem solver with a proven track record of helping organizations optimize and build talent solutions. She specializes in designing holistic solutions that align strategic business needs with talent priorities that create value for the organization, the team, and the employee. Making sense out of the complex and helping people come to their own conclusions. Elise loves using stories and examples to explain concepts in a clear and concise manner that engages and inspires.

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