Category: Thanks

How Can We Spread Goodwill From The Holidays To The Rest Of The Year?

Around the holidays, there is an increased interest in kindness, love, and generosity. Why should this be limited to just part of the year?

There are many examples of the spirit of the holidays being a positive one.

Thanksgiving itself exists as a holiday to be thankful for what you have. In many families, a tradition of taking turns talking about things you are grateful for exists. The number of people volunteering at soup kitchens skyrockets.

Immediately after Thanksgiving are the commercial-centric Black Friday, Small Business Saturday, and Cyber Monday, but that is followed up with Giving Tuesday, a day specifically designated for charitable giving.

And, of course, the Christmas holiday itself is centered around giving. Some people leave a little something for their postal carrier. Parents will give gift cards to their children’s teachers, tutors, or coaches. Hair stylists, house cleaners, neighbors, friends, family members might all be on the receiving end of gifts of one kind or another.

More cookies are baked in December than at any other time of year. And most of those are given away, or taken to parties.

This is all wonderful, of course. It is part of the reason why so many people find this time of year magical. However, wouldn’t it be nice if people behaved this way all year long?

All this gift giving is expensive, and most people can’t afford to maintain that for 12 months. In fact, some can’t even afford to do it for one month, and go into debt.

But the spirit of giving thanks, showing your affection, and communicating with loved ones could happen all year long. How can we make that happen in our own lives?

Related questions: Why do we give gifts? What does it mean to be thankful? How can we maintain wonder?

How Can You Be Grateful In Difficult Times?

When things are going well for you, things to be grateful for may seem fairly obvious. But when things aren’t going so well?

When you are happy — or at least, content — with your life, being thankful is fairly straightforward. What are you happy about? How did that happiness come about? The answers can be the target of your gratefulness.

However, when you are struggling, things aren’t so easy. If your life is in shambles, finding something to be grateful for may be challenging. There are several reasons why this may be so.

First of all, it might be the case that the problems you face are numerous, and in all walks of life. Trouble with your job, your family, your health, and your finances may not leave you with many bright spots.

Even if that isn’t the case, it might feel like it. Problems always seem much bigger that opportunities. Even if you have areas of good fortune, it might be difficult to see them.

And even if you can see them, you might feel like it is inappropriate to acknowledge them. How can I be happy about my good health, for example, if I can’t find a job? It might feel disrespectful, or inappropriate, to be celebrating in times of sorrow.

So how can you manage it? How can you recognize the good that surrounds you, even in the dark? And how can you be thankful, and display it, in a way that is appropriate and helpful? How can you be grateful in difficult times?

Related questions: What are you grateful for? How do you show thanks? What does it mean to be thankful? What are the benefits of expressing gratitude?

What Are The Benefits Of Expressing Gratitude?

There are many self-help outlets — books, blogs, podcasts, and so on — that advocate regular expressions of gratitude. Why?

Expressions of gratitude can come in many different forms. They can be private expressions, in your head while you are meditating, for example. Or they can be public, directly to the person or object being thanked, or even to an entire audience of people.

You may have practiced these displays yourself. (If not, surely your imagination will suffice.) When you think, write, or speak your affirmations, what happens? What changes might take place, both within you, in the subject of your gratitude, and within society at large?

There are surely some benefits for this behavior, or else it would not be recommended by so many people in so many outlets. In your experience, what benefits come from expressing gratitude?

Related questions: What are you grateful for? What does it mean to be thankful? How could you show your appreciation for others more? What are our responsibilities to others?

If You Were To Do Something To Honor Someone, Who Would It Be And What Would You Do?

If you were to choose a person to honor, and a method by which to honor them, who would you choose and what would you do?

There are times in your life when one person has a significant impact on your growth or development. You may wish, at some point, to honor that person, and the way in which they influenced you.

Which raises a couple of related questions.

The first question is: how do you decide? What metric should you use, when evaluating the influence someone has had on you, if that person merits an honor?

Listen to a podcast where Michael and Lee discuss a related question: ‘What gives a person value?’ We also discuss a bonus question: ‘What makes you you?’

A second question is: what do you do? In what way can you convey, to yourself and others, that an honor of some sort is being bestowed?

The exact nature of the honor can vary quite drastically, based on a number of different variables. For instance, it may depend on the person being honored, if they are alive or dead, and what the relationship was between you.

Or it might depend on the nature of the influence. You may choose, for instance, to honor the role your parents played in your upbringing by visiting them, or calling them regularly.

It may also depend on the resources available to the person doing the honoring. It can be as simple as a card in the mail, or as elaborate as a dedicated building.

Have you ever honored someone, and if so, how? If not, can you think of a person and a way in which you might do the honoring?

Related questions: Who is the most important person in your life? How could you show your appreciation for others more? Who would serve on your personal board of directors? Who was your best teacher? Do you give to charitable or social causes?

Turkey Trot Or Couch Potato?

Are you more likely to get up and participate in an event like a Turkey Trot, or do you have more of a couch potato vibe?

Share why if you wish.

Turkey Trot Or Couch Potato?
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