Going Down the Rabbit Hole of Gratitude
The most dangerous thing about a negative thought is that it leads to another negative thought.
And another, and another, and another. Before you know it you are tumbling head over heels down a rabbit hole of negativity.
Take a simple chore like folding the laundry. You start with a negative thought.
“I hate folding laundry.”
And it leads to a chain of negative thoughts.
- “I don’t like my clothes.”
- “Everyone has nicer clothes than me.”
- “Why do I always get stuck folding the laundry?”
And on and on. Who knows what dark places it can lead you to. But it doesn’t have to be that way.
You can choose to go down a rabbit hole of gratitude.
Start with a grateful thought instead.
“I love folding laundry.”
And it can start a chain of grateful thoughts.
- “How lucky I am to have clothes.”
- “I am grateful that I am well and physically healthy enough to fold these clothes.”
- “How awesome is it that there is a whole network of people who produced these clothes and made them available to me?”
The more creative you get, the further down the rabbit hole of gratitude you can go. Because, really, everything we complain about, everything we consider to be a chore or an obligation, is something we should be grateful for.
Here are some tips to help you go down a rabbit hole of positivity instead of negativity.
- Flip the Script — What tasks or chores annoy you? Mowing the lawn? Folding the laundry? Doing the dishes? Get creative. What about those chores can you be grateful for? Fill your time doing the chore focusing on gratitude instead of frustration or negativity.
- Look for the Good — Find things to be grateful for. Every time any small (or big) thing happens that you are grateful for, stop and acknowledge it. We stop and belabor the bad things that happen. Give the good things their due as well.
- Create a Gratitude Jar — Put a jar somewhere in your house, on a table, on a shelf…wherever. Every time something good happens write it down on a piece of paper and put it in the jar.
- Journal — Journaling is agreat exercise to practice gratitude. If you already journal, take the time to list three things that happened today that you are grateful for. If you do not journal, start small. List three things you are grateful for each night before you go to bed. Go to sleep with a grateful mind.
So, the next time you are getting ready to complain about some chore, task, or first-world problem you have. Stop and consider where it might take you.
Do you really want to go there?
Of course not!
So don’t. Instead, choose to be grateful and go down a rabbit hole of gratitude.
The choice is all yours.
You get to choose your rabbit hole.
