Perhaps you’ve heard of the benefits of gratitude already  > well, if you haven’t you’re welcome to check out my handy (but brief) list in my post What’s This Thing Called Gratitude + Why You Should Probably Look at Doing It  which gives you the rundown of why you should probably start doing it, like for instance the fact that IT CAN ACTUALLY MAKE YOU LIVE LONGER!

What the actual hell and it’s such a fucking easy practice to implement into your life!

Gah! So quick! Go now while you still have the chance!

It’s fine, no no, it’s fine. I’ll wait right here until you get back.

Ok, now you’re back with an open mind or maybe you just took that opportunity to have a pee break which I did not, dammit!

But maybe you already knew all that but have no idea where to start, what to write and how to go about it all > like should it be one thing or three things or ten things! In the morning or at night or even both! and can you acknowledge the same things every day & what if you can’t think of anything AND MISS A DAY!?!

I’ma break it down for you.

THE TOOLS YOU NEED TO LIVE A LIFE OF GRATITUDE

If you’re like me ie. a complete and utter disaster when it comes to stationary – for example, the fact that I can’t start a new project without the right pens and right paper and right notepads but then the daunting and foreboding and very very real possibility that I might make a mistake actually makes me sick to my stomach for ruining such a pristine crisp white page – so at the end of my time, I know I might be leaving this earth via death by perfectly lined crisp white pages of brand new untouched notebooks that I’ve surrounded myself with like a fortress, and my tombstone will hereby read-

“Here lies Nikki, suffocated by an avalanche of wasted words and blank pages.”

Anyway, if you’re anything like me then you also feel like this kind of perfectionism is an obsession and highly limiting, then this really is the perfect practice to implement into your life because with gratitude, there are no rules * only suggestions and you make it however works & fits for you best **

*the horror!

**again, the horror!

So, each to their own but here’s a few things you might need:-

• the perfect pen

• the perfect notebook – the sparklier the better because really ~ GLITTER!!!

• the notes app on your phone if you’re on the run > literally, you can find the beauty in any given moment, even if you’re running from the cops… ummmm.

• the willingness to see + the openness to the opportunities the world is presenting to you at every corner.

WHAT IN THE HELL SHOULD YOU BE GRATEFUL FOR?

Did you know that the possibility of you being born is one in 10^2,685,000 (so, 10 followed by 2.685 million ZEROS!) so, apart from that, what else is there really?

Well, everything.

To be grateful is to have an appreciation with life itself. To be grateful means seeing the gift in all of life’s obstacles, all the ups and downs.

To be grateful is the quickest way to bring you back into the present moment.

If you need some help or inspiration, I’ve put together a little list of what I’ve been thankful for recently so you’re welcome to start there.

Look around, what do you see or hear or smell that now you’re aware of it, brings joy into your heart or awe into your soul.

Grasp that feeling and savour it.

Now, what should you do with it now that you’ve got it?

THE PRACTICE OF GRATITUDE JOURNALING

Write it down.

Or don’t.

However you want to commemorate that feeling – just take a moment and really think about it and remember, it doesn’t matter if it’s silly or small or juvenile, the things that you notice around you are the things that can bring you back to the present moment and find out who you are in that very moment.

Start small and make a habit of savouring just one thing a day – just one – and write it down in your beautifully glittery notebook that makes your heart swell with the sight of such gorgeousness.

Actually, that can be first your one. Ta da! That wasn’t so hard was it.

Go ahead and write another one. Maybe the elixer of life in your hands that makes your heart warm – be it coffee or tea or champagne.

See, just gave you another!

Keep going if you feel like it but once you’re done, appreciate that inner joy you’re now feeling and relish it for a little bit longer and then slowly shut that notebook.

Done.

You’re now ready to go about your day with that inner happiness bolstering your resolve and strengthening your greatness.

Feel free to visit my post Gratitude & Five Things I’m Grateful For Today – In Case You’re Stuck. for inspiration both big and small!

5 TIPS & TRUTHS TO GET YOU THROUGH THE HARROWING ACT OF GRATITUDE JOURNALING

1. Morning, Noon or Night – or all of the above – it’s absolutely over to you on this but I like to do it in the morning because like I said, the act of getting them off my chest and onto paper kinda sets me up for the day ahead in a good way. Of course, if something happened during my day that I don’t want to forget but don’t have my fabulous notebook within reach, I’ll type a quick note in my phone so I can capture the moment and then transfer it to my book later that night.
2. I recommend writing the date against each entry so you can look back and know what made you happy on that particular day.
3. You can write about the same things or people every day if you really want too but I highly suggest branching out of your comfort zone and finding new things each and every time. It gets easier after a time to manage finding new things – I swear they just come flying at your head once you’ve practiced enough. Although, to be honest, I write about my puppy every day but it’s always something different that he’s done so it’s not really the same thing I guess.
4. You can write one, none or a billion if you’re feeling up to it and the inspiration is running through your blood but don’t berate yourself if you can’t think of anything and you skip a day. Just try your hardest to make up for it by doing double your normal the next day. It’ll make you feel better, I promise. 
5. Practice makes perfect. Some say it takes 21 days to get into a habit but this isn’t true for everyone as no two people are the same so start small okay – focus on writing one thing down a day for seven days and then the next, and then the next. Eventually, it’ll be ingrained into your routine and you won’t even realise and suddenly you’re writing 3 things, 5 things, 10 things each time!

Remember, to be grateful means being aware and taking note of even the most tiniest things of beauty or words or sounds or thoughts to being completely blown away by the grandest of gestures – to take nothing for granted.

So,

Write it down.

Or don’t.

But I promise, you’re world will be better if you do.

If you have any tips and tricks to share – I’d be forever grateful because man, it’s hard work no matter what any one tells you!