How 5-3-1 Gratitude Creates Happiness at Work
At this time of year you hear a lot about being grateful, and I thought I’d share some science around why having an “attitude of gratitude” really does make you happier – at home and at work.
I recently heard about the 5-3-1 Gratitude practice and was very intrigued. I’m a
HUGE fan of making gratitude part of my lifestyle and am always looking for new
ways to practice.
What does this have to do with being happier at work?
A Gallup poll found that only 13 percent of us actually enjoy the time we spend on
the job. And there’s a real cost to that, not just to our emotional state, but also to
our health.
And that’s not all.
- The average adult spends 47 percent of their waking day not paying
attention to what they’re doing. - The average office worker gets interrupted every 3 minutes.
- It takes an average of 23 minutes (after that interruption) to get back on
track.
This causes frustration, impacts engagement and team performance.
So, what to do?
5 – Meditate for five minutes. I know what you’re thinking, and I’ve got your back.
You can do anything for five minutes (you wait in line at least that long to get your
morning cuppa Joe). This doesn’t require you to sit on the floor like a pretzel or
chant Ommmm. Taking five minutes a day to notice your breath and focus only on
that will help you to calm your nervous system and clear your head. When a
thought comes in or your mind wanders off – get back to the breath. By doing this
for a mere 30 days, you will actually gain gray matter in the pre-frontal cortex in
your brain – the area that handles attention, emotional regulation and executive
functioning/decision making. (You can find a guided meditation here.)
3 – Write down three good things that happened to you. Our brains are hard-
wired for negativity, so this may seem challenging at first. Hang in there! Even on
the most difficult days, we can find three things that we’re grateful for, no matter
how small. You’ve no doubt heard the phrase, “what you think about, you bring
about.” By focusing on the positive in your life, you begin to see that more and
more and the negative less and less. You’ll feel different in as little as one week!
1 – Do one random act of kindness. Studies show that the happiest workers are
the ones that build personal connections with their colleagues. In my coaching
practice, I see this frequently. Those teams that have members who are
connected perform better than those teams who don’t. Humans crave
connection. By doing something kind for another person – buying their coffee,
holding the door open, helping with a project – those feel good endorphins kick in
and you feel happier.
Here’s the deal. The more you operate from a place of gratitude and kindness, the
better you’ll feel. The better you feel, the happier you’ll be.
Sometimes the simplest things have the biggest impact.