Can’t be Grateful? Acknowledge the Open Window Instead
Posted on November 07, 2015 by Samantha Watson, One of Thousands of Life Coaches on Noomii.
When you can't muster gratitude, try acknowledgement instead.
There is a lot of talk about gratitude. Be grateful! What is the silver lining? Can’t you find anything to be positive about? Neuroscience has demonstrated gratitude can have positive impacts on our health and mood. But there are times where gratitude is outside our capability. Where the stakes are too high, where we just aren’t there yet, or where it seems just plain Pollyanna-ish. So what then?
Acknowledgement. They say when one door closes a window opens. Acknowledge what is enjoyable about your situation. You don’t have to be grateful for the situation itself, but acknowledge the open window, even if the door shut is much bigger in magnitude.
Acknowledgement can be defined as acceptance of the truth or existence of something. So, when you lose your job, acknowledge that it hurts, acknowledge that you are scared, and acknowledge that you don’t have to finish that useless report, or that you can now pick your kid up from school. You don’t have to be grateful you lost your job, but you can acknowledge the joy of an afternoon with your kid and it might just give you the strength to send out some resumes.
What would it look like if you acknowledged the open window each day? Try and comment back.
