Meghan Ryan
November 17, 2021
The pandemic has had a major effect on all of our lives, and while it might feel cathartic to list everything that’s gone wrong, practicing gratitude can have great positive effects on your emotional and physical well-being, as well as your relationships. We asked influencers, teachers, and thought leaders to share their thoughts on the importance of gratitude with Prezi Video. Read on to see their responses.
Inspire generosity through gratitude
As CEO of the charitable fundraising platform Pledge, James Citron understands the power of generosity and its connection to gratitude. Being generous gives you a little boost in serotonin and inspires positive change in the world. Even the small things, like dropping some spare change in your coffee shop’s charity fund will have an impact on your community. You can activate generosity in others just by expressing gratitude yourself – watch his video for five ways to show gratitude in your daily life:
Don’t do as the Romans did
The ancient Roman writer Seneca the Elder described the greatest plague to Roman society was that they neither knew how to give or receive gratitude. While we’re far from the issues that plagued the Roman empire, we can see a lot of similarities in modern day culture – political partisanship, class divides, fake news, wars, and even a plague. The ancient Romans struggled with these issues right up to the last emperor, but there’s no reason for history to repeat itself, according to Chris Schembra, the bestselling author of Gratitude and Pasta: The Secret Sauce for Human Connection. He shares his six pillars of gratitude, inspired by the lessons of the Roman empire.
What happens when we forget to be grateful?
Gratitude and privilege are closely intertwined, or at least they are in a perfect world. Without gratitude, your privilege becomes entitlement – you need to acknowledge the hard work that others have contributed to your success to have perspective; otherwise, it’s easy to point the finger at others and blame them for not achieving the same education, wealth, or status that you attained. Andre Koen, Vice President of Diversity, Equity and Inclusion at RevoHealth, discusses the connection of gratitude and privilege in much greater detail in his video. Watch here to learn more:
Put gratitude into action
When you practice gratitude, you open yourself up to more positive feelings, like love and appreciation. In the video below, Prospect Sierra School physical education teacher Summer Cooper walks you through the creation of a gratitude grid, an exercise that allows you to reflect on what you’re grateful for across six areas of your life. The result is a finer appreciation for your present state. Follow along with the exercise in the video here:
Show appreciation for someone
As Charles Schwab once advised, “the way to develop the best that is in a person is by appreciation and encouragement.” When you have a sense of gratitude, you show appreciation and recognize the effort by others. Mike Brummer, Activities Coordinator for the Metro Regional Program for Students Who Are Deaf and Hard of Hearing, reminds his students of this quote and encourages them to show gratitude for the people in their lives. Watch his video for more insight:
Gratitude is something we all could use a little more of in our lives. If you want to learn more, check out our article on gratitude in the workplace or discover more tips in the Video Gallery.
