28 Days of Gratitude Challenge
28 Days of Gratitude Challenge
We are almost to the month of November which is traditionally when we are already reflecting on giving thanks, so I decided to create the 28 Days of Gratitude Challenge to help us celebrate Thanksgiving this year by spending daily time each day reflecting on the things we are grateful for. If you’d like to sign up for the FREE 28 Days of Gratitude Challenge, you can do so through this link.
In this blog post, I’m going to be talking a bit about the power of gratitude as well as giving more detail about how you can be part of this challenge, so please keep reading!
Are you wondering if a Gratitude Challenge is right for you? My 28 Days of Gratitude Challenge is free and full of fun ideas and inspiration to help you add daily gratitude to your life. There's nothing to lose! It's fun, sure to make you smile, and will give you a daily dose of happiness straight to your inbox. Sign up now to start your challenge using this link! #GratitudeChallenge #DailyGratitude #Grateful #Happiness
What is Gratitude?
I talk about Gratitude all the time, and I have written a number of previous blog posts about it, but often I find that there are many misconceptions about what it actually is. Most people think it’s just being thankful for the good things in life, and although that is part of it, there is much more to it than that. I like to think of it like this. Gratitude is the mindful conscious decision to focus on the good things in life in spite of the bads and to find some joy in each and every situation of our lives.
The practice of gratitude is a powerful tool. In fact, it is the most powerful way I have found that we can shift our mindset from the negativity that wants to pull us down.
Gratitude is a Powerful Tool
Here are just a few of the amazing statistics that have been seen in people after implementing a gratitude practice in their daily life:
Keeping a gratitude diary for 2 weeks has been shown to reduce levels of stress and depression by as much as 30%.
The use of gratitude can help lower the stress hormone cortisol by up to 25%.
Writing a gratitude letter has been shown to reduce feelings of hopelessness by 88%, and it has been shown to increase levels of optimism by 94%.
Gratitude has been shown to create a 10% improvement in sleep quality of those struggling with insomnia.
Many studies have shown that consistently keeping a gratitude journal for 21 days will actually rewire the happiness centers in your brain.
Gratitude In Your Daily Life
Many people struggle to know where to begin when implementing the practice of gratitude in their lives, and after some of my posts about gratitude during the summer, I received a lot of questions about how to implement a gratitude practice. Keeping a daily gratitude journal can be a great way to start incorporating the practice of gratitude into your life, but it can be a struggle to know what to focus on and how to actually know what to write in the journal each day.
This is how the 28 Days of Gratitude Challenge was developed, and I cannot wait to lead you through the process! Here is the link to sign up.
Are you feeling stressed out, anxious, or depressed? Did you know daily practice of gratitude can help reduce the negative feelings and lift you up towards happiness? If you are ready to live better, sign up for this free 28 Days of Gratitude Challenge through this link. #GratitudeChallenge #DailyGratitude #Grateful #Happiness
Gratitude as Self-Care
The practice of gratitude can be incorporated into your existing self-care routine or it can be a way to start a daily self-care routine. However you decide to use gratitude, it’s important to remember that consistency is the key. As I always say, start where you are and do what you can. I hope you will give the practice of gratitude a try, and I would love to know about your experience with it as we go through the challenge. Here is the link where you can sign up.
3 Things Gratitude Does for Us
Some additional helpful tidbits when thinking about starting a gratitude practice and the benefits of using it in your daily life
Gratitude amplifies, rescues, and connects.
Gratitude amplifies: The good we see in ourselves and in others is multiplied and magnified by using gratitude as a tool. Gratitude helps us see and solidify the goodness in our lives by turning our attention and focus on those things. Rather than focusing on the negative aspects of life, focusing on gratitude amplifies the good we see in ourselves and in others.
Gratitude rescues: Our brains are almost hardwired to see the negatives and the bad things in our lives and all around us. The world we live in is also really good at giving us reasons to believe the negative messages, almost like we are hijacked from being able to see anything good. Gratitude is an ally to help counterbalance these internal and external threats to happiness. Rather than being robbed of our joy, gratitude can help us get back on track in order to find contentment and inner peace.
Gratitude connects: We are not alone on this journey of life, but we can often feel isolated and at odds with others. Gratitude is a way of strengthening and solidifying the relationships in our lives, and it helps us build bridges of connection with others.
Are you ready to take on the challenge of Gratitude? Sign up now through this link to get daily tips, inspirations, and activities to help you complete 28 Days of Gratitude. It's completely free and full of happiness! #GratitudeChallenge #DailyGratitude #Grateful #Happiness
How the 28 Day Challenge Will Work
The 28 Days of Gratitude Challenge will begin on November 1, and each day I will be going live in my Instagram stories as well as my Facebook page to give you some information and teaching about the practice of gratitude as well as giving you a daily gratitude reflection prompt or activity for the day. These tasks should take no more than 5-10 minutes to complete, and the idea is to give thanks and reflect on gratitude every day leading up to Thanksgiving on November 28. I will be updating this blog post with links to the live videos, so you can always access them.
I will also be sending you a daily email with the prompts or activities, so you’ll be sure to never miss anything. Click here to sign up for this FREE challenge!
And, please know that even if you don’t start on November 1, you can still take part in this challenge. Just start on whichever day you join us, and feel free to go back and complete the previous activities whenever you get a chance.
It only takes 21 days for the brain to start rewiring itself, so I am so excited to see the progress after 28 days!!!
What do you say? Are you in?! Let’s do this!!!
Supplies for the Challenge
Here are a few of the supplies you may need to help you during this challenge.
This book is a great foundational resource all about gratitude and ways to practice it. I will be using it as a reference throughout the 28 Days of Gratitude Challenge, and it would be a great companion to the challenge.
Journals
I love using my Moleskin journals, because they come in all sizes and colors!
XIDUOBAO Writing Journal Notebook, Leather Colorful Journals Pack of 4
Colorful Personal Notebook Set of 6 with Lined Pages, Elastic Band and Ribbon Bookmarks
Pens, Markers & Highlighters
Here are some links to my favorite pens and markers that I use in my own gratitude journaling:
Thank you notes
***This post contains affiliate links, and I may receive a very small commission if you purchase through those links at no additional cost to you. Thank you for helping me out.***
Work with Me
If you are interested in setting up an appointment for therapy, life coaching, or consulting or if you would like more information about ways to start the process of using gratitude in your life, you can call my office directly at 314-485-9189 or feel free to send me a message. My direct email address is lindsay@lindsaywalden.com and you can also follow me on Facebook, Instagram, and Pinterest for more life and relationship tips!
Don’t forget to sign up for the FREE 28 Days of Gratitude Challenge at this link!
I will be launching a number of new workshops and coaching groups in the next few months, so there will be many ways to connect and work with me! Stay tuned for details on them coming soon!
Therapy Thoughts with Lindsay Podcast
Each new podcast episode is uploaded to my Therapy Thoughts Podcast Blog on the website Thursday afternoons at 2:00pm CST, and then it is shared to all the podcasting sites from there. It is also available on the Apple iTunes podcast site, and you can subscribe so you never miss an episode!
In last week’s episode we talked about some relationship questions that were submitted recently, and I discussed the concept of relationship PTSD. We also talked about another challenge I took part in recently called the #NoComplainingChallenge which was amazing and helped me tremendously with my mindset. If you want to check out Episode 10, here is the link.
I really am so grateful to all of you for your continued support, and I hope you’ll tune in this Thursday for Episode 11. Remember to make sure you are following all my social media platforms so will know when each new episode is available. And, make sure you subscribe to my YouTube channel, so you will be able to watch the episodes once we start recording them on video as well as audio!
What’s Your Word?
For the past few years, I have decided to pick a yearly theme or word/phrase as a way to guide my goal setting and vision for the next year. I start that brainstorming process in October during my reset phase, so that I have a lot of time to give it a lot of thought. I talked about the 3 R’s: Reflect, Recharge, and Reset in a blog a few weeks ago if you’d like to check it out here to learn more about what I mean by the reset phase.
My theme/word for 2018 was self-care and I spent the entire year finding ways to create, attempt, practice and establish my self-care routines. It was such a transformational year, and I loved that I had a guiding concept to keep me on track through the year.
My theme/word for 2019 is unalome. Basically it is the concept that the journey to your destination is not straight. In fact, it’s quite curvy and bumpy, but it’s all headed towards forward progress and reaching goals. I received the word unalome on a What’s Your Word? bracelet in my December CoachCrate. I love my bracelet so much, and it’s with me everyday.
In fact, I love it so much I decided I wanted to be able to make my own and offer them to others looking to create a word/phrase to guide them. I am offering a kickoff discount for anyone wanting to get their new What’s Your Word? MyIntent bracelet, necklace or keychain from me. Send me a message to my email lindsay@lindsaywalden.com and include the code: WORD2020LW to save 20% off your order. If you’d prefer to order directly from the website, you can find my shop link here and save $10 off your order!
CoachCrate
Not only did I receive my first What’s Your Word? MyIntent bracelet from my CoachCrate last December, the monthly subscription service has helped me stay regular with my self-care in so many ways. I would love to have you join me on the CoachCrate adventure. November’s theme is Vulnerability, and I cannot wait! If you want to join me, you can save money on your first order using my link and the code FIRSTBOX at checkout! I stalk my mailbox waiting it to arrive each month!
