Gratitude has the power to change your life if you know how to practice it regularly. That’s what David George Brooke and I discuss in this episode of 8 Unedited Minutes™.
David’s speaking journey started back years ago when he was 19. One of his college professors asked David to speak to his class. After the talk he went back to his car and thought “That’s what I want to be, is a speaker someday”. He didn’t know anything about gratitude yet, but he knew he wanted to be a speaker. 45 years later he finally got the guts to go out and do this “speaking thing”. That was quite a long journey with gratitude woven in throughout it.
As is true for most of us, David experienced some upsetting things in his life. He wasn’t sure how he was going to handle the setbacks, the tragedies, and the traumas. He remembers thinking he’s going to need a coping mechanism. Rather than drugs or alcohol he chose gratitude to deal with the roller coaster of life. That became his topic of choice when he finally started his speaking journey.
It’s the down parts of the roller coaster that you must deal with. The up parts are easier, when you’re flying high and everybody returns your calls and responds to your emails, they look forward to meeting with you, etc. But it’s when you’re down in the pits, down in the bottom, that’s where gratitude really comes in and saves the day. You just need ways to practice gratitude.
The Power of a Gratitude Journal
There’s something so powerful about writing in one, when you talk about flexing your gratitude muscle, so much of it has to do with writing in a gratitude journal. You can write in it every morning or every evening, whatever works best for you. It’s just important that you make it a daily habit.
What’s so powerful about that is there’s something about the power of a pen and paper when writing your thoughts down. Your brain chemistry responds better, and you remember more when you write instead of type. It plants gratitude-filled ideas in your brain.
In David’s gratitude journal there’s a quote on the first page which is worth remembering: “If you think about it it’s like a dream, if you talk about it it inspires you, but if you write about it it empowers you.”
The words David uses the most is “coping mechanism”. Gratitude became a great coping mechanism because there’s so many destructive coping mechanisms out there that people are using just trying to get out of pain. So, if you can take the gratitude piece and focus on everything you’re grateful for and see the glass half full it can make such a big difference in your attitude.
How to Avoid or Pull Out of Downward Spirals
When you have a day when you’re flying high and the next day isn’t so good, gratitude can save the day. You can write down all the great things that happened the day before. When you look back on those great things and access those memories your brain chemistry changes. That will change your outlook and your attitude. To avoid the letdown David always goes back to the basics, such as his gratitude journal.
Think about what are you most grateful for more than anything else in your life? Your life in general, your health, your family, your friends, the roof over your head, etc. All these basics which we take for granted are great to think about and remind yourself that you have a lot to be grateful for. When you stay with the basics you don’t have a letdown. Being rooted in those basic and fundamental gratitude aspects everyday will keep us from most letdowns happen.
In this episode we also discuss:
- How to turn around negative things, like the news, to enhance your gratitude.
- How to retrain your brain to consistently focus on the good stuff in your life so the bad stuff isn’t a factor.
- Ways to develop good habits.
- …and other golden nuggets of advice!
You can get my book here: “Idea Climbing: How to Create a Support System for Your Next Big Idea”
About the Guest
David George Brooke, known as “That Gratitude Guy,” is an accomplished speaker, coach, and best-selling author with a career spanning over 25 years. With over 30 years of experience managing in the corporate world, including as a former Nordstrom store manager, Brooke has established himself as an expert in the field of gratitude.
Brooke is the author of several published works, including “That Gratitude Guy’s Daily Gratitude Journal,” “Monday Morning Minutes,” and “Six-Word Lessons to Embrace Gratitude,” among others.
He is passionate about sharing the wonders of a gratitude mindset and has presented over 850 speeches and workshops in the past nine years, including over 150 virtual presentations in the last 18 months.
As a YouTube Influencer, Brooke has over 1800 gratitude videos on his channel, and his message has been viewed by thousands of people. He is now considered a leading authority on how living a life of gratitude can enhance and improve both personal and professional lives.
Connect with David on LinkedIn
