Gratitude

Introduction

It is known that gratitude helps us to learn new things, but at the same time, gratitude is highly important in the social and work environment. Gratitude activates the areas of the brain responsible for the reward functions. Compliment can also be perceived as a reward. Compliments help to strengthen connections between people and feel good. Both receiving and expressing gratitude has a positive effect.

When was the last time you received a sincere thank you/compliment? Try to remember what it felt like. This exercise is meant for practising to express compliments to yourself and your colleagues and strengthen the social connections in the team.

The exercise has two parts – Gratitude to yourself and Gratitude to others

Part 1: Gratitude to yourself

Instructions

• Take a piece of paper and divide it in two parts – roughly in halves
• Now think about the recent situations and events at work. Mentally rewind the sequence of events and situations like a film and choose two situations in which you, in your own opinion, have deserved gratitude. Write both situations down in a column – one below the other – on the left-hand side.
• Now think what kind of gratitude you would like to receive in each of the situations? Write them down on the right-hand side – opposite the specific situation
• Now express the gratitude to yourself loudly.
• Write down how you feel right now

Part 2: Compliments to others

Instructions

• Imagine a person you would like to thank for some situation, joint work, help, inspiration or something similar, but you haven’t had the opportunity or time to say it.
• Formulate the thought – what you would like to thank them for – and write it down.
• When you are ready, take the phone and call this person – dedicate time to a positive conversation and thank a colleague. If the colleague is not available, send a text message or a WhatsApp message, email, or choose any other communication medium.
• For your gratitude to sound sincere, you can tell your colleague that you are doing this exercise at the moment and would like to say thanks you have long wished to express.
• Write down your feelings and sensations after the conversation.