Evolution has attuned us to notice negative stimuli more readily.
And remember them more vividly compared to positive ones.
This threat-focused negativity bias was once imperative to our early ancestors’ survival.
While living in the modern era we may not face the same dangers. The bias still plays an important role as we look for potential threats.
For instance, we become waylaid by criticism.
Hung up on life’s unpleasantries.
And consistently weigh the negative aspects of events more heavily than the positive.
Filtering & disqualifying the positive things that happen, undermining much of life’s richness.
We disregard or dismiss countless enjoyable aspects of everyday life as unimportant.
So, it’s imperative to pay deliberate attention to the good things that happen. Regardless of how small or insignificant they may seem on the surface.
Gratitude has helped me:
feel more positive emotions,
build strong relationships,
relish good experiences,
improve my health,
& deal with adversity
I practice gratitude daily as part of my 321 journaling method.
Writing down 3 things that happened in my day I’m grateful for and why I’m grateful for them.
Practicing gratitude isn’t a huge thing, but the change it’s made to my outlook is.