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Learn how to start every day in a positive way
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Discover how Thankfulness helps you see your potential
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Learn about building up those around you
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Look into re-wiring negative self-perception and mindsets
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Gain a great skill that can help you for the rest of your life
5 - 15mins sessions contain:
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An informative video
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Key points on Thankfulness
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Daily Thankfulness challenge
We have put together this free online course to help you learn more about how Thankfulness is great for your mental healthiness. Each session takes 5 - 15 minutes. At the start of each day is a great time to watch so that you have the opportunity to put into use what you have learned and give it a go!
In the same way that you have physical health and can do things to improve your physical health, you have mental healthiness and can do things to improve your mental healthiness
Perspectives, the way that you look at your day and world can effect the kind of day that you end up having.
Thankfulness is looking for what you do have and what is going well
Powerful thankfulness is more than a whimsical thought every now and then like when you hear that Bob dropped his phone in the toilet 'I'm glad that wasn't me'
Thankfulness is stopping in a moment and thinking of what you have to be thankful for
Thankfulness is powerful when done daily
What are you thankful for today?
Take a minute and start looking around and considering what there is to be thankful for.
It might be: Thankful for a finger, that it picks things up, has a nail to stop it getting stubbed on things, has nerves to stop it getting hurt.
Follow BeGreat and the Thankfulness Project for more encouragement
What Glasses were you wearing when you woke up this morning?
Do you wake up looking at what you do have or don't have?
You can create Thankfulness Glasses* by looking for all of the things that there are to be thankful for and what is going well
Thankfulness helps you see potential in life instead of just seeing problems
You actually have so much to be thankful for - you are alive, breathing, thinking, you have an amazing body!
You develop your own set of Thankfulness glasses by creating a habit of looking for things to be thankful for each day.
There are different ways to incorporate Thankfulness into your day: think of three things when you wake up, or before you go to sleep. Think of things throughout the day - 'I'm Thankful for this' or keep a gratitude diary at the end of the day;
three things that you are thankful for about the day and why.
*Thankfulness glasses are invisible
Using the forms below, print or edit on computer/online;
1. write down 25 things that you are thankful for.
2. hang it up in your life where you will see it daily.
This will probably take 5 - 10 minutes. We have ideas if you get stuck below
Option 1: Print or Edit online in Canva or another website -
Click on the image, click on download symbol, to download the poster and print or save and open to Edit in canva: https://www.canva.com/
Option 2: Edit in adobe PDF -
Click on the PDF, open in your computer and click once on text spaces to fill out. When complete, click file/export to your desktop.
Option 3: Edit Online
Download the pdf above, click on it and download, symbol top right
Open https://smallpdf.com/edit-pdf
Drag the downloaded pdf file into the program and then add your text and download!
Things to be thankful for - click to open
Thanking others is great for your relationships
Thanking others lifts them up, encouraging and affirming them
Thanking others feels great as you are showing appreciation and kindness
It can be easy to focus on one or two things that you think people are doing wrong but this can prevent you from seeing all that they are doing well
There are many things to be thankful for about people and the more you think about a person, the more great things you can see to be thankful for
You can thank others for everyday things (that may even be their responsibility), doing the dishes, opening the door..
1. Write a letter or note thanking someone or
2. Call and thank them
Take 5 - 10 minutes and write a letter, email or long text to someone thanking them for something and why that is appreciated by you. This can be challenging and out of your comfort zone but be encouraged, its great to express thanks to others.
Reminder posters for thanking others - Print or download to your device
Our brains have thought roads called neurological pathways
If we think a thought enough, our thoughts get used to traveling down these same roads
Using thankfulness you can train your thoughts to go down more positive thought roads instead of negative thought roads resulting in more positive thoughts, actions, and outcomes
The process: What you see/hear, what you think (your thought pathway), what you do (action)
Thankfulness can help you to re-wire your thought process
Use Thankfulness in a situation when you have a negative or discouraging thought to look for and see all that you have going for you ie: Thought: 'I'm not good at maths' Thankfulness 'I'm thankful I have a brain', 'I'm thankful I can dig deep and try to figure it out', 'I'm thankful that I can learn and improve'.
Spend a couple of minutes thinking of a time when you feel like giving up and apply thankful thoughts into this situation to see what you have going for you.
You have a lot going for you, imagination, determination, past wins, the ability to learn, you are alive, this is a new opportunity..
Reminder posters for re-wiring your thoughts - Print or download to your device
Recap:
Thankfulness is how you look at the world: what you do have what is going well
Thankfulness is like putting on a set of glasses, created through a daily habit
Thankfulness is having a prompt of all of the things to be thankful for - like a reminder poster
Thankfulness is great for thanking others and seeing the great things they do
Thankfulness is great for re-wiring your thought pathways
Thankfulness creates ripples in your world around you. As you are more thankful every day, this has an influence on how you behave and treat those around you.
You being thankful can inspire others to be more thankful
Set-up a daily thankfulness habit which could be one of the following:
Thinking of 3 things when you wake up
Journal 3 things you are thankful for at night
Look for things throughout the day
Set up a daily reminder on your phone to prompt you. To create a great thankfulness habit, do this consistently for 21 - 40 days.
Reminder posters for re-wiring your thoughts - Print or download to your device
Click here to read more articles on Thankfulness
Click here to read external research and articles on Thankfulness
Follow BeGreat and the Thankfulness Project for more encouragement
Important mental health note
If you are experiencing struggles with your mental health, are struggling with depression or thoughts of suicide, we strongly urge you to see professional help immediately.
Click here for a list of contacts who can provide you help: https://www.health.govt.nz/your-health/services-and-support/health-care-services/mental-health-services