Aug. 15, 2023
MM#260--A Fundamental In Flourishing--A Rock (or a Rosary) in Your Pocket
FAN MAIL--We would love YOUR feedback--Send us a Text Message Have you ever considered how the simple act of gratitude could revolutionize your life? Today's episode of The Theory to Action podcast implores you to just that, as we explore the vital importance of gratitude in leading a flourishing life. Our guide and teacher will be MJ Ryan's book 'The Attitude of Gratitude: How to Give and Receive Joy Every Day of your Life'. Key Points from the Episode: A small rock or a rosary in you...
FAN MAIL--We would love YOUR feedback--Send us a Text Message
Have you ever considered how the simple act of gratitude could revolutionize your life?
Today's episode of The Theory to Action podcast implores you to just that, as we explore the vital importance of gratitude in leading a flourishing life.
Our guide and teacher will be MJ Ryan's book 'The Attitude of Gratitude: How to Give and Receive Joy Every Day of your Life'.
Key Points from the Episode:
- A small rock or a rosary in your pocket might seem trivial but could act as a constant reminder of all the little things we should be thankful for.
- In our deep dive into the science of gratitude, we marvel at how the positive psychology movement has spurred extensive research into the emotional and physical benefits of giving thanks.
- We dissect studies from Martin Seligman's Reflective Happiness website, revealing how practicing gratitude doesn't just boost happiness and reduce depression, but also promotes better self-care.
- If you've got your eyes set on a virtuous and thriving life, join us in discovering how a simple daily habit of gratitude can dramatically shift your mindset and enhance your overall well-being.
Other resources:
MM#100--To Flourish...and Thank You!
MM#63--Learned Optimism
MM#194--The New Year Mindset Trifecta
More goodness
Get your FREE Academy Review here!
Get our top book recommendations list
Get new podcast episodes dropped into your email box easily
Want to leave a review? Click here, and if we earned a five-star review from you **high five and knuckle bumps**, we appreciate it greatly, thank you so much!
Because we care what you think about what we think and our website, please email David@teammojoacademy.com, or if you want to leave us a quick FREE, painless voicemail, we would appreciate that as well.
WEBVTT
00:00:07.608 --> 00:00:20.806
Welcome to the Theory to Action podcast, where we examine the timeless treasures of wisdom from the great books in less time, to help you take action immediately and ultimately to create and lead a flourishing life.
00:00:20.806 --> 00:00:24.850
Now here's your host, david Kaiser.
00:00:25.600 --> 00:00:29.771
Hello, I am David and welcome back to another Mojo Minute.
00:00:29.771 --> 00:00:34.247
Last week we talked about the foundations in flourishing.
00:00:34.247 --> 00:00:39.889
Those foundations are exercising, reading and writing.
00:00:39.889 --> 00:00:50.229
So be sure to check out that Mojo Minute last week to ensure you don't skip any steps along your journey to building and creating a flourishing life.
00:00:50.229 --> 00:00:56.503
But the next step is to get your fundamentals right, your fundies, as we will call them.
00:00:56.503 --> 00:01:11.930
Those fundies are the habits you do each and every day, because by doing them they create strong habits and they start to build those connections in our brains and bodies that help us to automate our flourishing.
00:01:11.930 --> 00:01:30.109
Or, if we can't automate it, we can certainly help make our habits to be part of our routine, but we will feel out of place if we're not doing them, thereby making it harder to not do them versus doing them each and every day.
00:01:30.109 --> 00:01:34.763
And that's how you build a virtuous life, that's how you build a flourishing life.
00:01:34.763 --> 00:01:40.310
And so all that brings us to our fundamental of today, which is gratitude.
00:01:40.310 --> 00:01:44.248
Or, as the popular saying goes, gratitude works.
00:01:44.248 --> 00:01:56.117
And actually we covered a book by that title and we talked about this fundy way back, way, way back in Mojo Minute number 22.
00:01:56.117 --> 00:01:59.087
Wow, mojo Minute 22.
00:01:59.087 --> 00:02:00.483
Seems like forever ago.
00:02:00.483 --> 00:02:04.061
But gratitude does work, in fact.
00:02:04.081 --> 00:02:31.050
Let's go to our first pull quote to enlarge our pull of gratitude Knowledge, going to the book You're holding in your hands, a little book that can, I hope, have a profound effect on your life, to give you a sense of the power of experiencing great fullness, as the Benedictine monk brother David Stendhal Rast calls gratitude.
00:02:31.050 --> 00:02:35.149
I'd like to open with a story to share with you.
00:02:35.149 --> 00:02:43.425
I wrote this book in 1999, sometime after I got an email request from a guy who was a real estate agent in Southern California.
00:02:43.425 --> 00:02:51.227
David started a nonprofit helping teens in the California foster system who were about to turn 18 and lose state support.
00:02:51.227 --> 00:02:55.368
His nonprofit offered transition money, support in a place to stay.
00:02:55.368 --> 00:03:02.947
He wanted to know if I could sell him some copies of this book at a discount to give away to people who donated to his charity.
00:03:02.947 --> 00:03:07.490
I arranged to give him some copies for free and promptly forgot all about it.
00:03:08.199 --> 00:03:09.963
One day a package arrived in my mailbox.
00:03:09.963 --> 00:03:12.129
When I opened it, a small rock fell out.
00:03:12.129 --> 00:03:14.806
I opened the accompanying letter.
00:03:14.806 --> 00:03:23.109
It was from Dave, who was thanking me for the books and sending me the story of one of the youngsters he had helped, a 17-year-old named Lauren.
00:03:23.109 --> 00:03:28.368
Lauren had lived in 12 different foster homes since she was 8.
00:03:28.368 --> 00:03:32.707
When she moved, her possessions fit into one plastic trash bag.
00:03:32.707 --> 00:03:46.207
She was about to quote age out of the California foster system With no place to live, no money, no job, when Dave had met her, but he said she was the happiest person he had ever met.
00:03:46.207 --> 00:03:47.520
Why?
00:03:47.520 --> 00:03:52.808
Because when she was 10, she lived with Mommy Jean.
00:03:52.808 --> 00:03:59.302
Mommy Jean gave Lauren a small rock and told her to carry it always in her pocket Each time she felt it.
00:03:59.302 --> 00:04:08.061
She was to think of something to be grateful for Ever since, no matter where she lived, lauren touched that rock and she was grateful Since that day.
00:04:08.122 --> 00:04:11.028
Whenever I speak about gratitude, I give out pebbles.
00:04:11.028 --> 00:04:30.742
If I could, I would hand you one right now To help you not only practice an attitude of gratitude, but also to remember each time you touch it that, like Lauren, the magic of gratitude will lift your spirits at least a little, and it's available to you each and every day, no matter your circumstances.
00:04:30.742 --> 00:04:34.170
And that is what this book is all about.
00:04:34.170 --> 00:04:37.874
Wow, what a great little story.
00:04:39.048 --> 00:04:50.290
We got this quote from the book the Attitude of Gratitude how to Give and Receive Joy Every Day of your Life by MJ Ryan and I just love that story.
00:04:50.290 --> 00:04:54.254
I had to share it with you and think about that small rock placed in your pocket.
00:04:54.254 --> 00:04:58.644
If it could be a reminder to be grateful for the small things in life.
00:04:58.644 --> 00:05:01.454
I just find that super cool.
00:05:01.454 --> 00:05:10.665
The reason I find it super cool is I actually carry a light wood and rosary in my left pocket every day, so I can actually relate to this practice.
00:05:10.665 --> 00:05:16.757
It is a reminder for me to pray for something or someone throughout my day.
00:05:16.757 --> 00:05:25.605
But I can certainly tack on saying a prayer of gratefulness to our Lord Jesus Christ for his many blessings and graces for today.
00:05:25.605 --> 00:05:31.665
And perhaps, if you're a Catholic, you too can practice carrying a rosary in your pocket as a reminder.
00:05:31.665 --> 00:05:35.665
You can get small wooded ones that are light and easy to fit in your pocket.
00:05:35.665 --> 00:05:46.644
Or if you're a Christian, I know some folks that will carry a little cross, just something to constantly refer them back to their following the cross.
00:05:46.644 --> 00:05:49.644
So I do love this little reminder.
00:05:51.312 --> 00:05:53.665
But let's go back to the book, because here we find another nugget of wisdom.
00:05:53.665 --> 00:06:04.644
When I sat down to write about gratefulness in 1999, the only books on the subjects were religious ones and scientific research was non-existent.
00:06:04.644 --> 00:06:26.831
So what I did was think deeply about the effects of giving thanks on myself and others and wrote about that, and since then, primarily because of the positive psychology movement, there has been an explosion of research on the science of gratitude, and that's our little nugget of wisdom.
00:06:26.831 --> 00:06:28.095
But we'll keep going.
00:06:28.095 --> 00:06:37.060
What David McCullough, robert Eamons and David Snowden and others have discovered confirms all of my amateur armchair philosophizing.
00:06:37.060 --> 00:06:42.675
So what you'll read in these pages is consistent with what we know from the science.
00:06:42.675 --> 00:06:44.559
More on that in a bit.
00:06:45.547 --> 00:06:48.814
I still believe that gratitude is magic, though why?
00:06:48.814 --> 00:07:00.814
Because it is one of the only totally free, unbelievably simple ways to experience a sense of well-being and contentment on an ongoing basis.
00:07:00.814 --> 00:07:08.899
It's so easy that many of us still seem to discount it on that very basis or want to complicate it somehow.
00:07:08.899 --> 00:07:12.625
I remember emailing back and forth with a reporter a few years ago.
00:07:12.625 --> 00:07:16.665
She kept sending me questions about how to practice gratitude.
00:07:16.665 --> 00:07:22.014
I kept writing back in various forms Notice what's right in front of you in your life.
00:07:22.014 --> 00:07:25.713
Finally, after the fourth or fifth question, I replied that's it.
00:07:25.713 --> 00:07:27.478
It's as simple as that.
00:07:27.478 --> 00:07:39.625
There's no magic formula about writing it down or thinking of 10 things or putting a list under your pillow, however, or wherever you choose to notice the goodness in your life, you will experience the uplift of gratefulness.
00:07:39.625 --> 00:07:50.665
It's because it's so simple that we believe it will not work, but you don't have to take my word for it anymore.
00:07:52.369 --> 00:07:59.355
Research has actually confirmed the emotional and physical benefits of giving thanks, and here's where it really gets good.
00:07:59.355 --> 00:08:03.644
One of the most powerful studies comes from Martin Seligman's Reflective Happiness website.
00:08:03.644 --> 00:08:09.665
After counting their blessings for one week, 92% of people felt happier.
00:08:09.665 --> 00:08:14.665
94% of people who said they were depressed felt less depressed.
00:08:14.665 --> 00:08:19.644
That means gratitude is as powerful as antidepressants and therapy.
00:08:19.644 --> 00:08:26.665
Now I'm not saying to throw away your medication, just to be sure to add this easy upper to your routine.
00:08:26.665 --> 00:08:33.664
In other studies, 90% of people found that expressing gratitude made them more joyful.
00:08:33.664 --> 00:08:42.317
84% said it reduced stress and depression and helped create optimism, and 78% said it gave them more energy.
00:08:42.317 --> 00:08:50.664
Now that is some very, very cool stuff there, and I just love the science that confirms what we're actually feeling.
00:08:52.067 --> 00:09:07.269
But more importantly, we find out that the explosions of research in this area is coming from the positive psychology movement, and we know this movement because we have covered that man and this movement before.
00:09:07.269 --> 00:09:13.347
That man is Martin Seligman, and who in the world is he?
00:09:13.347 --> 00:09:17.485
Oh, he's the dude we covered in mojo, minute 100.
00:09:17.485 --> 00:09:18.570
That's all about flourishing.
00:09:18.570 --> 00:09:23.374
And Mojo, minute 63 about how to learn optimism.
00:09:23.374 --> 00:09:34.400
Oh, oh, and we covered Martin and connected him with Michael Hyatt stuff at the beginning of this year, all about changing our mindset.
00:09:34.400 --> 00:09:37.235
We call that one the new year Mindset.
00:09:37.235 --> 00:09:40.604
Try effective, about creating our best year ever.
00:09:40.604 --> 00:09:47.505
That's mojo, minute 194, and you might remember that that fundamental and flourishing.
00:09:48.437 --> 00:09:57.307
We talked about the three virtues in creating a positive mindset Number one, gratitude, number two, humility and number three, charity.
00:09:57.307 --> 00:10:01.645
So that's very good stuff and I'll put a link in the show notes for all these things.
00:10:01.645 --> 00:10:14.947
So if we are focusing on how to get better with this one part of this positive mindset, this gratitude, we are now reading the benefits of it and why we should practice it.
00:10:14.947 --> 00:10:18.674
Let's go back to the book for one last poll quote.
00:10:20.879 --> 00:10:26.129
Research also shows that being grateful means that you'll take better care of yourself.
00:10:26.129 --> 00:10:32.609
Folks who keep a weekly gratitude journal had fewer physical problems and exercise more regularly.
00:10:32.609 --> 00:10:36.365
They ate better and they got regular checkups.
00:10:36.365 --> 00:10:46.663
It seems that when we recognize ourselves in our lives as the precious once-in-a-lifetime opportunities they truly are, we take better care of ourselves.
00:10:46.663 --> 00:10:57.386
It also makes us kinder and more generous to others, less materialistic, more forgiving, more able to deal with stress and less prone to bitterness and be resentment or greed.
00:10:57.386 --> 00:11:12.519
When you take all of these good effects together, practicing appreciation adds six point nine years to your life, which is a greater effect statistically than stopping smoking or exercising.
00:11:12.519 --> 00:11:27.995
Let me repeat that again when you take all these good effects together, practicing appreciation adds 6.9 years to your life, which is statistically greater than stopping smoking or exercising.
00:11:28.879 --> 00:11:30.102
So what's going on here?
00:11:30.102 --> 00:11:35.341
Why is it that gratitude can have such a positive mind, body, spirit effect?
00:11:35.341 --> 00:11:42.039
All we have so far is a hypothesis, but I believe it's a powerful one.
00:11:42.039 --> 00:11:51.927
From research done on Buddhist monk's brains, we are beginning to believe that when we think positive thoughts, such as gratitude, kindness and optimism, etc.
00:11:51.927 --> 00:12:04.126
We activate our left prefrontal cortex and we flood our bodies with the feel-good hormones which give us an upswing and mood in the short term and strengthens our immune system in the long term.
00:12:04.126 --> 00:12:23.024
Conversely, when we think negative, angry, worried, hopeless, pessimistic thoughts, we activate our right prefrontal cortex and we flood our brains and our body with the stress hormones that send us into fight or flight, which depresses our mood, suppresses our immune system.
00:12:23.024 --> 00:12:35.683
In other words, we are bathing our bodies, minds and spirits in good or bad chemicals based on our thoughts, and gratitude is one of the most powerful positive chemical creators.
00:12:36.787 --> 00:12:37.770
I could go on and on.
00:12:37.770 --> 00:12:41.380
If you're interested in the science, please read Robert Eamon's book.
00:12:41.380 --> 00:12:45.327
Thanks, it's the best compilation of the research.
00:12:45.327 --> 00:12:51.003
Oh, we just love good book recommendations, don't?
00:12:51.003 --> 00:12:53.831
We Just love good book recommendations.
00:12:53.831 --> 00:13:03.032
Hold on, I'm jotting that one down, robert Eamon's book, thanks, so there is a little special kind of grace.
00:13:03.032 --> 00:13:04.615
Amen, thank you.
00:13:04.615 --> 00:13:07.388
You can always take good book recommendations.
00:13:07.388 --> 00:13:10.219
And here's another little gem, a little bonus.
00:13:10.219 --> 00:13:24.533
If you will Allow me one last quote Recently I learned the word gratitude comes from the Latin gracia, which also means grace and graciousness.
00:13:25.375 --> 00:13:37.428
I can't think of better qualities that I want to cultivate, particularly these days, whether it is so much division, nastiness and outright hatred being not just condoned but encouraged.
00:13:37.428 --> 00:13:46.299
May gratitude and its sister quality, generosity, flow not just in your mind and heart, but also spread from you to every nook and cranny of our world.
00:13:46.299 --> 00:13:53.452
Gracia, I like it, grace and graciousness.
00:13:53.452 --> 00:14:08.914
In today's Mojo Minute, let's ask simply for that special grace to cultivate in our hearts today an attitude of gratitude for all the special races that have come into our lives, especially on our health and our well-being.
00:14:08.914 --> 00:14:28.105
Let us, more importantly, adopt that attitude and be mindful of it each and every day, and let us practice this fundamental flourishing always and make it a rock or a rosary in our pocket as a reminder of God's grace always working in our lives.
00:14:32.253 --> 00:14:33.515
Thank you for joining us.
00:14:33.515 --> 00:14:36.903
We hope you enjoyed this Theory to Action podcast.
00:14:36.903 --> 00:14:46.067
Be sure to check out our show page at teammojoacademycom, where we have everything we discussed in this podcast, as well as other great resources.
00:14:46.067 --> 00:14:49.894
Until next time, keep getting your Mojo on.
00:00:07.608 --> 00:00:20.806
00:00:20.806 --> 00:00:24.850
00:00:25.600 --> 00:00:29.771
00:00:29.771 --> 00:00:34.247
00:00:34.247 --> 00:00:39.889
00:00:39.889 --> 00:00:50.229
00:00:50.229 --> 00:00:56.503
00:00:56.503 --> 00:01:11.930
00:01:11.930 --> 00:01:30.109
00:01:30.109 --> 00:01:34.763
00:01:34.763 --> 00:01:40.310
00:01:40.310 --> 00:01:44.248
00:01:44.248 --> 00:01:56.117
00:01:56.117 --> 00:01:59.087
00:01:59.087 --> 00:02:00.483
00:02:00.483 --> 00:02:04.061
00:02:04.081 --> 00:02:31.050
00:02:31.050 --> 00:02:35.149
00:02:35.149 --> 00:02:43.425
00:02:43.425 --> 00:02:51.227
00:02:51.227 --> 00:02:55.368
00:02:55.368 --> 00:03:02.947
00:03:02.947 --> 00:03:07.490
00:03:08.199 --> 00:03:09.963
00:03:09.963 --> 00:03:12.129
00:03:12.129 --> 00:03:14.806
00:03:14.806 --> 00:03:23.109
00:03:23.109 --> 00:03:28.368
00:03:28.368 --> 00:03:32.707
00:03:32.707 --> 00:03:46.207
00:03:46.207 --> 00:03:47.520
00:03:47.520 --> 00:03:52.808
00:03:52.808 --> 00:03:59.302
00:03:59.302 --> 00:04:08.061
00:04:08.122 --> 00:04:11.028
00:04:11.028 --> 00:04:30.742
00:04:30.742 --> 00:04:34.170
00:04:34.170 --> 00:04:37.874
00:04:39.048 --> 00:04:50.290
00:04:50.290 --> 00:04:54.254
00:04:54.254 --> 00:04:58.644
00:04:58.644 --> 00:05:01.454
00:05:01.454 --> 00:05:10.665
00:05:10.665 --> 00:05:16.757
00:05:16.757 --> 00:05:25.605
00:05:25.605 --> 00:05:31.665
00:05:31.665 --> 00:05:35.665
00:05:35.665 --> 00:05:46.644
00:05:46.644 --> 00:05:49.644
00:05:51.312 --> 00:05:53.665
00:05:53.665 --> 00:06:04.644
00:06:04.644 --> 00:06:26.831
00:06:26.831 --> 00:06:28.095
00:06:28.095 --> 00:06:37.060
00:06:37.060 --> 00:06:42.675
00:06:42.675 --> 00:06:44.559
00:06:45.547 --> 00:06:48.814
00:06:48.814 --> 00:07:00.814
00:07:00.814 --> 00:07:08.899
00:07:08.899 --> 00:07:12.625
00:07:12.625 --> 00:07:16.665
00:07:16.665 --> 00:07:22.014
00:07:22.014 --> 00:07:25.713
00:07:25.713 --> 00:07:27.478
00:07:27.478 --> 00:07:39.625
00:07:39.625 --> 00:07:50.665
00:07:52.369 --> 00:07:59.355
00:07:59.355 --> 00:08:03.644
00:08:03.644 --> 00:08:09.665
00:08:09.665 --> 00:08:14.665
00:08:14.665 --> 00:08:19.644
00:08:19.644 --> 00:08:26.665
00:08:26.665 --> 00:08:33.664
00:08:33.664 --> 00:08:42.317
00:08:42.317 --> 00:08:50.664
00:08:52.067 --> 00:09:07.269
00:09:07.269 --> 00:09:13.347
00:09:13.347 --> 00:09:17.485
00:09:17.485 --> 00:09:18.570
00:09:18.570 --> 00:09:23.374
00:09:23.374 --> 00:09:34.400
00:09:34.400 --> 00:09:37.235
00:09:37.235 --> 00:09:40.604
00:09:40.604 --> 00:09:47.505
00:09:48.437 --> 00:09:57.307
00:09:57.307 --> 00:10:01.645
00:10:01.645 --> 00:10:14.947
00:10:14.947 --> 00:10:18.674
00:10:20.879 --> 00:10:26.129
00:10:26.129 --> 00:10:32.609
00:10:32.609 --> 00:10:36.365
00:10:36.365 --> 00:10:46.663
00:10:46.663 --> 00:10:57.386
00:10:57.386 --> 00:11:12.519
00:11:12.519 --> 00:11:27.995
00:11:28.879 --> 00:11:30.102
00:11:30.102 --> 00:11:35.341
00:11:35.341 --> 00:11:42.039
00:11:42.039 --> 00:11:51.927
00:11:51.927 --> 00:12:04.126
00:12:04.126 --> 00:12:23.024
00:12:23.024 --> 00:12:35.683
00:12:36.787 --> 00:12:37.770
00:12:37.770 --> 00:12:41.380
00:12:41.380 --> 00:12:45.327
00:12:45.327 --> 00:12:51.003
00:12:51.003 --> 00:12:53.831
00:12:53.831 --> 00:13:03.032
00:13:03.032 --> 00:13:04.615
00:13:04.615 --> 00:13:07.388
00:13:07.388 --> 00:13:10.219
00:13:10.219 --> 00:13:24.533
00:13:25.375 --> 00:13:37.428
00:13:37.428 --> 00:13:46.299
00:13:46.299 --> 00:13:53.452
00:13:53.452 --> 00:14:08.914
00:14:08.914 --> 00:14:28.105
00:14:32.253 --> 00:14:33.515
00:14:33.515 --> 00:14:36.903
00:14:36.903 --> 00:14:46.067
00:14:46.067 --> 00:14:49.894
