119 Things to be Thankful for

Being thankful is one of life’s greatest happiness habits you can add to your life and of course your career.

The more appreciative I become the more successful my life seems to be. It’s like the age old question of “what came first the chicken or the egg?”

When I listen to people who are successful the more I believe gratitude matters. Just listen to the first 5 minutes and Pat can’t gushing about how blessed he feels. You can see how it spreads through his whole life.

Sometimes you have to dig deep to understand what is going on inside of you at a deeper level. When you take this time to dig a little deeper you start to uncover what truly makes you happy.

If you are anything like me you were taught to celebrate the big wins and not the small daily joys that occur on a minute by minutes basis.

So I put myself on a mission. I wanted to silently and quickly say thank you 1,000 times a day for a week. I didn’t keep a checklist of all my gratitude because it would have halted the fun of this project. I probably hit 1,000 maybe on the last day. I probably averaged around 400 - 500 a day. If this project became a chore it would defeat the purpose, so I chose to be flexible with my goals.

Instead of forcing myself to say thank you I put reminders everywhere. In my wallet, on my night stand, on my calendar, on my cereal bowl, in my car...everywhere that could give me a friendly reminder to feel thankful for the moment.

It was a wonderful project. I feel happier and much more satisfied at the end of each day.

So I wrote 117 things I’m grateful for. I’m going to add to the list or start another one, but this is one habit I don’t want to stop doing.

One big lesson I did take away was thinking about why I was grateful for each one, it helped ground it into me. For example. I could have said I’m grateful for my breath and moved on but I wanted to think about why. And the simple answer was because it kept me alive.

My gratitude became 10x more powerful when I combined the what I was grateful for and why it mattered.

Here are my 119 things I was grateful for during my one week thankfulness project. I would love to hear what you are grateful for please add to the bottom of this post or here on this post. My goal is to create an epic gratitude list for people all over the world to enjoy.

1. My breath which keeps me alive.
2. Wild flowers because they grow everywhere.
3. My wife’s love which keeps me grounded.
4. My son who shows me how his toy can make a farty noise, which cracks me up.
5. My dog who can’t resist nestling into my neck when I’m laying on the floor.
6. The playground that has the awesome swirly slide that my son loves.
7. My neighbor who brought us lemon cupcakes.
8. The moon for looking like he’s smiling at me.
9. My ankle for healing even after over a dozen ankle sprains.
10. My beard because some guys can’t grow one.
11. My bed which usually gives me a wonderful night’s sleep.
12. The rollypollies bugs that eat my dog’s poo.
13. The stars for being so shining bright.
14. My computer which allows me to write, reach new people and help you.
15. My local coffee shop that makes me feel comfortable and creative.
16. Balding guys who own it by shaving or buzzing their heads.
17. Gifts that aren’t very good, but the person tried hard to make me happy.
18. A little house built out of legos because it’s fun.
19. The loud bird outside my window that encourages me to wake-up and get out of bed a little earlier than I planned.
20. My jacket on a cold and windy day.
21. My delicious PBJ.
22. My laptop started up without any trouble.
23. Listening to my favorite jazz song from John Coltrane.
24. My Birkenstocks that I wear as slippers around my house.
25. My dog who always wants to be near me while I’m working.
26. My standing desk that allows me to dance while I write.
27. My willingness to keep trying new projects that scare me.
28. My iPhone that allows me to stay connected to my friends, clients and family.
29. Doing a weird little dance because I got a client thanking me for my hard work.
30. Mowing the lawn on a cool day.
31. Laughing so hard my cheeks hurt.
32. My favorite shirt because it feels so soft.
33. The sun because of 1,000 reasons.
34. Stories from my friend Matt that always makes me laugh.
35. Riding my bike to the grocery store.
36. The fresh baked bread at my grocery store.
37. The deaf guy who bags my groceries and his always genuine smile.
38. Seeing the beauty in a lizard sitting on the trip of my front door.
39. My office that we are building in the garage so I have a dedicated place to work.
40. The biggest and most golden turkey I’ve ever seen.
41. Love.
42. My old friend Sam Hafner who always sees the positive in things.
43. The skunk who hides underneath my kids playhouse. Poor thing looks so scared. Hope it doesn’t spray my dog.
44. The warm shower with just the right pressure.
45. Hand lotion, keeping my hands from cracking.
46. The playhouse that the previous owners left and my son can play in.
47. My garden that helps me relax my stress and feeds my family.
48. A beer while watching my favorite team play.
49. Double rainbows because their special.
50. Single rainbows because their fun to look at.
51. Hawks soaring over my house.
52. Owls hooting at night.
53. My favorite pair of jeans that look good with everything.
54. My favorite sneakers that I can walk all day in.
55. NY subway for being so convenient.
56. Wrigley field because I feel like I’m being transported back into the 1950’s.
57. Listening to my son laugh with a friend’s kid in our backyard.
58. Yesterday’s meditation when I felt at peace with a difficult family situation.
59. The builder for building a wall in my garage so I have a dedicated space to work.
60. Walking my dog and watching a hawk fly over my head.
61. The crunch of gravel underneath my feet.
62. My son gently pulling on my arm hairs while we read a book.
63. Starbucks coffee to help me get started on a rough Monday morning.
64. A local bakery that has the most amazing almond croissants ever.
65. Bach piano music.
66. Walking on crunchy leaves.
67. Meditating at the end of a stressful day.
68. Yoga at the beginning of each of my mornings.
69. Reading a great book that inspires an amazing idea.
70. Laughing out loud during a movie. (It’s hard to make me laugh out loud during a movie.)
71. Sitting a sturdy table while I type on my keyboard.
72. My car starting in the morning.
73. A lady smiling at me as I type away on my computer.
74. A well designed sign that is easy to understand and pretty to look at.
75. The creativity in products that companies create to grab my attention and encourage me to buy. (Lucky to live in such a prosperous country)
76. The cloudy weather because we don’t get it as often as where I grew up.
77. Talking to my parents anytime I want whenever I’m feeling happy or sad.
78. Sending a picture of my newly renovated office to my dad and hearing his delight.
79. A white Corvette that is beautiful even though I never want to own it.
80. Happy for a friend’s business success. (My jealousy has decreased as I get older, which I’m even more grateful for.)
81. My red sweater that just keeps on lasting and lasting.
82. Afternoon tea when my energy is waning.
83. Not having afternoon tea and going for a bike ride instead because I needed a change of pace.
84. My mind that helps teach people to be happier.
85. The beautiful dark speckles in the brick.
86. Tile that is easy to clean.
87. A toilet that flushes without clogging.
88. My box of tissues when I’m having a tough day with allergies.
89. Long blond hair my wife has.
90. My wife’s big belly with our baby inside.
91. My son who likes being cold, wearing no shoes or socks on a cold day.
92. How the keys dangle from my wife’s fingers as she waits for her drink.
93. A comfy chair that supports my back.
94. Almond milk because it’s delicious and I’m lactose intolerant and soy milk makes me fart.
95. Using a pencil instead of a pen to write a quick note because it reminds me of elementary school.
96. Listening to my dog chew on her bone and being happy about it even as I’m trying to concentrate.
97. Standing on what foot.
98. The red stripes on my luggage that helps it stand out from the rest of the black bags.
99. A big deep breath when I’m stressed and feel like screaming.
100. Walking super slow to the trash can.
101. Walking quickly to the bathroom.
102. Waving hi to my neighbor who is trimming his bushes.
103. Watching a team of runners job by while I sit in my car and wait for them to pass.
104. Recording software that allows me to record quick and high quality audio that wasn’t possible 10 years ago.
105. A sip of cold water.
106. Holding my son’s hand as we cross the street.
107. Stopping to kiss my wife on top of the head because I feel like it.
108. Building a weird Lego monster with my son.
109. Stopping everything and just feeling my heart beat.
110. Glad my eyes work well so I can see my computer screen.
111. Knowing that there is so much I can improve on and happy that there is so much potential upside to my life.
112. The plant in the corner of my office that is struggling, but stays alive some how some way.
113. My wrist guard that keeps my wrist supported so I don’t feel any pain when I write.
114. My socks that keep my feet warm.
115. My receding hairline that is hanging in and doesn’t need to be shaven yet.
116. My brain that allows me to write fun posts like this one.
117. My lungs for working so well and allowing me to take big breaths.
118. The oil painting of a tree on my wall.
119. My beard that helps me think more deeply when I stroke it.

What are 5 things you are grateful for today? (Just let us know in the comment section below.

Sometimes you have to dig deep to find things you are grateful for and when you do you'll see the benefits very quickly. That's why it's important to have an internal coaching process that works for you.