
One of my favorite activities, whether by myself or while leading one of my teams, is to make a gratitude list. After all, research proves that gratitude is a key element of happiness, so what better way to get in a good mood or get your team in a good mood than a little gratitude.
The activity is quite simple: Set a timer on your phones for 2 minutes (everyone has 2 minutes to spare, right?), open up the Notes app on your phone, and then write the words "I am grateful for" and make as long a list as you can in 2 minutes. Write down everything that goes through your head- it's all good, as long as you feel gratitude throughout the process. You can be grateful for things large and small, simple and complicated, people, material things, and things in nature.
The amazing thing you'll find, is in just 2 minutes, your mood will go from bad to good, or good to great, or great to ecstatic. The power of authentic gratitude to change your mindset is well documented. And over time, 2 minutes at a time, your increasingly positive mindset will absolutely make you a better leader, make you more happy, and change your life. I'll demonstrate, right here and right now:
I am grateful for:
1) my new son Seth and my 2 amazing daughters
2) the sun which keeps our planet warm enough
3) my wife Carrie
4) my family
5) my friends from high school
6) my friends from college
7) my awesome teams at Likeable Local and Likeable Media
8) the internet
9) social media
10) LinkedIn
11) love
12) my first boss
13) my teachers
14) the train that takes me to work each day
15) New York City
16) great theater
17) great books (Give and Take is a must read!)
18) dancing
19) learning
20) laughter
21) clean water
22) oranges
23) my amazing editors
24) ice cream
25) anything gluten-free that actually tastes good
26) the Mets
27) tennis
28) musicians at Penn Station
29) Thanksgiving
30) my new jacket
31) my house
32) my orange shoes
33) opportunities to learn and grow every day
34) my investors
35) mentors who've believed in me
36) trees
37) my parents
38) my brothers
39) my neighborhood
40) sunsets
41) rainbows
42) butterflies
43) unicorns, even if they're not real, for the joy they bring my daughter Kate
44) escalators
45) planes
46) my health
47) my doctors
48) police officers and fire fighters who keep us safe
49) Apple and my new iPhone
50) my advisory board
51) unbiased reporters
52) non corrupt politicians
53) clocks
54) Christmas music (even if I'm Jewish)
55) God and my religious community
56) the amazing opportunities I was born into in the United States
57) Twitter
58) strawberries
59) Darryl Strawberry
60) dark chocolate
61) green tea
62) sushi
63) my executive team at Likeable Local
64) small businesses
65) my winter coat
66) vodka sodas
67) tolerance
68) kisses
69) discounts
70) my favorite bloggers (I'm looking at you, James Altucher!)
71) seasons
72) water slides
73) our partners
74) Disney
75) snow
76) my kids' teachers
77) anyone who can make exercise fun for me
78) fruit salad
79) protein
80) likeable salespeople
81) startup entrepreneurs
82) non-annoying marketers
83) my forum from Entrepreneurs Organization
84) great nonprofits like Donors Choose
85) my life
86) standing desks
87) our core values
88) Mark Zuckerberg
89) fantasy and dynasty league baseball
90) vacations
91) bold people
92) dreams
93) parades
94) jokes
95) enough money
96) helium
97) lessons I've learned even if they seemed tough at the time
98) children's books
99) online education
100) Venn diagrams
101) babies
There you have it, my latest gratitude list! I admit that took 4 minutes, not 2, but hey, I had time to spare and was feeling great so why stop at 2? I feel amazing right about now! How about you? Give a Gratitude List a shot and change your life forever.