Even in a world where cars fly, robots look and walk like humans, and brain implants allow people to control their computers with their minds, some truths don’t change. One is that writing down three things you’re grateful for every night is the best way to make gratitude a habit. How do I know? I’ve done it for almost 14 years.
You could come up with all kinds of gratitude practices, and people do. They create worksheets. They make lots of physical reminders or write long letters. They even record 90-minute podcasts about the topic just to talk about gratitude as a practice. Those are all great when you can swing them. But when life happens, and you want to stick to your daily routine, nothing beats sitting there for two minutes, thinking about your day, and writing down three particular items or events you care enough about to call out.
A positive side effect? Over time, you’ll spot patterns, even without a comprehensive data analysis. After many years, I eventually noticed the same points came up again and again—and those points actually made all the difference. Of course I’m grateful when I receive a big gift or praise at work for a launch done well. Who wouldn’t be? But choosing to focus on the sun being out, on finding time for a break, on my bakery reliably producing buttered pretzels, day-in and day-out, that’s gratitude for the long run. It’s gratidepth more so than gratiwidth, and, over time, it adds up.
More so than just providing a consistent level of gratitude every day, I’ve recently found I’m becoming more grateful for my staples as time goes on. It’s not just that I can always rely on them. It’s that this reliance creates history over time, and that leads to a deep, emotional connection. This applies to seeing the sunrise for the 2,000th time, of course, but it especially applies to people.
Sometimes, I sit there and think about how grateful I am for my partner being as present in my life as she is. The fact we get to live together under the same roof, share meals, and sleep in the same a bed each night can make me a bit teary. It may sound goofy, but it’s some of the deepest gratitude I feel—and it all goes back to that simple habit of writing down three things each night.
Gratitude in all forms is great. Sure, broaden your horizons. Squeeze your brain and find odd patterns to appreciate. But profound thankfulness built over many years? That’s something special. You can’t fake it. It’s a uniquely grounding anchor in a world that changes faster than we can keep up with. I hope you’ll choose gratidepth.
