As we gather together, either in-person or over Zoom to celebrate Thanksgiving with our families, we think about what we’re grateful for. Whether it’s a successful business, our health, or the ability to spend more time with our loved ones, we assess what we’re truly grateful for in our lives. 

However, in reality, we shouldn’t limit our gratitude to just one day a year. We should take the time to recognize what we’re grateful for each and every day. Gratitude not only helps us reframe our perspective, it also has benefits in our business and other areas of life as well.

Why gratitude matters in business and in life 

Gratitude goes hand-in-hand with recognition and value.

In network marketing, gratitude means expressing thanks for your network – your customers, prospects, and distributors. It’s expressing thanks to your upline, especially those who act as mentors or role models for you in your business. 

If you’re like many people, you’ll take a moment and send your thanks into the universe. You can also message them periodically to say thanks and express gratitude for their business, mentorship, etc. Regardless of what you do, at the center of your intention is recognition. 

We all want to feel recognized, right? Whether we realize it or not, it’s nice to feel as if people appreciate what we do for them, whether it’s lending an ear, purchasing from their business, or encouraging everyone we know to purchase from their business. The same is true for your network. Whether they’re new customers or our business’s biggest advocates, it’s important to recognize their commitment to making our network marketing business successful. 

“When I started counting my blessings, my whole life turned around.”

– Willie Nelson

Appreciation breeds appreciation

When you recognize them and their contribution to your company, a funny thing happens – they’ll repeat the behavior. They’ll continue to support your business and may even encourage others to support your business as well. They appreciate your appreciation.

What’s even better is that you’ll continue to build and strengthen your relationships with the people in your network, whether they’re new customers or old advocates. The stronger your network, the stronger your business. 

Gratitude in life

All of this gratitude spills over into the rest of your life as well. You’ll find yourself thankful for different aspects of your life, both big and small. And, the more attuned you are to seeking out things to be grateful for, the more things you’ll find that you are grateful for. This gratitude is contagious! When you show appreciation to someone, they are more likely to pass their appreciation on. Appreciation makes them feel great and they begin to wonder who they can thank to pass those great feelings on. Then, whoever they thank expresses thanks to someone in their life, and the cycle goes on and on! 

Additionally, the more you express thanks and appreciation, the better and more optimistic you’ll feel. All that positive thinking will boost your productivity and make you even more successful.

“Gratitude is not only the greatest of virtues but the parent of all others.”

– Marcus Tullius Cicero

Why you should take a gratitude inventory

A gratitude inventory is a list of things you’re grateful for. It’s so easy in daily life to lose sight of all the blessings we have. Unfortunately, something bad will happen to knock us sideways and all of sudden we feel rotten and negative. If one bad thing can ruin our days, think of the impact one positive thing could have?

Every day there is something to be thankful for and appreciate. Perhaps is the sun shining outside or even a much-needed rain shower. Maybe your spouse made you your coffee just the way you like it or your son or daughter gave you a huge hug “just because.” Or maybe a customer you’ve been consistently checking in with finally responded to a message and wants to buy from you or join your team. All of these things are great and praise-worthy; however, it’s easy to forget about them, especially if we get busy or if we succumb to the distractions of the day. 

A gratitude inventory

A gratitude inventory allows you to make a list of everything you’re appreciative of that occurred throughout the day. Although most of these experiences will be positive, some may not be. It is healthy to appreciate situations that allowed you to learn a lesson or grow as a person. For example, if a prospect turns down the opportunity you presented or is not interested in buying from you, you can be thankful that they were honest with you. Now you know that your business isn’t for them; however, they may know someone who would be interested. When you connect with them in the future, you can take a different approach, if that’s something you choose to do. Or, if you have to take a day off away from your business to take care of a sick loved one, you can feel gratitude that your business allows you the flexibility to take the time to care for your loved ones. You can make it up the next day by calling more people during your Power Hour. 

Gratitude helps you look at things differently.

“Gratitude for the present moment and the fullness of life now is the true prosperity.”

– Eckhart Tolle

Getting in the gratitude habit

It’s true, gratitude is a habit. It’s one that needs to be developed like any other habit, like working out daily. Think of it as working out your gratitude muscles.

It all starts with a list…

It doesn’t matter whether you use a pen and paper or an app on your phone or tablet. Start by writing down everything you’re thankful for. If you’re not sure where to begin, start with today. What are you thankful for today? 

Then, think about your business. What are you thankful for in your business? What about in your life – what are you thankful for in your life?

Jot down everything and be specific. Don’t think, just write. It only takes a few minutes. When you think you’ve covered it all, set your list aside.

“Thankfulness is the beginning of gratitude. Gratitude is the completion of thankfulness. Thankfulness may consist merely of words. Gratitude is shown in acts.”

– Henri Frederic Amiel

Continue adding to the list

Add three things to the list every day. Some people choose to do it first thing in the morning, while others wait until the evening to jot down their gratitudes. It doesn’t matter when you do it; it just matters that you do. Although three is an ideal number, you can add more if you wish, especially if you had an especially fantastic day. 

Review your list

This is the most powerful part of the process – the review of your list. You see, writing down what you’re grateful for is only half the exercise. The other half is reviewing the list and remembering all the wonderful blessings you’ve experienced. It’s easy to forget. If your spouse or kids does something wonderful on Monday, you’ll likely forget by Wednesday. Reviewing your list allows you to fondly remember all the good in your life.

When you’re having a rotten day or you’re losing confidence in yourself or your business, reviewing your list will help you gain perspective. Perspective is the first thing that’s lost when things aren’t going your way. It’s too easy to begin to believe that negative, critical voice in your head. However, with perspective you’re able to look upon your situation with different eyes. You may even begin to appreciate the challenges and setbacks as they provide you with the opportunity to appreciate the good times so much more (not to mention any lessons you learn along the way). 

“Be thankful for what you have; you’ll end up having more. If you concentrate on what you don’t have, you will never, ever have enough.”

– Oprah Winfrey

What if you don’t have time to add to your list every day?

If remembering to add to your list is just too much, make it a habit to do it once a week. Maybe each Sunday, find a quiet spot in your house and take fifteen or twenty minutes to write what you’re thankful for from the week. Once you start writing, you may be surprised by how much stuff you remember from the week. Even if you think your week was terrible or a bit ‘meh’, you may realize it was pretty awesome once you remember all the great things that happened. 

Teamzy is thankful for you!

We’re so thankful to each and every one of our members who rely on our Teamzy CRM to help them grow their network marketing businesses! We love to hear all about your successes and are proud to be part of your network marketing experience.