Comments on: The Role of Gratitude at Work http://positivepsychologynews.com/news/kathryn-britton/20070907387 Positive Psychology News Daily - Daily boost of research-based happiness. Authored by University of Pennsylvania graduates of the Master of Applied Positive Psychology program (MAPP). Sat, 31 Jul 2010 03:12:41 -0700 http://wordpress.org/?v=2.8.4 hourly 1 By: Gratitude from Growing Up in the Depression Years « Positive Psychology Reflections http://positivepsychologynews.com/news/kathryn-britton/20070907387/comment-page-1#comment-25545 Gratitude from Growing Up in the Depression Years « Positive Psychology Reflections Thu, 26 Jun 2008 21:48:00 +0000 http://positivepsychologynews.com/news/kathryn-britton/20070907387#comment-25545 [...] Downward comparisons can be very useful for enhancing gratitude. That means thinking about how things could be worse, or were worse, or are worse for someone else. Jesse’s gratitude comes partly from thinking of the hobos who showed him that having a home and enough food to give some away was something to be grateful for. It also comes from remembering being cold and working hard. According to the poet, Robert Pollock, “Sorrows remembered sweeten present joy.” These experiences from more than 70 years ago have cast a very long gratitude shadow. We came to Idaho from Tennessee in 1935 when I was 6 years old with hope of finding a better life. … All that we brought to Idaho with us was what we could cram into the car. It must have been so hard for mother to have to leave so many treasured things behind. 5 of us made the move, my mother, an aunt, an uncle, a cousin, and myself. Years later I asked my cousin if we camped out. He laughed and said, “No, we just drove and picknicked with a loaf of bread, bologna or cheese and crackers.” We moved to Kimberly, Idaho that fall and into another one room house across from the railroad tracks. Being close to the tracks we had our share of hobo’s knocking on our door looking for a hand out or anything to eat. Though we had little I can remember that my mother always found something to share with them. Our house was just a framed building with no insulation and the winters were really cold. I would walk along the tracks looking for coal that had fallen off of a coal car and sometimes a hobo would toss coal off. Kimberly had a dance hall called “Shadowland” and several name bands played there. After a dance I would get up early the next morning and walk around the building and hunt for beer bottles which I could sell. Once in a while I would find some change or even a bill. I sold the Saturday Evening Post and the Grit magazines and mowed lawns with a really hard to push reel mower with a grass catcher. The money earned was turned over to my mother to help buy groceries. We made our own entertainment by playing basketball, baseball or football when we could find a ball to use. … We also played what we called field hockey. We would use a Sego or Morning Milk can for the puck and what ever for the stick. It was a hard life but I think it was a good time to be growing up. I’m sure it made us appreciate anything that we were able to obtain later in life. [...] [...] Downward comparisons can be very useful for enhancing gratitude. That means thinking about how things could be worse, or were worse, or are worse for someone else. Jesse’s gratitude comes partly from thinking of the hobos who showed him that having a home and enough food to give some away was something to be grateful for. It also comes from remembering being cold and working hard. According to the poet, Robert Pollock, “Sorrows remembered sweeten present joy.” These experiences from more than 70 years ago have cast a very long gratitude shadow. We came to Idaho from Tennessee in 1935 when I was 6 years old with hope of finding a better life. … All that we brought to Idaho with us was what we could cram into the car. It must have been so hard for mother to have to leave so many treasured things behind. 5 of us made the move, my mother, an aunt, an uncle, a cousin, and myself. Years later I asked my cousin if we camped out. He laughed and said, “No, we just drove and picknicked with a loaf of bread, bologna or cheese and crackers.” We moved to Kimberly, Idaho that fall and into another one room house across from the railroad tracks. Being close to the tracks we had our share of hobo’s knocking on our door looking for a hand out or anything to eat. Though we had little I can remember that my mother always found something to share with them. Our house was just a framed building with no insulation and the winters were really cold. I would walk along the tracks looking for coal that had fallen off of a coal car and sometimes a hobo would toss coal off. Kimberly had a dance hall called “Shadowland” and several name bands played there. After a dance I would get up early the next morning and walk around the building and hunt for beer bottles which I could sell. Once in a while I would find some change or even a bill. I sold the Saturday Evening Post and the Grit magazines and mowed lawns with a really hard to push reel mower with a grass catcher. The money earned was turned over to my mother to help buy groceries. We made our own entertainment by playing basketball, baseball or football when we could find a ball to use. … We also played what we called field hockey. We would use a Sego or Morning Milk can for the puck and what ever for the stick. It was a hard life but I think it was a good time to be growing up. I’m sure it made us appreciate anything that we were able to obtain later in life. [...]

]]> By: Senia.com Positive Psychology Coaching » Losing a Laptop in NYC (and “thank you” about Publicani!) http://positivepsychologynews.com/news/kathryn-britton/20070907387/comment-page-1#comment-24937 Senia.com Positive Psychology Coaching » Losing a Laptop in NYC (and “thank you” about Publicani!) Wed, 11 Jun 2008 05:50:09 +0000 http://positivepsychologynews.com/news/kathryn-britton/20070907387#comment-24937 [...] Kathryn Britton wrote that one of the most important concepts of gratitude is being grateful for those bad things that did not happen (like falling during a hike and bruising, but not having a broken leg - being grateful for having the leg) - just reading this in Kathryn’s article changed my thoughts about the concept of gratitude. [...] [...] Kathryn Britton wrote that one of the most important concepts of gratitude is being grateful for those bad things that did not happen (like falling during a hike and bruising, but not having a broken leg – being grateful for having the leg) – just reading this in Kathryn’s article changed my thoughts about the concept of gratitude. [...]

]]> By: " Gratitude Day: A New Tradition " on Positive Psychology News Daily http://positivepsychologynews.com/news/kathryn-britton/20070907387/comment-page-1#comment-10443 " Gratitude Day: A New Tradition " on Positive Psychology News Daily Fri, 23 Nov 2007 15:40:25 +0000 http://positivepsychologynews.com/news/kathryn-britton/20070907387#comment-10443 [...] As any fan of this website would do, I turned to positive psychology for an answer. Gratitude is one of the most researched and most lauded strengths investigated by the field (e.g., Gratitude - The Secret to Getting Back Up, Taking Positive Psychology to Work: The Role of Gratitude, The Energy of Gratitude), and it has no better place in American culture than today; Thanksgiving is Gratitude Day! My set of Thanksgiving traditions, albeit cosy and harmless, was missing meaningful and personal gratitude. So this year I set out to establish a new Gratitude Day tradition: to compile a list of one hundred things I am sincerely grateful for within the past year. [...] [...] As any fan of this website would do, I turned to positive psychology for an answer. Gratitude is one of the most researched and most lauded strengths investigated by the field (e.g., Gratitude – The Secret to Getting Back Up, Taking Positive Psychology to Work: The Role of Gratitude, The Energy of Gratitude), and it has no better place in American culture than today; Thanksgiving is Gratitude Day! My set of Thanksgiving traditions, albeit cosy and harmless, was missing meaningful and personal gratitude. So this year I set out to establish a new Gratitude Day tradition: to compile a list of one hundred things I am sincerely grateful for within the past year. [...]

]]> By: " Happiness at Work " on Positive Psychology News Daily http://positivepsychologynews.com/news/kathryn-britton/20070907387/comment-page-1#comment-9178 " Happiness at Work " on Positive Psychology News Daily Fri, 26 Oct 2007 14:20:53 +0000 http://positivepsychologynews.com/news/kathryn-britton/20070907387#comment-9178 [...] Taking Positive Psychology to Work: The Role of Gratitude by Kathryn Britton (9-7-07) [...] [...] Taking Positive Psychology to Work: The Role of Gratitude by Kathryn Britton (9-7-07) [...]

]]> By: Coffee With Deb Show » Coffee With Deb September 30 2007 Fall Fun http://positivepsychologynews.com/news/kathryn-britton/20070907387/comment-page-1#comment-8434 Coffee With Deb Show » Coffee With Deb September 30 2007 Fall Fun Sun, 30 Sep 2007 10:13:28 +0000 http://positivepsychologynews.com/news/kathryn-britton/20070907387#comment-8434 [...] The Role Of Gratitude At Work There are many facets of work and life in general that we do not control. But we can increase our control over our own responses to them. One way to raise our overall level of well-being even in the face of trouble and stress is to practice and grow stronger at being grateful. [...] [...] The Role Of Gratitude At Work There are many facets of work and life in general that we do not control. But we can increase our control over our own responses to them. One way to raise our overall level of well-being even in the face of trouble and stress is to practice and grow stronger at being grateful. [...]

]]> By: Sevgi Guney http://positivepsychologynews.com/news/kathryn-britton/20070907387/comment-page-1#comment-8374 Sevgi Guney Fri, 28 Sep 2007 14:27:58 +0000 http://positivepsychologynews.com/news/kathryn-britton/20070907387#comment-8374 Dear Kathryn I like your suggestions. They are so realistic and applicable. Person in the street in my country sees the positive psychology as a kind of “polyanna” game. Is that true? Not really. As thinking positive is only one aspect of positive psychology. So I can say the fact that thinking positively in one side is a the “glad game” of polyanna. By glad game, one can easily recognise what she/he have in her/his hand and can easily rescue himself/herself from negative focus and/or whirlpool. On the other side Polyanna makes the people recall somehow “fantastic pink glasses”. Unfortunately “pink glasses” itself recalls mostly the fact that people deceive themselves and ignore the realistic clue. I agree all your suggestions. I, for example, spontaneously using them also. They all works. When I first read an article from possitive psychology once upon a time I said by myself ohh my goodness I have been using these. I have known Prof.Dr. Martin Seligman’s Learned Helpness and Learned Optimisim theories from my clinical psychology degree but I did not know the positive psychology science in detail. We should teach your suggestions to the first of all the education professionals such as high school, primary school teachers, instructors, school counsellors etc. Since thinking positive is a kind of processing phenomena and is taken shape by experiences. Our children can easily learn “to think positively” by their socialisation process. To achieve this goal we have to include positive psychology courses in the psychology departments of the universities. There is no positive psychology course in my country’s psychology department of the universities. Although it is not included yet in the curriculums at the turkish universities I have a strong hope that one day it will and the day is not so late. Thank you for your meaningful and informative article, Sevgi Guney Clinical Psychologist Ankara University Ankara/Turkey Dear Kathryn
I like your suggestions. They are so realistic and applicable.
Person in the street in my country sees the positive psychology as a kind of “polyanna” game. Is that true? Not really. As thinking positive is only one aspect of positive psychology. So I can say the fact that thinking positively in one side is a the “glad game” of polyanna. By glad game, one can easily recognise what she/he have in her/his hand and can easily rescue himself/herself from negative focus and/or whirlpool. On the other side Polyanna makes the people recall somehow “fantastic pink glasses”. Unfortunately “pink glasses” itself recalls mostly the fact that people deceive themselves and ignore the realistic clue.
I agree all your suggestions. I, for example, spontaneously using them also. They all works. When I first read an article from possitive psychology once upon a time I said by myself ohh my goodness I have been using these. I have known Prof.Dr. Martin Seligman’s Learned Helpness and Learned Optimisim theories from my clinical psychology degree but I did not know the positive psychology science in detail.
We should teach your suggestions to the first of all the education professionals such as high school, primary school teachers, instructors, school counsellors etc. Since thinking positive is a kind of processing phenomena and is taken shape by experiences. Our children can easily learn “to think positively” by their socialisation process. To achieve this goal we have to include positive psychology courses in the psychology departments of the universities. There is no positive psychology course in my country’s psychology department of the universities. Although it is not included yet in the curriculums at the turkish universities I have a strong hope that one day it will and the day is not so late.
Thank you for your meaningful and informative article,

Sevgi Guney
Clinical Psychologist
Ankara University
Ankara/Turkey

]]> By: " Mirror, mirror, on the wall… " on Positive Psychology News Daily http://positivepsychologynews.com/news/kathryn-britton/20070907387/comment-page-1#comment-8285 " Mirror, mirror, on the wall… " on Positive Psychology News Daily Tue, 25 Sep 2007 15:14:01 +0000 http://positivepsychologynews.com/news/kathryn-britton/20070907387#comment-8285 [...] So, what can you do if you’re someone who thinks the grass is always greener? Firstly, you can limit your exposure to comparisons. Secondly, regularly take the time to count your blessings and savour the good things in life. Instead of concentrating on what you’re missing out on, think about what you’ve got: in particular the friends and family who we often take for granted, but who really make the difference between a happy life and an unhappy one. To quote Marcel Proust, “Let us be grateful to people who make us happy; they are the charming gardeners who make our souls blossom.” [...] [...] So, what can you do if you’re someone who thinks the grass is always greener? Firstly, you can limit your exposure to comparisons. Secondly, regularly take the time to count your blessings and savour the good things in life. Instead of concentrating on what you’re missing out on, think about what you’ve got: in particular the friends and family who we often take for granted, but who really make the difference between a happy life and an unhappy one. To quote Marcel Proust, “Let us be grateful to people who make us happy; they are the charming gardeners who make our souls blossom.” [...]

]]> By: Gratitude Scrapbook 3: Random bits « Positive Psychology Reflections http://positivepsychologynews.com/news/kathryn-britton/20070907387/comment-page-1#comment-7995 Gratitude Scrapbook 3: Random bits « Positive Psychology Reflections Fri, 14 Sep 2007 22:53:44 +0000 http://positivepsychologynews.com/news/kathryn-britton/20070907387#comment-7995 [...] Dr. Emmons is one of the people I cited in my recent Positive Psychology News Daily article on intentionally practicing gratitude as a means of becoming happier at work. [...] [...] Dr. Emmons is one of the people I cited in my recent Positive Psychology News Daily article on intentionally practicing gratitude as a means of becoming happier at work. [...]

]]> By: Senia http://positivepsychologynews.com/news/kathryn-britton/20070907387/comment-page-1#comment-7754 Senia Wed, 12 Sep 2007 07:02:38 +0000 http://positivepsychologynews.com/news/kathryn-britton/20070907387#comment-7754 Kathryn, I really appreciate this article because given the many concepts in Pos Psych I have a little bit of a tepid attitude towards gratitude, probably because it often seems so general to me. I much prefer specifics, and reacting to specifics. I REALLY like your suggestion #3 even though at first glance it may appear strange - to practice downward social comparisons... research just really does show that this is extremely valuable as a copuing technique and a mood booster. I especially like your suggestion - that it doesn't have to be a downward social comparison of you versus the Joneses. It can be you versus a previous version of you. I really like your concrete suggestions here because often people - including me - can imagine being grateful and thankful for those things that DO exist, but it's harder to be grateful for those yucky things avoided. And that's why your suggestion #2 and your example about just having a bruise and being able to continue hiking is a great example. Also, killer reference list. Thank you. Kathryn,

I really appreciate this article because given the many concepts in Pos Psych I have a little bit of a tepid attitude towards gratitude, probably because it often seems so general to me. I much prefer specifics, and reacting to specifics.

I REALLY like your suggestion #3 even though at first glance it may appear strange – to practice downward social comparisons… research just really does show that this is extremely valuable as a copuing technique and a mood booster. I especially like your suggestion – that it doesn’t have to be a downward social comparison of you versus the Joneses. It can be you versus a previous version of you.

I really like your concrete suggestions here because often people – including me – can imagine being grateful and thankful for those things that DO exist, but it’s harder to be grateful for those yucky things avoided. And that’s why your suggestion #2 and your example about just having a bruise and being able to continue hiking is a great example.

Also, killer reference list.

Thank you.

]]> By: Oplossingsgerichtmanagement » Blog Archive » Dankbaarder worden http://positivepsychologynews.com/news/kathryn-britton/20070907387/comment-page-1#comment-7415 Oplossingsgerichtmanagement » Blog Archive » Dankbaarder worden Sat, 08 Sep 2007 21:04:42 +0000 http://positivepsychologynews.com/news/kathryn-britton/20070907387#comment-7415 [...] Lees het artikel hier [...] [...] Lees het artikel hier [...]

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