“Thank You” Is Good for You

LEARN TO BE MORE GRATEFUL. DAN HARRIS SAYS YOUR BRAIN WILL THANK YOU FOR IT.

WE ARE LIVING in an era of increasing unhappiness. In the US, diagnoses of major depression went up 33% from 2013 to 2016. Loneliness abounds. Anxiety affects 8% of children and teens. Hospitalisations for child suicide ideation or attempts rose for all age groups – including 5- to 11-year-olds – between 2008 and 2015.

Recently, as part of a segment for one of the TV programmes I’m involved in, I visited a high school where they are endeavouring to counteract these pernicious trends. As the principal told me, it’s not enough to teach kids maths and reading; you have to teach them how to be successful humans.

One of their main tactics? Gratitude.

Gratitude is one of the most misunderstood – and yet, deeply useful – concepts trending today. For example, if you think taking a selfie in front of your private jet and posting it with #BLESSED is a way to practise gratitude, you’re doing it wrong. It’s not about showboating. Nor is it about maniacally focusing on the positive and pretending we live in a problem-free world. Oh, and it’s also not a way of using thank-yous as a form of interpersonal manipulation. (One of my favourite cynical takes on the concept is “Gratitude is the expectation of future favours.”)

Done correctly, gratitude is radically simple: it’s the deliberate attempt to not take the many good things in your life for granted. What’s more, science suggests gratitude’s linked to better mental health – and, if practised regularly, more exercise.

To put this gratitude campaign into action, the school recruited Shawn Achor, author of a best-selling book called The Happiness Advantage, which argues that gratitude at any age can boost energy, improve sleep, reduce depression, and increase both optimism and social connection – two of the greatest predictors of long-term happiness.