Light Up Your Business
Welcome to the Light Up Your Business podcast, where we dive deep into the strategies, stories, and insights that drive growth, change, success and innovation for small business owners.
Each episode dives into the struggles behind the scenes—from burnout and financial pressure to self-doubt and juggling personal life. Whether you’re just starting out or scaling up, this podcast offers candid conversations, practical advice, and encouragement to help you stay grounded, find balance, and keep going. Because building a business shouldn’t mean losing yourself in the process.
Light Up Your Business
How Gratitude Can Change Your Brain and Your Life
Dive into this enlightening exploration of gratitude and its remarkable impact on our lives. Today's episode unfolds the science behind gratitude, revealing how this simple emotion can enhance happiness, improve mental health, and strengthen relationships. Host Tammy Hershberger shares inspiring insights about the benefits of gratitude, including its effects on brain chemistry and emotional resilience.
Learn practical strategies for incorporating gratitude into your daily routine, from keeping a journal to expressing appreciation in your relationships. Hear how gratitude can lead to greater happiness and satisfaction both at home and work, encouraging a mindset shift toward positivity. As we navigate through the conversation, discover how gratitude not only improves individual health and emotional well-being but also fosters stronger social bonds and teamwork.
The episode emphasizes the importance of taking a moment to appreciate the little things in life, encouraging listeners to reflect on what they are thankful for daily. Whether you’re familiar with gratitude practices or exploring them for the first time, this episode offers valuable insights to enhance your journey toward self-awareness, encouragement, and overall well-being.
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Welcome to the Light Up your Business podcast, the show where we dive deep into the world of small businesses. I'm your host, tammy Hershberger, and each episode will bring you inspiring stories, expert insights and practical tips to help your small business thrive. Whether you're an entrepreneur just starting out or a seasoned business owner, this podcast is your go-to source for success in the small business world. Let's get started to source for success in the small business world. Let's get started. Hi everyone, I want to welcome you back to another episode of Light Up your Business podcast. My name is Tammy Hershberger and today I want to talk about gratitude and the effects on the brain.
Tammy Hershberger:So this article I found by this person named I'm going to probably destroy this person's name, but it's Madhulina Roy Chowdhury and it was wrote on April 9th of 2019, and it was scientifically reviewed by William Smith and it says it's talking about how we all want this happy life, these cushy jobs, perfect family, financial stability, great social life, and we're always in this infinite pursuit of happiness. That is mostly kind of a mirage, right, and you think about, like, how often do we really experiment to say thank you and appreciate what you have in the moment? Gratitude is a very powerful human emotion. By conveying and receiving simple thank you messages, we can truly derive the pleasure that we seek everywhere else. Gratitude comes from the Latin word gratia, which means gratefulness or thankfulness. So really, in this most simple form, gratitude is a state of thankfulness or a state of being grateful. Proverbs says gratitude can transform common days into thanksgiving, turn routine jobs into joy and change ordinary opportunities into blessings. So in positive psychology, gratitude is the human way of acknowledging the good things of life, and Scientologists I don't know where that just came from psychologists have defined gratitude as a positive emotional response that we perceive on giving or receiving a benefit from someone.
Tammy Hershberger:Gratitude is associated with personal benefits that were not intentionally sought after, deserved or earned, but rather because of the good intentions of another person. That's according to Emmons and McCullough in 2004. That's according to Emmons and McCullough in 2004. So thanking others, thanking ourselves, you know, thanking Mother Nature or, in my case, the Almighty God, gratitude in any form can enlighten the mind and make us feel happier. It has healing effects on us.
Tammy Hershberger:The benefits of gratitude are endless and in this article we're going to go into here it talks about like trying to explore what gratitude is, the scientific base on it and understanding how we can use gratitude to be happier in our life. So they have this little triangular chart thing in this article and it's talking about the benefits of gratitude. So first you get a happier you, you have positive emotions and thoughts, you're more aware and awake, you have increased self-satisfaction, your mood is enhanced, and then you have these physical benefits, so it's maybe a fitter you. Your immune system gets stronger, you have less body aches and pains, your blood pressure is optimal and your cardiac functioning is working great. You get better sleep. And then there's the better you, which is the social side, and that's better communication, more empathy, stronger interpersonal relationships, more likability among group members, more involvement as a team member. So if you take gratitude as part of a happy life and being happy may result in a better health across a lifetime the most immediate and reliable benefits of gratitude are likely to be psychological and social rather than the physical. So how does gratitude work? Excuse me, my throat's messed up.
Tammy Hershberger:There's a quote from Robert Brault that says enjoy the little things, for one day you may look back and realize they were big things. I think that's kind of what we forget is like, especially me being a business owner and doing all the things I do. I get so enthralled in these like big moments of like I got to hit a million dollars, I got to double the business, I got to hire five people this year, whatever. And I forget about like just the most basic stuff. I mean, this morning I kind of thought about that. I was like, well, man, I'm really enjoying my warm cup of coffee on this cool morning right, or when it's summertime and I'm out on my patio and the birds are chirping and there's a nice little breeze and it's sunny and I'm, you know, just sitting there enjoying the moment, or the times when, you know, I look at my little as I call him my grandson. I don't actually have kids, but I've adopted this kid as my grandson, so, if you don't like it too bad, but in those moments I look at that little guy and he's smiling and he's playing and he's happy and I'm like this is what it's about. This is such a great moment watching him be happy, and so those things like that is what we need to kind of focus on.
Tammy Hershberger:So gratitude in all forms is associated with happiness. So whether we say thank you to someone or receive the same from someone else. The feelings it brings is a pure satisfaction, encouragement. Expressions of gratitude help in building and sustaining long-term relationships, helps us deal with adversity and bounce back from them with strength and motivation. So let's talk about gratitude and how it brings happiness. Gratitude improves interpersonal relationships at home and at work. The connection between gratitude and happiness is really multidimensional. When you express gratitude, basically to others, but also to ourselves, it induces these positive emotions and it's mostly happiness ourselves, and induces these positive emotions, and it's mostly happiness. By producing feelings of pleasure and contentment, gratitude impacts our overall health and well-being as well.
Tammy Hershberger:In a survey on gratitude that was done on adult professionals, this British psychologist and wellness expert named Robert Holden found that 65 out of 100 people that were selected over health, although they indicated that both were equally important for good life Holden, in a study, suggested that the roots of many psychological conditions like depression, anxiety and stress are really caused by unhappiness. So think about that. When we're depressed, we might be blaming our spouse. When we're depressed, we might be blaming the weather. When we're depressed, we might say, well, I just don't have enough money. Or we're anxious or stressed, it's because of work. Well, it's probably more that you're just not happy.
Tammy Hershberger:Simple practices like maintaining a gratitude journal, complimenting yourself, sending small tokens and thank you notes to maybe your spouse or, you know, your friends, can make them feel a lot better and enhance their mood almost immediately. A couple of studies have also indicated that partners who express their thankfulness to each other often sustain their relationships with mutual trust, loyalty, and they had long-lasting happy relationships. So when you look at basically gratitude on the left side, true happiness on the right side, what kind of falls down the middle? Well, it's optimism, it's selflessness, it's spirituality, it's empathy and self-esteem. So gratitude improves your health. So just being thankful improves your health.
Tammy Hershberger:Gratitude impacts on mental and physical well-being Positive psychology and mental health. Researchers in the past few decades have established an overwhelming connection between gratitude and good health. So keeping like a nice little gratitude journal causes less stress, improves the quality of your sleep and builds emotional awareness by just writing down things you're happy and thankful for. Right, it also builds professional commitment. So when you think about grateful from the sense of workers, they're more efficient, they're more productive, they're more responsible. By expressing gratitude in the workplace in a very proactive way towards building interpersonal relationships and bonds, they trigger feelings of closeness and bonding.
Tammy Hershberger:So if you want your team, who's very divided, to come together, let's talk about some gratitude, right, maybe they're thankful for their job, maybe they're thankful that you bought them new equipment. Maybe they're thankful they have a warm, you know office to work in. Whatever, find ways to bring gratitude in. Maybe you tell them how grateful you are for them and then they recognize good work they give and that gives everyone their basically own importance in the group and then they'll actually communicate with the other team members and remember gratitude is really important. To be a leader Also, you need to be compassionate, considerate, empathetic and love others, right, but gratitude will help bring all that out, I believe.
Tammy Hershberger:And then there's this neuroscientific research into gratitude and it says Zig Ziglar if you're a fan of him, like I am he says gratitude is the healthiest of all human emotions. Isn't that interesting Gratitude? Some people, I all human emotions, isn't that interesting Gratitude? Some people I don't even think. Think of gratitude as an emotion. Emotion, you know, sadness and depressed and anxious. But gratitude is thankful, I am thankful. It actually kind of makes me smile when I say I'm thankful, makes me appreciative, makes me happy. So it says gratitude was significant in ancient philosophies and cultures, for example in the Roman culture and I'm going to butcher this name where Cicero mentioned gratitude as the mother of all human feelings and an area of neuropsychological research. However, it was a rare subject of concern until the last couple of decades.
Tammy Hershberger:So let's kind of get into the gratitude on the brain stuff here. So it says neural mechanisms that are responsible for feelings of gratitude have grabbed attention lately. Studies have demonstrated that at the brain level, more judgmental geez, I can't even talk more judgments involving feelings of gratitude are evoked in the right anticular temporal cortex. People who express and feel gratitude have a higher volume of gray matter in the right interior temporal gyrus, which is so interesting. You can actually see it in the brain. There's more tissue there. It's so interesting how our bodies are made, I think you there. It's so interesting how our bodies are made, I think.
Tammy Hershberger:So there's this little chart here. It says gratitude in the brain. So one wires and fires new neural connections to the bliss center, which is kind of always happening the more grateful you are. It enhances dopamine and serotonin and the neurotransmitters are responsible for happiness. So the more of that you're getting, the more happy you're going to be. It reduces fear and anxiety by regulating the stress hormone, and then it fosters cognitive restructuring by evoking positive thinking. So you look at all that and I'm like, well geez, just being grateful, just being thankful, does all of that? I have more dopamine and serotonin flowing through my brain, right? I have this cognitive restructuring happening that's making me think more positive. I have all these anxieties being reduced and more regulated I mean, who doesn't? Just by being thankful, by being grateful, right? So this is kind of interesting. I'm talking about neurotransmitters. You know I'm not a science person, I'm not smart in that direction, so I'm just going to read this to you. It says Emily Fletcher, the founder of Ziva, a well-known meditation training site, mentioned in one of her publications that gratitude is a natural antidepressant.
Tammy Hershberger:The effects of gratitude, when practiced daily, can also be the same as medication. It produces a feeling of long-lasting happiness and contentment, the psychological basis of which lies at the neurotransmitter level. So when we express gratitude and receive the same, our brain releases dopamine and serotonin, the two crucial neurotrans transmitters responsible for our emotions, and they make us feel good. They enhance our mood immediately. They make us happy from the inside out. So by consciously practicing gratitude every day, we can help these natural pathways to strengthen themselves and ultimately create this permanent grateful and positive nature within ourselves.
Tammy Hershberger:And anytime we don't have to take medicine. I am for it Because medicine is the problem I have. Now I'm not telling you don't take your medicine, but if you look at those medicines and that's I'm going to give you a kind of a drastic example, but I don't know, say it's for migraines and I'm taking this medicine. Well, some of those medications you have hair loss, weight gain, your knee could fall off. I feel like there's like these nasty side effects that are sometimes actually way worse diabetes, other things than what you're actually trying to treat. So I'm like you're going to fix your knee, but your arm's going to fall off or whatever. Because I'm like, just please look at the side effects and think, is this worth what I'm trying to fix? Because it's going to cause me to have all these other problems. And so when you can find these natural ways, I say do it.
Tammy Hershberger:So then it talks about gratitude and social psychology. Gratitude has a social aspect to it that argues basically that it's really a socially driven emotion. Social psychologists believe it to be entwined with the perception of what we have done for others and what others have done for us. So it's kind of the give and take. According to them, gratitude is an emotion that directly targets at building and sustaining social bonding. Okay, so, like the more grateful we are with each other, the more we're going to bond. So in this sense it's got like your emotions or feelings of gratitude lead to perceived social support and likability, which leads to improved group dynamics and communications, which then all flows into these strong interpersonal connections. We all want friends, we all need them, and so we kind of build each other up with this gratitude.
Tammy Hershberger:How gratitude affects the brain. It is not happiness that brings us gratitude, it is gratitude that brings us happiness. So think about that. If you say, um, I have to be happy before I'm grateful, I have a button for you and it's this one. It's called no, not true, not accurate, complete bull. The reason is you will be happy when you become more grateful, right? So it's like nagging about how your spouse is so miserable. Well, maybe you should be grateful for them and maybe then, by your actions of being grateful, they will be nicer to you and then overall, things will improve. Right, that's how it works. So then it talks about gratitude may be a gesture. You know just certain kind of words that you're using and then we give or receive them to each other, right. But these simple exchanges of thankfulness go a long way in affecting our overall biological functioning, especially the brain and the nervous system. Any kind of effect of gratitude on the brain is very long-lasting.
Tammy Hershberger:Besides enhancing self-love and empathy, gratitude significantly impacts body functions and psychological additions like stress, anxiety and depression. So one gratitude releases toxic emotions. The limbic system is part of the brain that is responsible for all emotional experiences. It consists of oh jeepers, those are huge words thalamus, hypothalamus, amygdala, hippocampus and cingulate gyrus, I think, is how you say it. Studies have shown that hippocampus and amygdala the two main sites regulating emotions, the memory and the body functions. They get activated with feelings of gratitude. A study conducted on individuals seeking mental health guidance revealed that participants of the group who wrote letters of gratitude besides their regular counseling sessions felt better and recovered sooner.
Tammy Hershberger:I personally have a grateful or gratitude section in my quiet time every day. In my journal there's a section where I write the things each day that I'm thankful for and it really does kind of remind you like get off the surface, get off the big stuff and look at the everyday stuff that I am so thankful for, and it really does kind of remind you, like, get off the surface, get off the big stuff and look at the everyday stuff that I am so thankful for. I'm thankful for my husband. I'm thankful for my businesses. I'm so thankful for the team that I have that helps support me and my businesses. I'm thankful for my warm cup of coffee. I'm thankful for my warm home. I'm thankful for a nice home. I'm thankful for my car that gets me to work every day. There's all these things that you can look at and be like just thankful for.
Tammy Hershberger:Okay, then it talks about gratitude reduces pain. This is from Emmons and McCullough. They did a study that was titled Counting Blessings Versus Burdens and it says a study conducted on evaluating the effect of gratitude on physical well-being indicated that 16% of the patients who kept a gratitude journal reported reduced pain symptoms and were more willing to work out and cooperate with the treatment procedure. And then, when you dig deeper into that, the cause unleashed by that regulating the level of dopamine gratitude fills is more vitality, thereby reducing feelings of pain. I I mean, are you getting what this does? There's so much effects it has. It's wild three gratitude improves sleep quality.
Tammy Hershberger:So there's some studies that have shown receiving and displaying simple acts of kindness activate the amyg no, the hypothalamus, and thereby regulating all bodily mechanisms controlled by the hypothalamus, out of which sleep is a vital one. So that thing regulates Basically. Let me rephrase that when you have this hypothalamic regulation happening through gratitude, it's basically causing you to go deeper and healthier in your sleep, right? So like you're getting into your REM, you're getting a full night's sleep, you're not waking up all the time, and so you're getting better sleep, you're feeling more refreshed and you're energetic every morning. Who doesn't want that?
Tammy Hershberger:Gratitude aims and stress regulation. So in this McCardian Childry they did a study and in one of their studies on gratitude and appreciation, they found that participants who felt grateful showed a marked reduction in the level of cortisol, the stress hormone. They had better cardiac functioning and were more resilient to emotional setbacks and negative experiences. Remember, earlier you talked about bounce back. That's what it is Something kind of emotionally bad kind of happens and instead of you just crumbling into a million pieces, it may hit you, but you're going to bounce back faster, you're going to keep moving. So by practicing gratitude, we can handle stress better. And then, by merely acknowledging and appreciating the little things in life, we start to rewire the brain to deal with the present circumstances with more of awareness and this broader perception. And then, when you start doing that, think about that you're going to make better decisions.
Tammy Hershberger:Anxiety and depression. So I've dealt with both of these and it's talking about by using gratitude and reducing the stress hormone and managing the automatic nervous system, gratitude significantly reduces symptoms of depression and anxiety and at the neurochemical level, feelings of gratitude are associated with an increase in the natural no, I'm sorry, it's neural modulation at the prefrontal cortex, the brain site responsible for managing negative emotions like guilt, shame and violence. So first of all, I'm just going to say this you can all tell I am not a science major, I'm not a scientific person. I can barely say these words. So work with me here. Business is more my thing, but I do find it very, very fascinating that being grateful. I mean I know people who have some stuff they should be so freaking grateful for and they're not, and they're miserable people and I'm just like man. I wish you would see how blessed you are. So at the end of this article here it's talking about.
Tammy Hershberger:Does gratitude change the brain? So it says? Ucla did a research they call it the mindful awareness, and it said that gratitude does change the neural structures in the brain. It makes us feel happier and more content. Feeling grateful and appreciating others when they do something good for us triggers the good hormones, and then that regulates the immune system, which, if your immune system is in good shape, what you're not getting sick so much so. Scientists have suggested that, by activating the reward center of the brain, gratitude exchange alters the way we see the world and ourselves. And then there's this interesting Dr Alex Korb. He wrote a book called Upward Spiral and he mentions in his book that when we give and receive thank you notes, our brain is automatically redirected to pay attention to what we have, producing intrinsic motivation and a strong awareness of the present.
Tammy Hershberger:And at the neurochemical level, gratitude acts as a catalyst for neurotransmitters like these big words again serotonin, dopamine I have no idea how to say this last one Noropinephrine. I don't know If I all I can say is a scientific podcast, I would be off the air. No one will listen to me because I can't pronounce the words. So thank you for being with me. I promise you this is going to be good for you. Just ignore my words because I can't say them. So kind of like the end all be all thing here is like just be thankful for what you have and you'll end up having more, and if you really concentrate on what you don't have, you'll never have enough.
Tammy Hershberger:The bible talks about how we take a mountain, or no, we make mountains out of molehills, right, and so, like we make things too big, our mind blows these things out of proportion, and so I want you guys to be happy. I want you to have all this energy and feel good and feel healthy and not be depressed and not be anxious. So just have more gratitude, right. So in the morning, think of ways you can have more gratitude, think of you know things and write them down. While you're having your coffee At the end of the night, if that's when you want to do it. Write down the things you're thankful for for that day, because it does impact us. It impacts our body, our immune system, our emotions, our physical, our mental, all of it. And then it talks about cultivating happiness and joy. So let's kind of wrap this up with this so how do I get this joy? How do I get this gratefulness? Well, I'm kind of sad that I have to tell you that, but we're going to do that anyway.
Tammy Hershberger:So one is appreciate yourself. You know, we, a lot of times people especially women, but I'm sure men do it we stand in front of that mirror and we tear ourselves apart. Right, my butt's too big, I've gained too much weight, my boobs are not big enough, whatever. And so, instead of doing that, how about you stand there and say five good things about yourself? How about you compliment yourself? Use words that are the opposite I'm beautiful, I'm loyal, I'm disciplined, I'm kind, I'm loving, I'm loyal, I'm disciplined, I'm kind, I'm loving and then see how that makes you feel and repeat this often to yourself. And then do that gratitude journal. Right, get a journal, a notebook, a something, and write down things you know. One minimum, five is great, three is great. Every day of all the things that you're grateful for, don't overlook the small things, no matter how unimportant they may seem.
Tammy Hershberger:Gratitude visits. We all have someone whose unconditional support and help has meant a lot to us. We feel as if we owe our happiness and success to them. If we have such a person in our lives. They might be your friend, your family or a professional associate. Try to meet with them once a month, if you can Get that plan set up. Go and then express to them that you're thankful for them. Let them know they're important to you. Talk about good memories, talk to them about things that you are looking to do so you can get their support. Usually that will bring a feeling of sanctity and positivity to you.
Tammy Hershberger:So I mean one for me is I don't see her enough but my friend Margaret Perry. She was an amazing businesswoman. She's, in a way, kind of mentored me without knowing it. I worked for her and she was an amazing boss. I learned a lot from her and I learned about standing up for myself. My mother taught me that, like how you fight and you stand up for yourself. You don't let people push you around, you don't take no for an answer. Then you find that gratitude buddy right. And these are good if you have them like your spouse or a friend at work or whatever, and you can talk to them daily if possible. Just have a few minute conversation with them. Tell them about things you're thankful for. Let them tell you what they're thankful for Sharing the thoughts of gratefulness with someone is a great way to motivate yourself and strengthen your emotional skills.
Tammy Hershberger:And then, talking back to anxiety, how do we, like get this anxiety out? Well, anxiety is our body's inward wake-up call that something is wrong, something is not right. John Deloney has a good book about anxiety that I highly recommend you read. And so when fear sets in, when that body is starting to freak out and the alarms are going off and you're panicking a little bit and you having this anxiety, what happens is your body starts releasing hormones that create that fight-or-flight mode right, and we react very much similar. So the brain doesn't get much time to analyze the right or wrong when the adrenaline starts. The worst upshot of anxiety is it makes us feel insecure and we start questioning that inner strength and then eventually these coping mechanisms start to fail. So there's a book by Alex Korb named Grateful Brain, and it says in that book that our brain is conditioned to function in a repeated way. For example, a person who worries too much about the adverse outcomes will subconsciously rewire his brain to process negative information only. And he mentions that our mind cannot focus on positive and negative at the same time. It gets confused. I don't know what to do. And then he talks about by consciously practicing gratitude, we can train the brain to attend selectively to positive emotions and thoughts, which then reduces the anxiety and that apprehension feeling we have.
Tammy Hershberger:This is kind of an interesting study. It says it's a study that validates the relationship between gratitude and death. This will be interesting. Or death anxiety Okay, I got it. So it's anxiety that like I'm terrified to die. And this was Law and ching.
Tammy Hershberger:2011 is the study, so it says. The experiment was conducted on 83 chinese adults from 60 or 60 years old and above. They were divided into three groups. One group was asked to write gratitude notes and words of positivity, another was asked to write about their and the third was asked to just write about neutral tasks. So they do all this and it says the groups were exposed to stimuli arousing death anxiety the inevitable fear that we're all going to suffer. Results showed that participants of the first group who did the grateful notes showed fewer symptoms of the death anxiety than the other two groups when they reexamined all of the results again. That with a gratitude attitude in life, we gain acceptance and become fearless of the future. At a neurobiological level, gratitude regulates the sympathetic system that activates our anxiety response and at the psychological level it conditions the brain to filter the negative emotions, ruminations and focus on the positive thoughts. So again you can see gratitude practices are really effective for treating phobias like death, anxiety, ptsd, social phobia and things of such nature.
Tammy Hershberger:Gratitude makes sense of your past, brings peace for today and creates a vision for tomorrow. So even if you're in grief for example, right Like I man, I've been through some stuff. My mother passed away, like six years ago, I think, something like that. My grandmother passed away, who was like my second mother. I've personally experienced some serious loss and I don't know, grief is hard to move on from. I don't know grief is hard to move on from, especially if you just kind of sit in it. And as difficult as it may sound, if you can grieve with some kind of gratitude it can bring rays of hope in in the darkest times. Finding a reason to be thankful in days of despair may seem impossible. There's a book wrote by Kelly Buckley and she says in her book how she found the meaning of her pain in life after losing her 23 year old son.
Tammy Hershberger:While it is true that practicing gratitude makes us resilient to negative emotions and distress. It cannot be denied that mundane misfortunes are inevitable and bound to affect our well-being. So let's talk about grief management, because grief I know so many people that deals with grief Some people have just pushed it down. I did that for a long time and grief's going to happen. I mean, life is short, we're not all going to be here forever and I would like for you to have ways to deal with it if you are grieving now or if something happens in the future.
Tammy Hershberger:One is you kind of want to cry it out, right? Crying doesn't make us weak, men. If you're listening, I've heard you say it men are weak if they cry. That is baloney. You have no heart if you don't cry. In my opinion, cry it out Now. You don't want to cry every day, every hour. I mean, like you should be able to kind of let it out and then be dry for a little bit and then it happens, maybe in a couple days or whatever. But just know, crying is an act of acceptance and awareness of our emotions. We cry because we know we are feeling sad and we know why we're feeling sad. It gives us a way to vent the pain and helps us to step out and change our lives. Okay, so cry it out. Then collect the broken pieces.
Tammy Hershberger:Grieving with gratitude lets us appreciate the things we still have. For example, for a person who just got fired from his job, being thankful for his family and friends who stand by his side during the crisis can help reduce the pain. By consciously acknowledging their love and support, he or she can feel grateful and regain the motivation to look for other employment opportunities. Right, you don't have to just be in it by yourself. Then you want to ask for help. Not everybody likes to do this. I mean, I'm not always great at it myself. Make sure you seek professional help when you're just your coping mechanisms are not working. Studies have shown that people who practice gratitude are more willing to participate in counseling and therapy for managing their depression, and the prognosis is much brighter in these cases.
Tammy Hershberger:I you've probably heard me talk about I am a huge advocate for therapy. I have been to I go to a Christian therapist Amazing, I've only been to one in my life and this, this woman, is amazing. Um, we bring God into it and I find that I heal emotionally, mentally, so much faster by having God brought into it. So I think, if you have struggles and you're not sure how to deal with it, or you're scared to dig into it because you don't know if you can get yourself back out, well, you need some help, and so I recommend that Keeping a gratitude jar is fun.
Tammy Hershberger:I actually have one. There's a little glass jar Sometimes they're boxes and you just take a little piece of paper. Then, each day or you know, I don't always do it every day, but I do it when I have some big stuff happening that I notice or something that really means something to me I'll write the little piece of paper and I'll put it in the jar. So it could be family, good health, something your friends did, you know, you got a new home, whatever. You endured something that you didn't think you were going to make it through. And then, as that jar fills up, you'll start to see that there's all these blessings, and every now and then, or every three months or whatever, you open the jar and you read it because it reminds you, or, if you're having a really bad day, open it and remind yourself of all the blessings and all the things you have to be grateful for. Okay, so then resilience it talks about that. Um, it's part of a coping mechanism, really.
Tammy Hershberger:By managing positive emotions like satisfaction, happiness and pleasure, gratitude enhances our emotional resilience and builds our inner strength to combat stress. I think sometimes we forget to attend to the better things in life because we're already there and we don't have to do anything to make them stay with us. Practicing gratitude is the best way to remind ourselves to do the things that give us courage to move on in life. Okay, so then there's another study. It's kind of a boring study, I'm going to skip that one Building resilience with gratitude. Many psychologists believe that emotional resilience is an interplay of five components Social competence, which is the ability to stand out among others and urge to win a situation. Problem solving, the ability to focus on solutions and proactively act on them. Autonomy, the motivation to exercise freedom and ask for it when it's required. Forgiveness, the inner power to let go of something and move on. And empathy, the strength to feel others and look into the matter from their point of view. I want to hit those last two really quick Resilience, forgiveness and empathy, without going too far into it.
Tammy Hershberger:You guys know my story. I have found in therapy, by learning to face the truth, learning to face the things I've struggled with, the things that I, you know have hurt me, I have found so much forgiveness and empathy and those kind of go together because as I forgive people for hurting me or forgive people for letting me down or whatever, I start to see this empathy of like they're people, they're struggling, they have their own issues. There's probably things I don't know anything about that they've gone through. And then I start to realize, like, if they're human and they've got problems, and I probably don't know about some of those problems, why in the world would I constantly stay angry at them Because they're hurting, they don't know, maybe, how to deal with stuff, or they're not dealing with stuff, or they're so depressed or anxious or whatever. And then I start to realize like, well, I'm going to forgive those people and then that brings up this freedom inside of me, this forgiveness.
Tammy Hershberger:The weight goes away and I don't have to carry it anymore and what that does is it helps us see the positive things in life. It basically kind of rebuilds that pessimistic outlook into more of an optimistic. I used to be the worst pessimist. I am an optimist. Over the years and, being a believer, that has changed for me. I think it helps to stay grounded and accept the present situation, even if it's a harsh reality. You know, the harsh reality for me is I don't have my business anymore, but I accept that and I'm okay with it. And I know there's better things coming for me, see, and that's called being resilient, right, maintaining good health by regulating your metabolic functioning and then the hormonal imbalances, let's not even talk about that this time. Sustain relationships and appreciate people who are there for us. Then we feel more loved, cared for and more hopeful. So a few, really quickly, practices for building that emotional resilience.
Tammy Hershberger:Meditation, breath work is really good. You know, doing that gratitude list, making notes about gratitude. You know small thank you notes to your wife or your spouse or your workers. On the meditation side, I'll hit that real quick. You just kind of want to sit back, take a few deep breaths, feel more relaxed. You'll kind of recollect the painful memories of the past. You know, maybe some illness that you or your loved ones fought, financial struggles, whatever. You'll want to close your eyes, take, you know, let yourself kind of go back to those days where you were struggling. Then slowly move your attention and bring it back to the life you're living now. Think of all the things you never thought you could get today, or things that you never thought you could do because of how hurtful something was in the past, and then imagine how safe and happy you are. Take a moment to rejoice and be kind of accomplished in a silent way. Just kind of sit there and be thankful for those moments and then stay there for a moment and then slowly open your eyes and then notice how you feel.
Tammy Hershberger:I would imagine gratefulness should come into you Gratitude and stress. This is an interesting quote. William Arthur Ward says God gave you a gift of 86,400 seconds today. Have you used one of those seconds to say thank you? Have you? You driving in your car right now? You listening while you're working out? Did you say thank you to anyone? I don't know. Maybe you should. Uh, stress in our body's natural response to change, whether it's good or bad. Positive stress or another word I can't say use your stress, I don't know brings us joy and is usually the least of our concerns. Unforeseen setbacks trigger negative stress or distress and we consider it toxic and we just want to get rid of it. Okay, let's see if there's anything else interesting in this article. One thing I thought was interesting.
Tammy Hershberger:Talking about depression, it says it's impossible to feel depressed and grateful at the same time. So think about that, uh. Dr john medina wrote a book called brain rules and he mentions how gratitude could be an eye-opener in low times. He indicated that by looking around and acknowledging the support we have right now, we can successfully shift focus from our burdens to the blessings we have. So depression has a psychological and neurochemical base, both of which can be addressed by gratitude. By displacing our attention from problems to solutions. Gratitude practices hit the serotonin, dopamine and oxytocin neurotransmitters that make us feel good. With the surge of these chemicals in the brain, the apathy gets curbed away and we revive the motivation that depression has sucked away. So let's not be depressed, let's be more thankful, let's see what. There's anything else interesting. I think that is good for that section.
Tammy Hershberger:If you're out there just existing, I want you to live life to its fullest. Find those things you're thankful for, express those things you know. Focus on those things you're thankful for. Express those things you know, focus on those things and remember that practicing gratitude is synonymous to expressing our feelings for others and ourselves. By simple words of love and praise, we not only make others feel good, but we also feel a lot better ourselves. Gratitude is about feeling the right, feeling good right now and feeling good about the right things and at the right time. It's inseparably linked with self-discipline and motivation. It may not give us instant relief from pain and stress, but it brings the feelings of control back to us and, in time, it can start to change by acknowledging and appreciating our assets. Gratitude gives us the charge for your own lives. And this woman named Robin Sharman her quote says no, sharma is her name her quote says gratitude drives happiness, happiness boosts productivity, productivity reveals mastery and mastery inspires the world.
Tammy Hershberger:Hey, if you appreciate this episode, like share, subscribe, leave me a message. Remember, I'm on all platforms. If you want to be a guest on my show, I'm always looking for business owners, people who run a business, people who are subcontracted anything Painters, drywallers, coffee shops, I don't know. Whatever you do, if you have some kind of business, I want to talk to you. I find it interesting.
Tammy Hershberger:I find it's interesting to see how you started, how you overcame things. You know what stresses you had. We can all learn from each other and if we all just come and share with each other, we rise up together. So thank you for listening. I will see you guys next time. Have a great day and remember in the world of business, every success story begins with a passionate dream and ends with a strategic billion-dollar handshake. Stay ambitious, stay innovative and keep making those deals that reshape tomorrow. Thank you all for tuning in and until next time, remember. Proverbs 3.3 says Let love and faithfulness never leave you. Bind them around your neck, Write them on the tablet of your heart. That way you will win favor and a good name in the sight of God and man. And remember. If you like what you heard today, click the follow button so you never miss an episode.
