Gratitude Every Second

Research described in The How of Happiness: A New Approach to Getting the Life You Want and other books shows that there are habits which increase your happiness, but give you the most benefit when done just once per week.  These habits include writing in a gratitude journal, doing acts of kindness, and picturing success in the future.  If you push yourself beyond your normal limits in these areas, once per week, you get big advantages that you don't get from daily routines that don't vary in intensity.

But much of what I believe in suggests that it isn't just once per week that matters.  Every second matters.  Moment to moment, we need to have the right thoughts, actions, and feelings.  This is the theme of Buddhism and of books such as The Power of Now: A Guide to Spiritual Enlightenment that form the core of my philosophy.  How do I reconcile this "be here now" philosophy with the data revealing the power of weekly rituals?

I think that there is no conflict.  Weekly rituals later on lead to better choices moment to moment.  Weekly bouts of gratitude, in which I think of many things that are wonderful in my life, cause me to be more grateful the rest of the week, moment to moment.

Perhaps my favorite part of Buddha's Eightfold Path is "Right Effort".  "Right Effort" involves, first, tuning in to one's body and mind.  Next, you pick the thoughts or actions that will improve your mind and body.  You strive to avoid or put an end to unwholesome states--guilt, anger, indigestion.  You seek to start or build on wholesome states--joy, compassion, gratitude.  If you master "Right Effort", you do this all the time, cultivating a heightened awareness and vigilance that would put a martial artist or a warrior to shame.

This is one place I can apply the techniques of "The How of Happiness".  When I ask myself, "What thoughts and actions can I apply now to improve my state of mind?", I can respond by counting my blessings, reaching out to another person, meditating, or envisioning future success.  As I've described in early blog postings, I will emphasize these things even more than usual once per week.  The research shows that this weekly emphasis increases the power of the techniques.  But moment to moment, I'll return to these techniques whenever I manage to remember to tune into my current state and look for a way to improve it.  

This is what this entire website is all about.  This is what I mean by "Embrace Your Changing Self".