Gratitude and stronger relationships
How often did you last show gratitude to someone who is heavily involved in your life? It’s super easy to take people for granted and assume they know you’re thankful for the things they do for you. This is particularly true with long-standing relationships and it’s often something we do without actually being aware of it.
There are lots of benefits to showing gratitude in your close relationships.
According to research, expressing gratitude is super important for strengthening your relationships. This can be true for relationships with your partner, family, friends and even your colleagues.
It can trigger a “chain reaction” of reciprocal expressions of gratitude that build trust and appreciation. The more gratitude you express, the more likely it is that it’ll lead to another action that you can be thankful for.
According to one study, gratitude can act as a “booster shot” for romantic relationships in particular.
Gratitude can also help turn fledgling relationships into friendships.
In one study, new sorority sisters who felt more gratitude for the gifts given to them by older members developed closer bonds with them as a result.
Another study backs up the idea that thanking acquaintances makes them more likely to pursue friendship in the future.
For existing relationships, gratitude can help deepen friendships and encourage stronger links.
In one study, people who expressed gratitude to friends saw their relationship in a more supportive light. Those who thought about gratitude but didn’t act on it didn’t experience this.
If gratitude is a relatively new practice for you, you might feel concerned it’ll lead to some super awkward interactions. In reality, we tend to significantly play down the impact of expressing gratitude. In a study published in Psychological Science, study participants reported being ecstatic after receiving gratitude for their actions.
Here’s how to reap the benefits of expressing gratitude and how to put it into action in your relationships.
Tips for Using Gratitude to Strengthen Your Relationships
According to one study, how you show gratitude can be super important. The hugely crucial part? The recipient of your thanks needs to feel you’ve been responsive while expressing your gratitude. When that was the case, the relationship was rated as being higher.
Not sure how to go about building stronger relationships through gratitude? Try these tips:
Start small. When you first start using gratitude to build stronger relationships, starting small can be hugely helpful. Just one or two sentences can be super powerful and over time, you can build up to showing gratitude regularly and in more detail.
Saying thank you for even the little things. Every time a partner, friend, family member, or acquaintance does something nice for you, let them know how much you appreciate it. Actively looking for things you can express gratitude about is super important for this. Personal attributes such as kindness and being thoughtful or demonstrating skills are perfect for this. Being as specific as possible is super smart, especially since people are likely to demonstrate different acts on a day-to-day basis. Honing in on the details makes your gratitude more powerful.
Switch up your mindset to look for gratitude. Create a mindset of gratitude and look for the positives in situations. This could involve thanking people for making an effort in doing something, even if it wasn’t done exactly how you wanted, for example. This trains your mind to zero in on things to feel grateful for, which is hugely important for building your gratitude “muscle”.
Make gratitude part of your routine. As a habit, gratitude can be super effective for promoting positivity. Keeping a gratitude journal can help make it a habit that goes on to become second nature. Spending 10-15 minutes per day noting down everything you’ve appreciated about your colleagues, partner, family, and friends can quickly help to make gratitude a hugely strong habit. Sending regular emails that show your gratitude is another option too.
Look for gratitude in negative relationships too. In a great relationship, you can find a ton of things to feel grateful for. This gets a whole heap harder if you have a strained relationship with someone though. In this scenario, you can use a gratitude diary to work through less positive relationships too and find things to feel thankful for. This can mean digging super deep in some cases but it’s hugely helpful for building stronger and healthier relationships with people you can’t avoid or ditch. It’s also helpful for reducing stress and anxiety that can stem for negative relationships. Since gratitude is key for building stronger relationships with the people around you, it’s super smart to express your thanks whenever your partner, family, or friends do something you appreciate.