A gratitude journal is a place where you write down what you're grateful for, a few lines a day or a week. The practice exists in many traditions and has become popular far beyond them.
The research is positive but sober. In one of the first experiments, people who wrote down what they were grateful for did better on several measures, though not all of them, than people who wrote about their troubles. A later review of many experiments found that gratitude exercises helped compared with doing nothing, but no more than other exercises that also aim to improve well-being. It's worth doing if you enjoy it, but it isn't a miracle.
Choose a way to write:
- Three things in the evening if you want a daily routine.
- Once a week if every day feels like too much.
- Tell someone if you want to take it further.
- Gratitude in prayer if you have a faith.
A first step today: tonight, write down three specific things you're grateful for. Not big words, just things that happened today.
A gratitude journal is a place where you write down what you're grateful for, a few lines a day or a week. The practice exists in many traditions and has become popular far beyond them. It can bring more good moments, but the effect is smaller than many claim, and that's worth knowing before you start. This article covers what the research says, why these journals so often fizzle out, four ways to write, and how to keep yours alive. The guide to faith and spirituality explains why a recurring moment carries you further than big experiences.
Why gratitude journals fizzle out
Most people who start a gratitude journal write enthusiastically for a week. Then the lines start to look the same: family, health, having a home. After a month it feels like a chore, and the journal gets left on the shelf.
That's not because the practice is pointless. It's because the entries have become generic. "I'm grateful for my family" is true, but it says nothing new today. What keeps a gratitude journal alive is the specific and the unexpected: someone held the door, the coffee was hot, a conversation went better than you expected.
What the research says
In 2003, Emmons and McCullough randomly assigned participants to write down either things they were grateful for, things that had irritated them, or neutral events. In one study they wrote weekly, in another daily, and a third included people with neuromuscular disease. Those who wrote about gratitude did better on several of the measures, though not all, compared with the other groups. The clearest finding was that they more often felt happy and positive.
In 2016, Davis and colleagues reviewed many such experiments. Gratitude exercises led to better well-being than doing nothing at all, and a small advantage over neutral activities. But compared with other exercises that are also meant to improve well-being, they were neither better nor worse.
The conclusion is a sober one. A gratitude journal can help, but it isn't better than other good habits, and the effect is small. That's a reason to choose it if you enjoy it, not to force yourself through it if it feels empty.
Four ways to write
Pick the one that fits your week. What matters most is that what you write is specific.
Three things in the evening. For you if you want a daily routine. Write down three things from the day that you're grateful for, and for each one, a sentence about why. First step: put a notebook by your bed and write three lines tonight.
Once a week. For you if every day feels too frequent and too repetitive. Take a moment on Sunday and write down five things from the past week, ideally things you'd almost forgotten. First step: set a reminder for Sunday evening.
Tell someone. For you if you want to take it further. This is the most demanding path, because it asks you to say it out loud. Write a short letter or message to someone who has meant something to you, and tell them specifically what they did and what it meant. Send it, or read it aloud. First step: choose one person today and write three sentences to them.
Gratitude in prayer. For you if you have a faith. In many traditions, gratitude is part of prayer. Begin or end your time of prayer by giving thanks for three specific things from the day. First step: add three things to give thanks for to your evening prayer tonight.
How to keep it alive
Write the specific, not the general. "My neighbor helped me carry the couch upstairs" lasts longer than "I have good neighbors." Mix it up: one day something about a person, another day something you saw, a third day something you did yourself.
Don't force it. On a day when nothing feels worth being grateful for, write one thing, however small, or skip it. The journal is meant to be a moment of reflection, not a performance. If you've been feeling low for a long time, a journal isn't enough, and it's worth talking to a doctor or health professional.
A first step today: tonight, write down three specific things you're grateful for, and for each one, a sentence about why.
If you have a Christian faith, the next part of the series is about Christian meditation: reflecting on a Bible passage.
This is the understanding and a first step. Atlas is where it becomes a habit. Add Faith & spirituality as its own area, and you'll find Three things, where you write down three things you're grateful for, and Looking back tonight, both suggested for you to make your own. Try Atlas free for 7 days, and cancel whenever you like.