Why You Should Express Gratitude in the Journal

If you are planning on using a bullet journal, having a section in your bullet journal for 
gratitude is an amazing habit to start this fall. It is also highly recommended that you 
continue it year-round, but fall is a good time to reflect on your list and pay attention to 
what you are grateful for.

Benefits of Expressing Gratitude

Not sure why you should express gratitude? Here are some of the main benefits of 
doing this on a regular basis:

It helps you focus on the positive. Many people have a tendency to only focus on the 
negative, such as what you don’t have, things you want to accomplish but haven’t yet, 
and other daily struggles. If you want to be more positive and optimistic, focus on the 
good in your life with gratitude.

You improve your ability to empathize with others. Empathy is a very powerful 
emotion, and one you might not realize you possess. With more empathy, you are able 
to connect with others on a deeper level and really understand what they are going 
through. This is yet another benefit of expressing gratitude in your own life.

It improves your mental and emotional health. Whether you deal with stress, mental 
health disorders like anxiety or depression, or just feel blue this time of year, it can be 
good to give yourself a little pick-me-up.

You can boost your own self-esteem. No matter how you feel about yourself, you can 
boost your self-esteem by expressing gratitude. You are focusing on the good things in 
your life and your own abilities and successes.

Starting Your Own Gratitude Page

It is really easy to add a gratitude page to your bullet journal. You can start with just one 
page if you intend to keep it short, but multiple pages is also a good idea. Make a goal 
to write at least one thing you are grateful for each day. Keep the page close to your 
calendar or task pages so you remember to use it.

Eventually, you can have more goals, such as listing 3 things in different categories, 
such as what you accomplished, a way you helped someone else, and something good 
that happened.

