A lot of people talk about gratitude & being thankful, myself included, but I want to talk a moment about how we convey our appreciation. Especially in our daily actions, and with our words.
I see conveying appreciation a bit like a verbal gratuity. Which, if you go back to the Latin Origin of gratuity, it’s “gratus”, meaning “pleasing, thankful”.
If you have an amazing experience at a restaurant, for example, you tend to leave a bigger tip to convey appreciation to the staff who took care of you. Right?
We can apply that same logic to our words in everyday interactions.
I’ll give you an example: Someone holds a door for you…
Think about how genuinely appreciative you are in the context of that situation?
Did someone hold an elevator door for you so you could make it to work on time vs. being 3 min late? Did the open door help you with packages or groceries you were carrying & thus preventing you from smashing or dropping your goods? Was it raining and the open door allowed you to get inside quicker, thus preventing additional downpour from drenching you? ALL kinds of variables. All valuable.
Bare Minimum reply could be: “Thanks”, step through the doorway, and keep it moving toward what you’re doing. This happens regularly. We’ve all done it. After all, “Thanks” is better than nothing.
But, I invite you to think a level deeper.
What if you said, “Thanks” and added, “I appreciate it”?
It maybe adds an extra second of speech but a bit more personal, and a bit deeper in gratitude. You appreciate the action of a door being held for you. It’s a convenience. It’s nice. It’s helpful.
Now, I invite you to go even further.
What if you said, “Thank YOU, Miss! I really appreciate you for holding that door. You made my morning!”
Yes, it may take 3 whole seconds to say, but think about the difference. You’ve gone from a generic response to personalized one.
The magic in a “thank you” happens when you elevate it from conveying minimal appreciation of an action to genuine appreciation of a person FOR that action.
And in turn, think about how that person is going to appreciate your reply. The more effort you put into a reply, the better it will be received. Miss “door-holder” is going to feel much better for having taken time out of whatever she was doing to make sure to hold a door for you — a complete stranger.
And this concept works everywhere.
Did someone at work help you on a project?
How about saying, “Thank You, Jonathan! Your recommendations to help us speed up this project and your time management skills, were invaluable. I appreciate you!”
Cost? Less than a minute of your time and far more valuable to your co-worker than “Thanks pal, good work.”
Did someone at the gym offer a recommendation that, in turn, improved your balance, range of motion & the amount of weight lifted?
How about a quick, “Thanks, Erik! You taking a minute to teach me that, is going to pay dividends over the next week.”
Cost? Less than a minute of your time, far more rewarding for Erik than “Cool. Thanks.” because he knows he’s had a positive impact.
And sometimes the best Thank Yous are the ones that happen when they’re least expected.
Have someone in your life that you genuinely appreciate? Showcase your gratitude and give them a reason to smile today. Your words can be gifts; share them and be specific. Not only on birthdays, or Thanksgiving week, when everyone is expecting, but also, just because you’re thinking it.
In fact, I’m just going to mention what I’m thinking at this moment:
Hey, mom! Thinking about you. Thank you so much for instilling belief in me that I have a bright future in whatever I want to do. I may have shrugged it off in the moment, as “of course mom would say that”, but you never wavered. You always believed. And the constant support has always resonated in some way, along the way. Forever grateful for you and everything you’ve done to make sure I had every opportunity to find my lane and go!
:)
That was fun! Thank YOU for a few minutes of your attention. I know time is an incredible asset, and I appreciate you immensely for reading. If you found value in this at all, it would mean the world to me if you’d consider clapping, liking, hearting or sharing to help more people hear the message AND how awesome my mom is!
Till next time, remember, we all have the same 1440 in a day, and we all get
☝️ shot at life. Let’s #RockIt!! Find time to live what you love and #WalkTheWant!
+++
Sipp
https://instagram.com/skyrockit
