the 30 day gratitude challenge...

THE 30 DAY

GRATITUDE

CHALLENGE

JOURNAL

30 DAY GRATITUDE CHALLENGE PTBPODCAST.COM

30 Day Gratitude Challenge Journal

By Erin Falconer and Jeremy Fisher © 2019 Pick the Brain, LLC

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responses to the questions that this journal asks in the daily journal sections. This journal is meant to be shared, so give it to as many

people as you’d like who you think would find it helpful.

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and write your responses by hand. Sometimes that can be more enjoyable anyway.

This book is dedicated to every single Pick the Brain Podcast subscriber. Thank you all.

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Here we go again.

Yet another book that promises to make our lives better if we only dish out the low price of $19.99. I don’t know about you, but I’m getting tired of promises that never seem to be kept by people trying to sell me things.

It seems like we live in a world where clickbait titles, pop up ads and flashing TV commercials are always promising they’ll make our lives better by selling us something.


What Have You Gotten Yourself Into?







“Your iPhone is six months old!? Get with the times people! You MUST buy the newest, biggest, brightest new shiny object because that’s what will make you feel whole as a human being!”

“You aren’t buying the latest beauty product? Most expensive clothes? The newest flashy car? What’s wrong with you? Why aren’t you giving us your money like a good little consumer? Don’t you know that you’ll never be happy until you buy more stuff from us?”








Billions of dollars each year are spent on advertisements with the sole purpose to make you feel like you won’t be enough until you buy what they’re trying to sell. It’s all around us. And unfortunately, it’s starting to have an impact. Stress and depression rates are on the rise. Unhappiness is becoming epidemic. Life fulfillment is starting to sound like a long lost myth.

So what do we need to do? Retailers spend a lot of money trying to convince us they have the answer. They want us to believe they have the magic fix and all we need to do is buy it from them. But we’ve been doing that for a while now and that’s not working. We’ve proven that prescription wrong.








What we actually need to do is to develop a habit that helps us appreciate what we already have. What we need is gratitude. And do you know how much that costs? Nothing. Free. Zip. Nada. A practice of feeling appreciation for the positive experiences we’ve had in the past, the people and things in our lives we cherish, and an awareness that if we’re willing to look for it, we’ll find everything we need right where we are.

That’s gratitude.








The effects of gratitude have been scientifically proven over and over again, which is more than many of the product pushing retailers can say.

According to a number of studies, gratitude improves physical and psychological health. It enhances empathy and reduces aggression. It improves mental strength and self-esteem. And some research suggests it might even help us sleep better.


Science > Opinions

The look on my

face when I

realized how

important

gratitude is.







https://www.psychologytoday.com/us/blog/what-mentally-strong-people-dont-do/201504/7-scientifically-proven-benefits-gratitude

It might not be sexy but the simple fact is gratitude is one of the most effective ways to enjoy life. The problem is, most of us simply don’t practice gratitude. We get busy. Life happens. Distractions steal our attention. And the importance of practices like gratitude get shoved to the bottom of our priorities list. That leads to more stress, more worry, more feelings of less-than, and more impulses to try to fill the void elsewhere. Ultimately, we might find ourselves starving for something that’s already within our reach. Something we don’t have to pay for or rely on someone else for. Something we can practice anytime, anywhere, with anyone.

You and I can create a habit of gratitude that reminds us that we are already enough. Forming habits aren’t easy, but one way to do it is to commit 30 days to whatever habit you’re trying to build. If a skill is practiced for at least 30 days, our brains begin to attach neurons that reinforce the habit and it starts becoming natural.

That means that if we’re willing to commit 30 days to gratitude we can literally rewire our brains to think about life in a much healthier, happier way.

That gets me excited. It makes me want to share this with the entire world. It makes me want to start a movement of gratitude.








How do you start a movement? One that will spread like wildfire? First off, you start by making it 100% free. That’s why this journal didn’t cost $19.99 or even $.99. It’s free. Because spreading the idea of gratitude among our family and friends should be free. The only problem with something really valuable being free is, people start thinking it’s not valuable. And that’s a normal way to look at things. If someone offered you a free car, you’d have to wonder how great the car actually was because if it was worth something, why would the owner be giving it away?

Just because something is free doesn’t mean it isn’t valuable. And every once and awhile, something that’s really, really valuable comes along that’s absolutely free. And when others share it, the world can change.Remember the first time you heard about Facebook? Facebook is free. And you didn’t learn about it from a TV commercial. A friend told you about it because they were having so much fun on Facebook they wanted you to share in the fun. That’s what we hope will happen with this gratitude challenge.


Let’s Start a Movement







If 10,000 people share this journal with 5 of their friends and family members, another 50,000 people will be impacted. And if those 50,000 shared with 5 of their friends another 250,000 people would be impacted. And if everyone keeps sharing this journal, and the gratitude challenge spreads, it wouldn’t take long for millions and millions of people to be inspired to practice gratitude.

That’s how a movement happens.








At least, that’s what we’d hope would happen. This kind of thing only works if everyone involved carries the movement forward. To put it simply, it will only work if you want it to. It works if you share this journal with 5 of your closest friends and family members and challenge them to 30 days of gratitude. Challenge them to live a better life by recognizing the wonderful things they already have that can make them feel whole. To reject the idea that they need to buy something new or be someone different to enjoy life. You can share inspiration for free. And I don’t know about you, but I think that’s a pretty cool idea. One that’s worth talking about.


So before you start your own gratitude challenge share this journal with others. Go ahead and do it now, because if you don’t, life will happen and you’ll forget or get distracted. It’s easy to share this journal via Facebook, Twitter, or email by using one of the iconsbelow or by posting ptbpodcast.com/thanks in your feed. You can tag Pick the Brain, as well as a few of yourfavorite people and let them know you’re challenging them to a 30 day gratitude challenge. Go ahead and do that now. Don’t worry, I’ll be here when you get back.







https://www.facebook.com/sharer/sharer.php?u=http://ptbpodcast.com/you-have-been-challenged-to-30-days-of-gratitude

http://twitter.com/home/?status=http://ptbpodcast.com/you-have-been-challenged-to-30-days-of-gratitude

Now that you’ve posted on your preferred social media account, there’s one more thing to do to keep the movement spreading. This one is the MOST important step. Pick 3 people. These could be your friends, your family, or someone you know really needs to have some inspiration in their life. Text them the link below and letthem know you’ve challenged them to a 30 Day Gratitude Challenge.

The link to text is ptbpodcast.com/thanks

It’s really important that you do this because most people are really busy and might not see your social media post. But they’ll definitely see your text. Go ahead and text them now. Once you get back we’ll start your own 30 day gratitude journey.








One of the reasons new habits can be hard to make is because of the complexity they require in order to work. One of the biggest reasons why Americans don’t eat healthier is because of the time and energy required to do meal planning, buy organic, cook our own food, and still have time to everything else we do. Fast food on the other hand only requires a simple trip to McDonalds, which might explain why fast food remains a billion dollar industry despite the obvious health risks involved.

A practice of gratitude should be simple. And if you and I want to develop this as a regular part of our lives we need to make the practice as easy and simple as possible. With that in mind, here’s all you’ll need to do to win the 30 day gratitude challenge

Spend 5 minutes per day thinking about and answering the questions in this journal

That’s it. Pretty simple right? If you can’t find 5 minutes per day you probably need to look at your schedule and make an adjustment. This will only work if you prioritize yourself over everything else that might be trying to steal your time. 5 minutes is all you’ll need.


Let’s Keep This Simple







One last thing before we get started. You are awesome.

It might sound corny, but taking a simple step like spending 5 minutes on yourself every day is one of the best gifts you could ever give yourself. And just by sharing the 30 day gratitude challenge with other people you’ve already had an impact on the world. That’s just awesome, which means you are awesome.








You probably didn’t have to farm, grow, or harvest the food in your refrigerator. Nearly every human before the 1800s had to do that for themselves. Many people still do. But if you’re one of the 90% of people reading this based in the USA, other people farm and grow your food for you. It’s a great time to be alive.


DAY 1

It might sound simple but most of us can

feel grateful for FOOD

What’s your favorite food? Spend a couple

minutes thinking and writing below about

how much joy eating it gives you.







Humans have the ability to enjoy and experience extreme humor unlike any other creatures on earth. If someone has ever made you laugh really, really hard be grateful for that.


DAY 2


feel grateful for BELLY LAUGHS

Think about the last time you laughed

until you cried. Spend a couple

minutes writing and thinking about

how much fun that was.







Freezing temperatures and blistering heat from the

outside elements are no longer a common cause of

death for humans. In fact, we can keep our homes

pretty toasty warm in the winter and cool in the

summer thanks to the amazing invention of HVAC.

It’s only been that way for 130 years. What a great

time to be alive….and cool!


DAY 3


feel grateful for HEAT AND AC

What’s the best complement anyone has

ever given you? Spend a couple minutes

thinking and writing about how you felt in

that moment.







Or tea if you’re not a coffee

drinker. Did you roast the

beans that made your

coffee? Did you gather and

harvest the leaves in your

tea? Thankfully, someone

else did so we could enjoy it.


DAY 4


feel grateful for COFFEE

Think and write about your favorite smell of

coffee or tea. It’s so lovely and warm.

Appreciate it. Simple but great.







In the last three months, how many times did you nearly die because you didn’t have access to water? How about the last 3 years? Have you ever had to worry about dying from thirst? Most humans today don’t and that’s an underrated everyday miracle.


DAY 5


feel grateful for WATER

Who is one person you’ve never met that

has had a positive impact on your life?

Spend a couple minutes thinking and

writing about why they’re important to you.







Our furry, scaled or feathered friends give us joy

and companionship. We’re lucky to have them.


DAY 6


feel grateful for PETS

What is the funniest thing a current or

past pet has ever done? Write about

the experience.







Because of modern medicine the life expectancy for humans today is nearly twice as long as generations past. Thankfully we get to live in the best time ever for human health.


DAY 7


feel grateful for MEDICINE

Write out at least one thing you get to enjoy

today that your grandparents didn’t. A cell

phone? The internet? This journal?







If you told people a few hundred years ago that one

day they’d be able to fly through the air like a bird

they’d call you a lunatic. Today, we can literally fly

around the world in relative comfort.


DAY 8


feel grateful for AIRPLANES

What’s your favorite smell? Cookies?

Thanksgiving dinner? Cherries? Spend a

couple minutes thinking and writing about

your favorite smell.







If you have spare

change in your pocket

or bedside, you have

more wealth than 90%

of the rest of the world.


DAY 9


feel grateful for SPARE CHANGE

Who is one person who was really there for

you when you needed them? Think and

write about how happy you were that they

were in your life at that time.







Have you ever found a stone stuck in the bottom of

your shoe? That might have cut your foot if not for

the amazing underrated invention of shoes.


DAY 10


feel grateful for SHOES

When is the last time you focused on how

the tips of your toes feel? Or your left

elbow? Focus for a couple minutes on

feeling parts of your body you’ve never

focused on before. So many little things are

going on without us noticing them.







We like some people and not others. But the simple fact is, other humans make our lives more interesting and enjoyable. If you ever doubt that, just watch the movie Castaway. WILSON!!!


DAY 11


feel grateful for OTHER HUMANS

Who is someone from your childhood you

are happy you met? Think and write about

why you’re happy you met that person.







Few things move us or motivate us as much as

hearing our favorite song. Go ahead and sing yours.

No judgement here.


DAY 12


feel grateful for MUSIC

What’s your favorite song? Spend a

couple minutes thinking and writing

about one of your favorite memories

with your favorite song.







I like candles, but aren’t you happy that’s not the

only thing we have to light our way? Dishwashers,

washing machines, refrigerators, and air

conditioning are all only possible with electricity

which our great, great, great grandparents did not

have, BUT WE DO!


DAY 13


feel grateful for ELECTRICITY

Think of a moment when you did something

really, really fun. How did you feel? Try to

remember it as if you were there having fun

right now. Then, go have fun today.







Magic pictures fly through

the air and onto our

televisions to entertain us.

In any other century, that’s

magic. But for us, it’s just

an every day luxury.


DAY 14


feel grateful for TV

What’s your favorite guilty pleasure TV

show? Think and write about how much

excitement each new episode gives you.







The answer to just about any question you could

possibly ask. This makes humans nearly omniscient.

Don’t let that go to your head.


DAY 15


feel grateful for GOOGLE

Who is one person who makes you smile?

Write at least one thing that you

appreciate about that person.







It’s no surprise that some of our best ideas come to

us in the shower. The physical change that occurs

when we shower often fuels creativity and

innovativeness in our brains. It feels pretty good on

our skin too. Simple but true.


DAY 16


feel grateful for HOT SHOWERS

Think and write about a time when you had

a really good idea and acted on it. Way to

go, you.







There are countless benefits of feeling productive in

our work or hobbies. If you haven’t found work or a

hobby that fuels you, let that be a goal for you to

look forward to.


DAY 17


feel grateful for WORK OR A HOBBY

Are you fulfilled by your work or hobbies? If

not, what types of changes could you make

to help you get more fulfillment from your

work or hobbies?







There’s nothing like

having family (or friends

that are like family) in

our lives. They fuel us in

more ways than one.


DAY 18


feel grateful for FRIENDS OR FAMILY

What is your favorite memory of a friend or

family member? Describe why you are

happy to have had that person in your life.







Want to scare your neighbors? Stop wearing clothes

for a week. Okay, maybe don’t do that.


DAY 19


feel grateful for CLOTHES

When is the last time you thought about

breathing? Isn’t it cool that you breathe

automatically without even trying? Focus

for a couple minutes on feeling your breath

go in and out of your lungs. And appreciate

something as simple as breathing.







Don’t have a farm? We

don’t need one if we

have a refrigerator we

can store food for up to

years at a time. Doesn’t

that make things so

much easier?


DAY 20


feel grateful for REFRIGERATORS

What is something are you looking forward to

next year? Write why you’re excited about it.







One of the most basic necessities for humans that

most of us don’t have to worry about is having a roof

over our head. Like many things, we only notice how

important shelter really is when we don’t have it.


DAY 21


feel grateful for SHELTER

What do you like the most about where

you live? You can always find

something you like about where you are

right now, if you try.







Sure, we should try not to be addicted to our phones,

but there’s just something fascinating about a laptop,

camera, music player, television, and communication

tool all in one device that fits in your pocket.


DAY 22


feel grateful for CELL PHONES

How many people are in your phone’s

contact list? Friends that are important

enough to have our cell phone number are

important enough to appreciate having in

our lives. Write about them.







Sometimes baths can

be meditative and

have soothing effects

on us. When is the

last time you had a

peaceful bath?


DAY 23


feel grateful for A PEACEFUL BATH

What’s your favorite smell? Cookies?

Thanksgiving dinner? Cherries? Spend a

couple minutes thinking and writing about

your favorite smell.







Connect with anyone,

anywhere, anytime,

via the internet for

less money than ever.

Before a few decades

ago, that was never

possible.


DAY 24


feel grateful for THE INTERNET

What is your happiest childhood memory?

Think about the way you felt then. Write

about it and then live in that moment for

two minutes.







No more horse drawn carriages for us! Most of us

either own a car or know someone who does who

could take us where we’d want to go. Even thought

that might seem like a every day thing, having the

ability to go anywhere whenever we want is kind of a

big deal.


DAY 25


feel grateful for CARS

Think of a moment when you went

somewhere really interesting. Where did

you go and what was the most interesting

thing you did or saw?







Movie studios spend hundreds of millions of dollars

to entertain us for 2 hours. We don’t even have to go

to the theaters to watch movies now. We can check

them out from the comfort of our own home.That’s

pretty cool.


DAY 26


feel grateful for MOVIES

What’s your favorite childhood movie? How

excited were you when you watched it?

Remember that feeling and write about it.







If you’re alive,

you’re doing better

than every human

that was ever born

before the late

1800s.


DAY 27


feel grateful for HEALTH

Are you in an immense amount of physical

pain at this moment? Sometimes we take

our health for granted. Focus on feeling

grateful that you are alive right now.







The sun literally gives us vitamins needed to feel

healthy and happy. If the sun is shining today, make

sure you soak a little bit of it in.


DAY 28


feel grateful for SUNSHINE

Who is one person who is no longer alive that

had a big impact on your life? Think about

how great it was to have that person in your

life and though they may not be here now, you

will carry their memory with your forever.







Smiles are

scientifically proven to

lift our mood, even if

we force ourselves to

smile. So….smile.


DAY 29


feel grateful for SMILES

Smile right now even if you don’t feel

like it. Smile as big as you possibly can.

Go ahead, smile! Then write how that

has impacted your mood.







According to discover

magazine the odds of life on

Earth are 1 in

700,000,000,000,000,000,000.

The odds were really against

us. Yet you and I somehow

made it here anyway.


DAY 30

It might sound simple but we all can feel

grateful for LIFE

What is something that you’re looking

forward to? It could be big or small.

Write about how you feel when you

think about it.







You completed the 30 Day Gratitude Challenge! Hopefully you feel at least 1% better about yourself and about life. If not, keep up the practice of gratitude and eventually you’ll brainwash yourself into being happier. There are so many things all around us that we take for granted that are simply incredible. All we need to do is pay a little more attention.


WOOHOO!!! You Did It!!!

If you haven’t already, share this journal by texting ptbpodcast.com/thanks or using a link above with 3 of your favorite people in the world and challenge them to 30 Days of Gratitude. Who knows, maybe, just maybe, we’ll have done our part in making this world a better place. Be well.







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You’ve come to the end of

this journal.

Don’t worry. Now that you’ve completed 30 days,

it will be much easier to keep the daily gratitude

habit going! And if you’d like to hear more from

the authors of this book click one of the podcast

links below to listen to the Pick the Brain podcast

twice per week, every week. It’s free! Just one

more thing to feel grateful for.







the 30 day gratitude challenge...

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