Gratitude as a competitive leadership advantage?
Find out what the latest research shows.
For a moment: forget any schooling, corporate training, sacrifice, and all of what brought you to where you are today as a leader.
Have you ever just sat for a moment and thought about how lucky you are to even be on this Earth? It’s crazy to think about, but the odds of your unique blend of DNA even existing is less than winning the lottery while being struck by lightning!
It’s a miracle! And that alone is a reason to be grateful.
Science is on it!
I’ve always known gratitude to be a positive thing, but scientists are studying the physiology of gratitude for the first time. Here are just a few of the positive outcomes gratitude has contributed to, as listed at PositivePsychology.com in early 2019:
- Patients who expressed optimism/gratitude two weeks after an acute coronary event ended up having healthier hearts in the long run (2015 study).
- Writing a letter of gratitude to someone led to better mental health in adult populations who were seeking psychotherapy (2016 study).
- Individuals practicing gratitude were found to experience less burnout, have better sleep, have lower levels of cellular inflammation, and to have overall better physical health (2018 study).
What about gratitude on the Job?
Living a healthier, happier life carries over to the workplace. Researcher David DeSteno has spent much of the last two decades examining gratitude and why it should be cultivated in every organization.
These are my big takeaways from DeSteno’s 2006 research:
- Gratitude doesn’t have an ego; it’s not better than or worse than.
- Gratitude doesn’t harbor jealousy or insecurities, it’s just… grateful.
- Gratitude directly facilitates “helping” behaviors, and
- Grateful people will not only help the people who helped them, they will also show similar aid to other members of a team and to strangers.
A dozen years later, DeSteno was back with more conclusions about gratitude. In his most recent research he was able to link self-control/patience and gratitude.
He found that people who practice gratitude can delay future rewards to a higher degree than ungrateful people. While one may immediately jump to how this could help a company financially, it also shows that grateful people are willing to stick with a project longer and don’t have that “hurry up” “frazzled” attitude that can put a team on edge.
In doing my research for this article, it’s incredible what gratitude can be attributed to now that the experts are studying it. From causing additional optimism to reducing blood pressure and making you want to exercise more, gratitude is one emotion that we should all be working hard to cultivate, both inside and outside of the office.
As a leader, you can create a culture of gratitude within your organization. Start with your direct team, at home, or even with your close circle of friends. Hey, gratitude is FREE and fun to practice.
Gratitude just by itself can create miracles!
Whole Leadership Systems, offers a simple three-step executive coaching process that will invigorate your workplace. It starts with YOU! Contact me to schedule a complimentary consultation at [email protected]
