November 2020: A Month of Gratitude Practice

November's content series is A Month of Gratitude! Each week I'll post prompts that encourages us to cultivate an effective gratitude practice.

Why Gratitude? 

I wanted to focus on gratitude this month for several reasons. First, and obviously, Thanksgiving is this month. What a great time to reflect on the things we have to be grateful for in our lives? Also, I am working very hard to shift my mindset about 2020 while also recognizing and acknowledging that 2020 is a wild year. This balance between practicing gratitude and acknowledging the reality of 2020 is a delicate one. But I've complained enough about the year and want to end it right. (I'm sure I'll still complain about the year (and rightfully so), but at least I'll balancing the complaining with some gratitude!)

Also, November is my birthday month! My 26th year is not what I envisioned at all. I imagined a year of growth, travel, happiness, and abundance. I'll be honest with you: this year was (and continues to be) ROUGH. Instead of sitting in this funk, I want to end the year right. Adding intention and structure to my gratitude practice is what I need to feel better about this year!

My Current Gratitude Practice 

My practice could use a lot of work. The first problem is the lack of consistency. I practiced gratitude intentionally and consistently during The Morning Mentality series. I still count this series as a win because I practice gratitude more than I used to before the series. But I can do better.

My practice also lacks structure. I rarely use prompts or books to help me go beyond the surface level of gratitude practice to tap into other areas. Here's what I mean. I usually practice gratitude at night by thinking of three things I'm grateful for in my life. But that's it. I write down these three things when I want to be intentional. But rarely do I go beyond thinking of three random things at the end of the day. I never focus on themes like family, friends, or my job. Where's the structure? Where's the intentionality? 

Today's Prompt 

Imani Michelle gratitude practice prompt November 1, 2020

November 1, 2020 gratitude practice prompt!

Here's the prompt for today: 

What does gratitude mean to you? How can you incorporate gratitude practice into your daily routines? 

Gratitude for me is all about holding space and acknowledging the things, people, and experience that I'm thankful for and that I appreciate. My goal this month is to cultivate a consistent gratitude practice by journaling at night with different gratitude prompts. 

What's your current practice? Are you happy with your routine? Are there areas of improvement?