Links to other parts of this miniseries:
A.J. Jacobs on Gratitude – Part 2
A.J. Jacobs on Gratitude – Part 3
A.J. Jacobs on Gratitude – Part 4

Estimated reading time: 2 minutes, 7 seconds.

TODAY’S IDEA: A.J. Jacobs on Gratitude – Part 1

— From Thanks a Thousand: A Gratitude Journey by A.J. Jacobs

A prolific writer and human guinea pig of sorts, A.J. Jacobs likes to immerse himself fully into whichever topic piques his interest. He thoroughly researches, tests, and experiences said topic, and then delivers a book filled with interesting information along with much wit and humor.

His latest book, Thanks a Thousand: A Gratitude Journey tells the story of why and how he chose to thank everybody involved in producing his morning cup of coffee. He embarked on a gratitude trail, spanning six degrees of gratitude—no holds barred—and the resulting project was so big that he ended having to put a limit of a thousand people to thank (!). Thus, the title of the book.

Why did it turn out to be so big an endeavor? Because, as Jacobs learned and witnessed first hand in his lovely gratitude project, we’re all interconnected and no one ever does anything by him/herself—there’s always someone (else) that lends a hand.

I had the good fortune of sitting down to have (what else?) coffee and chat with A.J. about his book and his adventures on gratitude. Since we’re celebrating Thanksgiving in the U.S., I thought of no better day than today to talk about gratitude and learn about the research behind it.

“Happiness does not lead to gratitude. Gratitude leads to happiness.” – David Steindl-Rast

Below is the first video (3:34 min). Over the next few days, I’ll be sharing with you other videos of our conversation as a way of extending the wonderful feeling of gratitude throughout the holiday weekend. I hope you enjoy the videos as much as I enjoyed the conversation with A.J.

What are you grateful for? Let me know in the comments here.

I am grateful for you! Have a wonderful and blessed Thanksgiving with your loved ones.

ACTION

TODAY: Enjoy Thanksgiving if you celebrate it. If not, make a point of being grateful for 3 persons or things that happened today in your life. But don’t just run by this list, instead stop and savor the moment and the memory.

FUTURE: Create a gratitude ritual that you can do on a daily basis. It doesn’t have to be complicated at all: it could be thinking about what you’re thankful for as you drink your morning cup of coffee, doing the three-thing/person practice right before you go to sleep, keeping a gratitude journal, or anything that works for you.

Are you grateful for someone’s presence in your life? Please share this post with them! Email, Facebook or Twitter.