Gratitude Rituals Will Help Your Presentation
Research has established that appreciating something that has come our way evokes positive emotions in us. It promotes a desire to do something good in return – as long as we feel that we are not indebted to whomever gave us the reason to feel grateful. According to research in positive psychology, positive emotions such as gratitude offer benefits such resiliency, optimism, better physical health, and stronger connections with family and friends. Establishing a gratitude ritual will promote on-going success.
On days when life events don’t seem to be going our way – a flight delay, a stubborn audience, or miscommunication with a meeting planner – creating a few gratitude rituals can pull us through those negative times.
1. Start the day with a positive thought. After my alarm goes off, I say to myself, “I’m going to have a great day!” A positive thought first thing in the morning sets the tone for the rest of the day.
2. Take a few moments throughout your day to notice what is good and beautiful around you. Some people choose to write these thoughts in a journal. Take this action one step further and think of why each thing you noticed is good.
3. Practice the appreciation of the unique gifts you bring to your audience as a speaker. Do you make your audience laugh? Are you an engaging storyteller? Do you have particular insights about the topic you speak on? Make a list of your attributes in service of your audience.
4. Express gratitude at endings – appreciation for the hotel and staff that supported you during business travel. Recognize the event planner and organization who invited you to speak. Thank the conference attendees for their insights. Creating a ritual of practicing gratitude at endings can inject more meaning from the events and more positive energy for you.
What gratitude rituals will you create in order to feel more optimism, resilience, better health and stronger connections?
Speaker Success MasterMind
The Speaker Success MasterMind, which has been running through the Fall, will open in January for new members. If you have an interest in joining a committed group who are looking to take their speaking to the next level, this may be for you! Applications will be accepted through the first week of December. For more information and the application to join the MasterMind, click here.