How To Use Gratitude to Manifest

Gratitude, gratitude, gratitude. It’s a phrase we hear all the time and a concept that seems simple enough – show gratitude for what you have and you will receive more of it.

However it can sometimes feel & seem as if gratitude is not enough. It can be difficult to show or feel gratitude when you don’t feel there is enough to be grateful for.

These are all problems I’ve run into in trying to shift my vibration. Sometimes it is helpful to have some practical pointers to get you going in the right direction.

In today’s post I want to talk a little more about how to use gratitude to manifest and practices that can help.

The power of gratitude

So why is gratitude so important anyway? Gratitude first and foremost changes the way we see things.

For a very long time (going back to childhood) I had a very negative internal dialogue. I was fixated on what was going wrong…and what could.

I assumed the worst about people and their intentions. I would often think/say things like ‘people don’t like me’ ‘people don’t care about me’ ‘people are not interested in what I have to say’.

These phrases didn’t come from nowhere! They were fed to me, directly or indirectly, and I took them as truth.

Now there is always some truth to our negative inner speech. Some people don’t like us, some don’t care, some are not compassionate. However, there is always some un-truth in these statements too.

There are people that care…perhaps not the ones we value. There are helpful people out there…but perhaps we haven’t connected with them. There are good people in our lives…but perhaps we’ve overlooked them.

Practicing gratitude just means putting emphasis on the good, however small and allowing it to grow. It’s about building momentum not arriving at a perfectly positive state right away.

How to practice gratitude

Gratitude as a concept seems self-explanatory, just give thanks as often as you can. There are some pointers I like to keep in mind.

Giving thanks for the smaller things opens our eyes up to more. I recommend starting with a gratitude list, pinpointing the more ‘basic’ stuff. I’m thankful for the air that I breathe, I’m thankful for fresh water, I’m thankful for my home etc.

The minute you start acknowledging these things as something to be thankful for, the more stuff comes up in association with them. It can be difficult to stop listing things once you’re on a roll!

If you are not accustomed to practicing gratitude then at first it might feel a little forced, this is ok. We all have to start somewhere and over time it becomes easier.

Unless you feel like you’re outright lying, which I don’t recommend, a little discomfort just means you’re not used to expressing thanks and that will eventually come.

Make an effort to express gratitude in the good times. There have been so many joyous, exciting periods of my life where I didn’t practice thanks at all. And I noticed those phases were more short-lived.

When you’re in a good time pray more often! When we are able to pray without asking for anything, but simply expressing thanks for what we have, we extend that positive period.

Make a conscious effort to give thanks when you are delayed, redirected and face obstacles.

This is one that can take a little more practice but is such a game-changer.

The Universe redirects us for a specific purpose. To give us more time to appreciate or be able to maintain something or to bring us onto a better path.

Again, at first it’s difficult to really believe this, especially in the moment when our adrenaline or anxiety is at its peak. And so, don’t be afraid to express gratitude retrospectively.

Go over the last few weeks, months, year and write down or speak on every good thing that has happened to you. From the kind stranger who offered words of encouragement or the time someone took a chance on you.

One minds, the Universe doesn’t care if what we are expressing gratitude for is happening right now or five years ago, the effect is the same.

Release limiting beliefs

Gratitude involves releasing a lot of limiting beliefs.

If we don’t believe we are worthy of something good, someone good, being some place good…it’s going to be difficult to appreciate that when it comes up rather than feeling anxious (that we’ll destroy it) or suspicious (that it will be taken away).

Identify areas you find it most difficult to express gratitude. What area of your life do you find it most difficult to believe that something good could happen to you?

Write these beliefs down on a piece of paper and then beside them an affirmation to counteract it.

If you find it difficult to believe you could get a raise at work, your affirmation could be ‘People value my contribution’.

Reciting this affirmations notice where you feel the most tension in the body. Just be with any doubts, anxieties, fears etc. Don’t try to push them away, just make space for a positive next to them.

Over time gratitude becomes more and more natural as you understand these things just make sense as a possibility for you. Yes, there will be obstacles, but much good alongside it too!