6 Ways To Share Your Gratitude Through Writing

Remember the last time you received an unsolicited thank you from a friend or family member, client, or colleague. Didn’t it make your day?

Go ahead, make someone’s day! I'll show you 6 ways you can share your gratitude through writing. Here's one thing to remember when showing your appreciation for others: Make sure that your gratitude writing is specific and personal. Don’t generalize your appreciation, point out specific qualities, and not so much the actions that elicit gratitude. For example…

Instead of saying, “Thanks so much for helping out with my project,” you could say, “I appreciate your generosity and willingness to help out with my project.” When you focus on someone's state of being, instead of doing, it helps wake them up to their authentic essence.

Words are powerful magic.

They capture the energy of your intention and can be revisited again and again. Think of a letter or card from a loved one that touched your heart. Don't you pull it out periodically and revisit to receive the love again? Gift someone the bounty of your love and care and capture it in writing. You'll bless them again and again and again. That's certain to flow back to you in infinite ways.

Here are 6 ways that you can share your gratitude through your writing:

1. Gratitude List.  That's right, ye ‘ole reliable gratitude list. You can incorporate this into your daily practice and write them on index cards or a notebook. Even better create a gratitude journal.

2. Gratitude Journal. Use a plain notebook and spruce it up on the outside with markers and stickers, or splurge and buy yourself a beautiful notebook. Use it for your gratitude lists, draw your gratitude and appreciation or capture it by clipping from magazines and flyers. Make it fun and fabulous. Visit with it every day and it will reward you with infinite joy. Any time you're having a not so fabulous day, pull it out and visit with your gratitude pages and bask in the bliss of your abundance.

3. Gratitude Letter.  Use beautiful stationery paper or cards, or spruce up plain paper with drawings or stickers. There's nothing like receiving something via snail mail. Just pour your heart into the writing. Let it flower and flow or capture concisely what you want to share. The style and quantity of writing don't matter much, it's your intention that adds the pizzazz.

4. Gratitude Poem/Prose. If you enjoy writing you might consider writing a poem of gratitude. This could be a specific poem to someone, expressing your gratitude or appreciation. You can also write a general poem listing everything you're thankful for, like my Gratitude for Life piece.

5. Gratitude Blessing.  These are great for holidays and birthdays, but you can write a blessing anytime, really. There's something sacred about a blessing. Tap into the energy of the infinite and let your pen dance across the page. Here's a short one I wrote for a friend's birthday: Bask in the bliss of your celebration. May lightness and love sprinkle abundantly throughout this year.

6. Gratitude Quote Graphic. Though handwriting is really the preferred mode for gratitude writing, in our age of instant connection nothing hits the spot like a quote graphic. Create a quote graphic to share your thanks and appreciation. One of my fave things to do when I connect with a new social media friend is to send them a ‘thanks for connecting' quote graphic. Have fun! Unleash your imagination and your gratitude!

Whether you consider yourself a writer or not really doesn't matter. There is power in sharing your gratitude through writing. Words carry energy and shift states of being. Your words, whatever they may be, encapsulate your energy and emotion and that's what is precious. Writing words of thanks – a blessing, prayer, or invocation – gifts us all and adds to the collective weave of consciousness and creation.

What are some ways that you share your gratitude through writing? Please post in the comments below.