You might already be aware that being grateful is good for your sense of well-being and your state of mind and mood. Now there is research demonstrating that gratitude is good for your physical and mental health AND your ability to achieve your goals.

Dr. Robert Emmons of the University of California at Davis, and Dr. Michael McCollough of Southern Methodist University in Dallas, Texas conducted The Research Project on Gratitude and Thanksgiving.

The results of the study showed that daily gratitude exercises resulted in higher levels of alertness, enthusiasm, determination, optimism and energy. People who used regular appreciation exercises made more progress toward personal goals.

On a practical level, the study showed that members of the gratitude group experienced less depression and stress, and exercised more regularly. Each of those results is of direct benefit to entrepreneurs and business leaders. Grateful leaders are more focused, better able to handle the challenges that occur in business, and model gratitude for their team.

Gratitude is a learned behavior for most people. I work with entrepreneurs and business leaders to align their attention and actions with their vision. One of the greatest challenges posed by all that action is remembering to pause and recognize what HAS been accomplished.

One daily gratitude exercise I offer them is a 3-minute summary of their day - looking over the meetings they've conducted, the actions people committed to, and the milestones that have been met.

While many of the study's results are about personal benefits, there is an additional result uncovered by the study. It is critically important for you to know. The gratitude group was more likely to help others.

While many managers focus on personal results, and periodically acknowledge outstanding efforts in performance reviews, SHOWING gratitude regularly and deliberately is what sets outstanding leaders ahead of the pack.

One of the Leadership Principles my group members implement is creating an inspiring climate of gratitude. It produces high payoff results for everyone - the leader and their entire team.

If you'd like to take inwardly focused gratitude and turn it into a success booster for others around you, there are 3 steps:

Appreciation, gratitude and celebration.

* Appreciation is our positive feeling about another person or thing in our lives - the focus is on the other person and how they show up.

This is often the step that takes the most practice. It's your opportunity to tune in to the person you are thinking of, to really see who they are - their capabilities and intentions, and how they bring those with them as their gifts to you, the team, your customers.

* Gratitude is our positive feeling about the positive impact of this person or thing in our lives - the focus is on how we benefit from their energy and efforts. This might sound something like "Julia, I really appreciate the dedication you bring to problem solving."

While we are used to saying 'Thank You' to others, what is truly valuable is to make the connection between their action and the results it creates for others. Julia would be delighted to hear "That dedication let's me know that the challenges we're facing will always get excellent attention from you and have really effective options surfaced."

* Celebration is how we express our appreciation and gratitude - the focus is on making our appreciation and gratitude known, to them, and to others.

For some organizations, a public thank you at a meeting is the way to go. Ongoing studies have shown for over 20 years that a face-to-face thank you is valued more highly than a five-percent increase in base pay.

At some of my coaching clients, more creative approaches are being used now. If one of your folks has created a financial benefit for your business, above and beyond what was expected from their performance, it's a great opportunity to give them a bonus they'd personally appreciate. That might be cash, or the use of a rented luxury car, or a weekend stay at a local resort, and so on.

Appreciation, gratitude and celebration. Each has their value in sharpening your perception of another's efforts, and in letting the other person know what to do more of.

Pull your team together to talk through how can you use this in your business and your life today. It's good for your business and everyone it touches.

Copyright (c) 2008 Linda Feinholz