Create a Culture of Gratitude

by Drew Holmes

The world we live in is an amazing place and I am grateful to be alive in this moment. Does that sound a bit ‘Polyanna”? It may be, but that is the way I feel.

Let me explain.

I take time every day to reflect on the many things that I am lucky to have. That could be something as big as Jamie and the boys or as simple as a full tank of gas in my car. The point is that there is always something to celebrate and be thankful for.

Why do I do this?

The way I look at it, the only finite resource any of us have is time. It is the one thing that we cannot get more of at any price. And the trick with that is, that time is limited but we do not know the amount given to us. We can spend that time focusing on the things we do not have, cursing the darkness instead of lighting a candle. But where does that get us? The human brain is capable of many fantastic things, but if we choose to occupy it primarily with negativity, we are limiting our potential.

I instead choose to focus on the positives. I call this “playing the cards I have not the ones I want”. Back in 2010 when we were renovating the store prior to moving in, I was on site with Russ, our contractor, trying to figure out where in a wall we could put a door. He had the wall open and every six inches there was either a steel or wood column, all load bearing. I laughed and told him that was the easiest choice we were going to have on the whole project: close the wall back up and figure something else out. Then I said to him “We may only be holding deuces, but at least we’ve got a pair”. Play the cards you have.

That is not to say we should ignore problems, rather we should see them for what they are: opportunities to find a new way to do something. Be grateful for the chance to solve the problem and not bitter that you need to find the solution. Focus on finding the solution, not wishing away the problem. Mindset is everything!

But back to analogy of lighting a candle. The funny thing about that is we can spread that light over and over again without diminishing our own. I find that the more gratitude I have the more I find to be grateful for. And the cool thing about gratitude is it is contagious. When we spread that mindset to our teams (whether it be coworkers, family, ensembles, etc.) it alters the whole mindset of the group. Imagine the power of a whole team that is solution focused and not problem focused. There is nothing they can’t do!

Create a culture of gratitude within your team. You will be amazed at the results.