This article was updated by Angela Collevecchio on 14Feb21.
23 Daily Gratitude Journal Prompts to Create Joy
Our brains are organs. They react to the input we flood them with – and don’t worry, these daily gratitude journal prompts will give you plenty of positive fuel to work with.
When you practice positive feelings like gratitude, your brain releases tons of feel-good chemicals.
Psychology researchers have been studying gratitude for over a decade, and although the results are conflicting, most agree that there are positive psychological, physical, and social effects of practicing gratitude – especially when it comes to gratitude journaling.
They even know the optimal number of times you should journal weekly for the best results!
Want to learn how to gratitude journal but don’t know where to start? Let’s talk all things gratitude journaling plus a slew of gratitude journal prompts to send you down the right track to a healthy mindset full of gratitude!
What is in this article:
– Benefits of Practicing Gratitude
– Gratitude Practice for Mental Health
– How to Gratitude Journal
– Gratitude Journal Prompts
– Top 5 Best Gratitude Journals
– Gratitude Journal FAQs
The Benefits of Practicing Gratitude
Gratitude is the art of being thankful or showing appreciation for something. It is consciously acknowledging the things you are grateful for and sitting in those feelings.
Like any other skill, learning to be positive and focus on the good needs to be practiced.
There are a variety of ways to practice gratitude, for instance, showing appreciation to friends and family or doing acts of kindness. And one proven way to introduce gratitude and all its mood-boosting benefits into your life is through gratitude journaling.
A randomized clinical trial of over 1,000 participants found that those in the groups that practiced gratitude managed to:
- Increase positive affect
- Increase subjective happiness
- Increase life satisfaction
- Reduce negative affect
- Reduce depression symptoms
Not all research aligns with the conclusion that gratitude journaling has positive results, so founding editor and chief of UC Berkley Greater Good Science Center Magazine Jason Marsh decided to interview one of the leading experts on the science of gratitude, Robert Emmons.
Emmons is a professor at the University of California, Davis and disclosed a few tips to get the most out of gratitude journaling.
He suggests that you genuinely emotionally engage in the activity rather than just going through the motions, elaborate in detail, and most importantly, only practice once or twice a week.
Excessively practicing can actually cause the exercise to lose its oomph. If you want to see all his suggestions check out his article here.
And if you are on a kick of creating positive habits in your life, check out the mindfulness activities article to add more peace to your day.
Gratitude Practice for Mental Health
Ever wonder why the media is packed full of negative news, why high schoolers are intrigued to rush towards a fight rather than away, or why nasty gossip so quickly sweeps through a town?
As human beings, our brains have a “negative bias.”
That’s right, our brains more strongly react to negative information and actually process this information at a higher level than positive information, according to studies completed at Ohio State University by John Cacioppo, Ph.D.
Ever wonder what it would be like to flip the script? Practicing gratitude can help you do that.
Emmons partnered up with another researcher Michael McCullough, an American psychologist, to determine if gratitude journaling actually increased well-being.
The experiment divided participants into 3 different journaling groups – one that journaled about negative events, one that journaled about things they were grateful for, and one group that journaled about neutral events.
The results showed that those who journaled about gratitude every week, “exercised more regularly, reported fewer physical symptoms, felt better about their lives as a whole, and were more optimistic about the upcoming week compared to those who recorded hassles or neutral life events.”
The results showed that those who journaled about gratitude every week, “exercised more regularly, reported fewer physical symptoms, felt better about their lives as a whole, and were more optimistic about the upcoming week compared to those who recorded hassles or neutral life events.”
Emmons & McCullough, 2003
When we express gratitude, our brains release serotonin and dopamine, which are neurotransmitters that make us feel good and increase our mood.
Its expression also helps us release toxic emotions and can reduce feelings of anxiety and depression.
A few other practices that also boost feel-good brain chemicals are compassion meditation, exercise, and eating healthy foods.
How do you Gratitude Journal?
Gratitude journaling is simple. All you need to do is have something to write with – may that be a cell phone notes section or a journal with a pen – and 10 minutes. Practicing once or twice a week is optimal.
How to gratitude journal easy steps:
- Grab something to write with and on (cell phone notes section or journal with a pen)
- Have your journaling prompts or gratitude journal list examples ready to go
- Alott 5 to 10 minutes of free time
- Practice once or twice a week (preferably in the morning
Gratitude Journal Prompts
Okay, so we have nailed down the benefits of gratitude journaling, but where should you start? What should you journal about? This gratitude journal prompt print-out is a great place to start, including some of the prompts below.
Once you sit down, it can be hard to think of things to journal about. Coming from personal experience, the first few weeks of gratitude journaling can actually be pretty tricky, especially if you are already prone to a negative mindset.
Below are some easy gratitude journal prompts to get started with, and don’t worry, the more you practice, the easier it gets.
- List 5 things that made you smile in the past week.
- What is something in nature that you love and why?
- List your top 2 favorite activities, and what makes you love them!
- Describe a moment in your past when you were joyful.
- Name a person you appreciate and remind yourself why.
- List 5 things you noticed this week that brought you peace.
- Describe a time you laughed uncontrollably.
- What are 3 simple things that happened today that you are thankful for?
- Write about a time somebody went out of their way to do something kind for you.
- List 5 foods that you love.
- When was the last time you were super excited? Why?
- Describe a time that a stranger did a small act of kindness for you.
- What is your favorite season, and why does it bring you joy?
- Write about somebody in your life that has your back and what that means to you.
- List 5 sounds that make you feel warm and fuzzy.
- Recount an event you attended that made you feel alive.
- Write about your favorite trip.
- List 3 small things you did today with ease.
- What is one this you enjoy about the city you live in?
- Describe one relationship in your life that you are thankful for.
- List 2 books that you are grateful for.
- Describe in detail your favorite food.
- Write about 1 thing in nature that makes you smile.
Soon enough, you will find yourself continuing the list in your head all morning long after you put down your journal and head out for the day.
Liked these prompts and want more in a handy dandy PDF? Download your own prompt print out here.
If you are just focused on working with gratitude journal list examples – here are a few lists extracted from the larger prompt outline.
- List 5 things that made you smile in the past week.
- List your top 2 favorite activities, and what makes you love them!
- List 5 things you noticed this week that brought you peace.
- List 3 small things you did today with ease.
- List 2 books that you are grateful for.
Best Gratitude Journals
If you are ready to dive in and prefer to get a purpose-built journal for gratitude, below are the top options available.
I reviewed over 15 journals for customer reviews, design, and usability. And to be honest, I only found these two journals that fit my criteria – they both are easy to follow, designed well, reviewed highly, and provide prompts for the reader.
This journal has been on my radar for a while. The pages are split into a mourning and night update with the same structure of questions and prompt for gratitude, prioritizing your day, affirmation, and reflection.
Most reviewers who enjoyed this product liked the regular practice this journal encourages and the positive mood shift as a result.
The 5-Minute Gratitude Journal
Oddly enough, this is a very similar name but made by a completely different company.
This journal has four unique gratitude prompts per open-dated page. Reviewers who liked this product appreciate the straight-forward and thought-provoking prompts that help them to focus on the positive.
The links in this section are affiliate links which means chill chief gets a small commission from amazon if you purchase with no extra charge to you.
Gratitude Journal FAQ
Most common questions asked about gratitude journaling and gratitude journaling prompts.
You write about positive things in your life that you are thankful you can experience, participate in, enjoy, or appreciate. The writing process may consist of creating a list, describing something specific, or recalling an event.
A gratitude prompt is a thought-provoking suggestion, question, or outline that helps the writer to write about areas in their life that they are thankful for.
Expressing gratitude can increase positive affect, subjective happiness, and life satisfaction, and reduce negative affect and depression symptoms. Gratitude journaling is a proven method to practice gratitude.
You can put a variety of things you enjoy or appreciate on your gratitude list, including but not limited to: foods, people, relationships, moments in time, smells, activities, music, events, locations, opportunities, adventures, small acts of kindness, and material items.
You can start in multiple ways. Writing a simple gratitude list or finding prompts online and writing in a blank journal. Buying a journal created specifically for gratitude.
Results vary by person and by the consistency of practice. The best results are shown when practicing about two times a week.
This was a great read! I find myself journaling a lot to release negativity instead of releasing/practicing gratitude. Definitely going to be doing more of this! Thank you 💛
Of course, I am happy you found value in it and are looking to make a shift towards practicing more gratitude. We can all practice a little more gratitude, the world is full of so much to be thankful for! Thank you so much for your kind words.