words of gratitude speech during pandemic

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Six Simple Ways to Develop an Attitude of Gratitude

Focus on what's good in your life to get through these trying times.

Sequestering indoors has tested the resilience and patience of many, but this slowed-down period of unplanned days has also created more opportunity for people to take stock of what they have to be thankful for.

Board-certified health coach Noelle Creamer of Scottsdale, Arizona, has been doing just that; she and her family drop daily gratitude messages into a jar and read them aloud to one another at the end of each week. She also believes that gratitude is an effective way for her clients to combat stress , anxiety and other difficult emotions.

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"Small daily rituals make people more grateful by putting things into perspective and helping them focus on things they are thankful for, rather than things they can't control,” Creamer says. “It's very hard to be stressed and grateful at the same time.”

Here, six more simple and reaffirming ways to show appreciation for others and yourself — ideas to fill your days with an attitude of gratitude.

Use your gift to spread joy

Before the COVID-19 outbreak , Los Angeles–based photographer Innis Casey made his living documenting humanity's one-of-a-kind moments, such as weddings, bar/bat mitzvahs and graduations. But when social distancing measures hit pause on gatherings, he took his talent to his neighbors, asking permission to snap quarantine portraits, or “quartraits” as he calls them, for free. He says he has shot more than 100 since mid-March and has found new joy in time-capsuling this unique moment in history for families such as Michael Bernstein; his wife, Rachel; and their two daughters.

"The immediate memory in looking at the photo is one of sadness and wistfulness for an era that is over,” Michael says. “But as the quarantine has gone on, I think we've come to appreciate that the most important things in life are inside that home with us, and ultimately, we have everything we truly need right there in that picture."

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Get touchy-feely

Hugging friends and family was a lot easier before this health crisis. But James Owen, author of Just Move!: A New Approach to Fitness After 50, and his wife, Stanya, are lucky enough to be sheltering in place together and have made hugging a twice-a-day practice in their Austin, Texas, home.

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"Every day before we get out of bed and every night before we fall asleep, we take three to five minutes to hold each other in an embrace and take turns reciting a few things we are personally grateful for,” James says. “As 79-year-olds who are in the most vulnerable position during this pandemic, we have recognized that we have so much to be grateful for, especially our health and the health of our children. Including physical touch to the verbal expression of gratitude has made us appreciate our relationship and companionship even more. After 51 years [of marriage], we are closer than ever."

Write thank-you letters

Platforms such as Zoom and Facebook make connecting a breeze, but Jonathan Tran of San Diego dusted off a set of note cards he had received as a gift last year and wrote to his family in Racine, Wisconsin.

"They are not blood relatives but took in my mother, her six siblings and her parents when they fled Vietnam during the war. I thought about how grateful I was to have this extended family who love us as their own,” Tran says. “A text message is such little effort. The act of giving my time to write a heartfelt message on a card, signing it with love and spending days hoping they received my message of gratitude is so much more impactful."

Serve positivity for dinner

Each night at the dinner table, Portland, Oregon–based writer Jessica Spiegel, her boyfriend and his daughter share three positive things about their day. They started this practice six years ago, and the ritual, says Spiegel, has not only sparked conversations they might not have had but also has made them feel more optimistic during the monotonous quarantine days.

"Our dinnertime ritual has remained a constant for so many years now that it's hard to pinpoint what impact it has had during this whole quarantine, except that it would be very easy to go down the negative rabbit hole and forget anything good is happening at all if we didn't still go through the routine,” she says.

Start a daily meditation habit

According to Lynne Goldberg, one of the country's leading meditation teachers and the founder of the meditation app Breethe, consistent daily meditation has numerous and profound effects on mental and physical well-being.

"One of the techniques we teach is how to stay present, rather than get swept away by anxious thoughts about the future. There is so much uncertainty right now, and none of us can predict what will happen,” she says. “But, what we do know, and what we can learn to consider, is that at this moment right now, there is a lot more that is OK with us than there is wrong."

Keep track of the little things

There are countless ways to kick-start your daily gratitude attitude, including writing in a journal , sneaking notes into your spouse's sock drawer and texting photos of the flowers in the garden to your children and grandchildren. Or do as Elizabeth Rees of Milwaukee, Wisconsin, does and keep tabs on your daily gifts on the Oh So Grateful chart, a daily tracker she keeps in her infant daughter's bedroom.

"At first, it was actually a bit hard to remember to do it, or sometimes I would feel overwhelmed by what to write, but now we are in a groove and it feels great,” Rees says. My daughter is still little and doesn't understand yet, but I know that my mood and energy directly affects my patience, my creativity and my ability to be a good role model for her."

The Art of Saying Thanks — in Writing

In 2016, the year of her 50th birthday, author Nancy Davis Kho wrote 50 thank-you letters to people who had helped, shaped or inspired her. Her gratitude journey is documented in her 2019 book, The Thank-You Project. We asked her to share some of her best advice for writing therapeutic thank-you notes.

Whom to write to?

“Start with a list of people who have helped, shaped or inspired you in a positive way. I started with family and close friends. My first two letters were to my parents, then in their 80s. Later in my project, as I honed my ‘gratitude muscle,’ I was able to find gratitude for even the negative relationships.”

What to say?

“Pick a person to think about for a week. How have they helped/shaped/changed you specifically? How are you a different person because you know them? What kind of problem would you call this person to help you with? Then start writing.”

Tip: Keep a copy

“I typed my letters on the computer, so it was easy to keep a copy of each. I bound all those letters together at the end of the project, and it’s something I return to again and again as a reminder of all the various ways I’ve been held up and supported in my life.”

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Leveraging Gratitude in a Post-Pandemic World

It may seem hopelessly naïve to suggest that to create a vision for work after COVID-19, we should start with a big dose of gratitude. Health worries, employees juggling their children’s at-home educational needs with their own jobs, a call for organizations to reflect somberly on their role in perpetuating systemic racism that has worsened health outcomes for BIPOC communities: Our lives have been ravaged by both personal and societal suffering in the past few months. What is there possibly to feel grateful for in 2020?

But researchers who study the science of well-being have quantified how taking the time to deliberately express gratitude can rewire our brains to seek out the good things around us, thereby calming our nervous system and building resilience. Studies show that actively noticing things to appreciate can help us sleep better, decrease blood pressure, and lower levels of anxiety and depression. People who are grateful have been found to exercise more patience and self-control, and even have a lower tendency to cheat. Simply put, all signs point to us functioning best when genuine gratitude is part of the picture.

These lessons were driven home the year I spent writing a weekly thank-you letter to someone who had helped, shaped, or inspired me to that point in my life. There were three simple steps I followed for my thank-you project : see , say , and savor . See the good around me; say something to express gratitude; and by keeping copies of each letter to reread later, savor the reasons I have to be grateful.

Those three steps can be equally powerful when adapted to the workplace. The bad news/good news is that when it comes to creating more gratitude at work, there is nowhere to go but up.

While almost nine out of 10 respondents to a 2012 survey from the John Templeton Foundation said that expressing gratitude to colleagues made them feel happier and more fulfilled, 60 percent of respondents said they never, or rarely, did so. Eighty-one percent of respondents said they would work harder for a grateful boss, and a whopping 93 percent believed that a grateful boss would be more likely to succeed.

So for teams reemerging into the physical work world after months of being home, it shouldn’t be hard to boost gratitude levels to help reset and reenergize. Consider these quick techniques:

See the positive things that have come out of the crisis.

Encourage teams and individuals to deliberately consider the specific things that have worked better than expected remotely. Maybe staff has managed to maintain productivity; maybe an agile product design process enabled the organization to pivot quickly; or perhaps long-term plans to optimize online activities were completed faster than anyone expected.

Gratitude could also come in the form of realizing the good things taken for granted about pre-pandemic work life. Maybe you never fully appreciated listening to audiobooks during commutes, or frontline interactions with customers, or that dorky departmental birthday song.

By taking a moment to actively reflect on these positive things, we’re already heightening what researchers call “positive recall bias” — the ability to notice the good things around us — and building neural pathways that help us continue to do so. We are also starting to tease out what aspects of remote work we’d like to bring with us into a post-COVID-19 environment through updated priorities, policies, and procedures.

Say something to express your gratitude.

Take the time to document your reflections. That could simply be a list you make for your own use, a brainstorming session for a team, or an ongoing part of a weekly departmental meeting, with thoughts captured in a shared digital document. It could also take the form of actual thank-you letters sent to the people in your work world for whom you are grateful.

Former Campbell Soup CEO Douglas Conant famously sent 30,000 handwritten thank-you notes to employees during his time at the helm of the company, to show his appreciation for their specific contributions; he’s credited the practice with building goodwill and higher productivity in his team.

And when we write and send a thank-you letter, research shows that it is as beneficial to the writer as it is to the recipient; one such study found that letter writers were measurably happier for a full month afterward.

Savor your reasons for gratitude.

Someday, COVID-19 will be in the history books, but organizations always face challenges. By keeping your list of reasons to be grateful (or that shared departmental Google Doc, or a team gratitude journal that lives by the company coffee maker), you’ll have reminders that even in the worst crises, there are reasons to be appreciative. When we take moments to savor what’s on our lists, we have chances to remember that we’ve overcome hard things before and have a support network that will help us do it again.

The pandemic has been, after all, an opportunity — a forced one, to be sure, but still an opportunity — to ponder what we as individuals, employees, and organizations truly care about. That’s an excellent starting point to figure out the direction of our work lives in a post-COVID-19 world.

Nancy Davis Kho W88 is a speaker, podcaster, and author of The Thank-You Project: Cultivating Happiness One Letter of Gratitude at a Time . Her writing has appeared in the Washington Post and San Francisco Chronicle , and on Salon.com.

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Giving thanks during a pandemic: 'We learn to appreciate things when we lose them'

Joni Mitchell has written a lot of great lyrics, but one line seems especially apt this Thanksgiving .

In “Big Yellow Taxi,” the singer/songwriter's jaunty 1970 tune about loss – of trees, of healthy food, of a love interest – she repeats and repeats, “Don’t it always seem to go / That you don’t know what you’ve got till it’s gone.”

Mitchell is challenging us to not take things for granted. There is a wildly simple way to do that. It’s called expressing gratitude.

Sure, that may sound eye-rollingly New Agey. But in truth, there has never been a better time to be genuinely thankful than this holiday season, one that arrives in the throes of a wrenching two-year global pandemic . In fact, we as a society are uniquely poised to feel profound gratitude because of our tough times.

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If any parallel is apt, it is to those who grappled with the Great Depression. That generation faced a decadelong hardship so profound that it forged a lasting appreciation for the value of hard work and simple pleasures, both enshrined by the mythic paintings of Norman Rockwell .

“COVID-19 was all about death,” says Rice University historian Douglas Brinkley. “This recovery is about a renewed feeling of survival, a gratefulness for backyard barbecues, religious services, or listening to live music. It’s a time of gratitude.”

Consider this our Depression-lite Generation’s chance for an attitude makeover. Perhaps on Turkey Day, ditch those superficial appreciations (“I’m happy my football team won”) in favor of more profound celebrations (“I’m glad Grandpa Joe is here with us”). It’s simple enough, though it does take commitment.

The good news, those who study and lecture on gratitude tell USA TODAY, is that guides abound, from books to podcasts, on how to make time for gratitude. The practice not only makes you feel good but can even train the brain to keep that high alive, they say.

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The cautionary word, however, is that humans are prone to what’s called hedonic adaptation, which basically translates to a tendency to revert back to our old – and in this case, unappreciative – ways.

“We are very good at getting used to changes, good and bad, which is what adaptation is, so in that sense, gratitude is the antidote to adaptation,” says Sonja Lyubomirsky, psychology professor at the University of California, Riverside, and author of “The How of Happiness: A New Approach to Getting the Life You Want.”

In order to keep adaptation from erasing your sense of gratitude, “you need to commit to practicing it, consciously thinking or talking about what you appreciate about your life,” she says. “It’s work.”

But precisely because we have been toiling through a time of unprecedented hardship, experts urge us not to blow this chance to make gratitude a permanent part of our psyche.

“This pandemic is a huge opportunity for us as a society to reset because if you missed the memo, it’s still out there,” says Nancy Davis Kho, author of “The Thank-You Project,” a 2019 book in which she wrote 50 letters of gratitude to friends and family.

Through that yearlong process, Kho’s letters fortified her positive recall bias, which is “a tendency to notice good things around us, whether a good book or dinner or friend, and that rewires your brain so that it’s easier and easier to see those things in your life.”

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Celebrities haven't been shy about the power of gratitude in their lives.

Oprah Winfrey is among a bevy of stars who kept a gratitude journal, nothing more complicated than noting what you give thanks for daily.

“ I practice being grateful ,” Winfrey told the 2017 graduates of Skidmore College. “And a lot of people say, ‘Oh, Oprah, that’s easy for you because you've got everything!’ (But) I've got everything because I practiced being grateful.”

In 2018, Lin-Manuel Miranda simply tweeted : "Gmorning with gratitude to the books, movies, plays, and music you love the most, and how they helped you figure out what you love what you're doing and who you are in your time here, it's your time after all."

In that same pre-pandemic year, actress Kerry Washington tweeted, " Today I choose: gratitude. It will probably look & feel like many different kinds of emotions but I want to keep my gratitude in first place."

In 2020, during the height of the unfolding pandemic, Yoko Ono tweeted: " I give thanks every day how wonderful it is to be still breathing . And you should, too."

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That simple act of appreciation came easily in the difficult 1930s when 1 in 4 Americans was unemployed and 1 in 5 – some 20 million people – survived on food stamps.

“The Depression forced people to reevaluate their priorities,” says Stephen Mihm, history professor at the University of Georgia, who notes that people started to appreciate simple and inexpensive pastimes such as bridge and bird-watching.

“Something similar is happening now, where just the act of sitting outside with friends takes on new meaning,” he says.

Part of this awakening stems from the fact that the past seven decades have been filled with almost steady economic growth and no Depression-like cataclysms. This created a false sense that things would always be this way. In truth, over the centuries such a smooth sail is more exception than the rule.

“Collective trauma is more the norm, historically,” says Mihm. “But deprivation isn’t the end of the world. Paradoxically, it often produces happier, healthier people.”

By the time the Depression and, a bit later, World War II ended, in 1945, Americans “went into hyper-gratitude in their feelings of wonder for the American way,” says historian Brinkley.

What helped was comparatively few distractions that these days are leveled at us by technology, says Jay Shetty, former monk turned podcaster and purpose coach and author of "Think Like A Monk: Train Your Mind for Peace and Purpose Every Day."

"The pandemic has underscored for people that it really is the simple things, like spending time with those we love, that enrich our lives most," he says. "So it may be that the extent to which we continue with an attitude of appreciation will depend on how much we prioritize paying attention and committing to a gratitude practice going forward."

Shetty suggests creating a gratitude habit. For one week, plan to spend five minutes after waking and five minutes before going to bed listing three things for which you're grateful. "Chances are you'll find that the practice feels so good you continue on well past the week," he says.

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For many, COVID-19 has challenged our ability to be grateful

To be sure, nearly two years into this health crisis, there has been incalculable loss and suffering, punctuated by the deaths of 770,000 Americans. Nearly 1 in 7 of us, or approaching 50 million people, have contracted the virus, which hasn't affected some but in others has left debilitating complications that can make life miserable.

Some have been spared, by diligence, avoidance, luck or the swiftly developed and distributed vaccine. But the pain that has been meted out has been felt disproportionately by the poor, people of color and the LGBTQ community, whose ongoing struggles for economic and social equity were exacerbated by the pandemic.

Seemingly every aspect of our society – commerce, leisure, education, politics – has been impacted by the virus and the disconnect over COVID-19 vaccinations, and the result has led to some fractures in the nation’s so-dubbed perfect union.

But this dark cloud does have a glimmering lining, experts say.

“Gratitude indeed often flows from dramatic moments of trials, tribulations, tragedies and other moments of suffering, either personal or collective,” says Robert Emmons, editor in chief of The Journal of Positive Psychology and author of “Thanks! How the New Science of Gratitude Can Make You Happier.”

Emmons says it is not a coincidence to him that the very first Thanksgiving was celebrated after a harsh winter that killed many of the pilgrims; that it became a national holiday during the ravages of the Civil War; and that it was anchored to its current November date in the middle of the Depression. “Is there a significance to this?” he says. “I think so.”

Making gratitude an everyday part of your life requires work and guidance, he says. In Emmons’ “The Little Book of Gratitude," he lays out ways readers can better incorporate gratitude in their lives. His favorite method is dubbed The George Bailey, after Jimmy Stewart’s character in the redemptive film fable “It’s A Wonderful Life.”

“You make a list of what you are prone to take for granted in your life and then cross them off one by one, contemplating the absence of this blessing, of what your life would be like without that person, circumstance, object,” he says. This pushes you to “take aspects of your life less for granted, and more as granted.”

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One suggestion is to start at the Thanksgiving dinner table. Instead of launching into the usual superficial chatter, be bold enough to really connect and share what you are thankful for, says Kristi Nelson, executive director of A Network for Grateful Living and author of “Wake Up Grateful: The Transformative Practice of Taking Nothing for Granted.”

“Let’s change our rituals and deepen the way we gather because we’ve seen up close how fragile life is,” says Nelson, whose own views came into focus after surviving Stage 4 cancer. “There’s no better way to honor those people we’ve lost to the pandemic than to ask ourselves: How would they live if they could come back for one day? Can we learn from that, and start living that way now?”

One of her favorite suggestions for those in search of guidance is a practice, featured on her organization’s site, called “From Obligation to Opportunity.”

You write down five things from your to-do list, such as paying bills or washing dishes, leading off with the heading: “I have to.”

“Then you write the same list, but start with ‘I get to,’ ” says Nelson. “Watch how your attitude and energy shifts when you see responsibilities and obligations as privileges and opportunities.”

People do seem to be in search of such guidance. During the pandemic-driven lockdowns, Georgian Benta saw interest in his five-year-old The Gratitude Podcast leap. It is currently among the top 1% of podcasts globally, according to Listen Score.

Benta, who has recorded hundreds of episodes from his home in the Romanian city of Cluj-Napoca, was aiming to “bring a new perspective on gratitude to Westerners from a country that many people are fleeing from,” he says. “The point is you can find gratitude wherever you are.”

After interviewing 200-plus guests, ranging from 9/11 survivors to monks, Benta says he has detected a common theme.

“Often, it’s people discovering gratitude after they lost something valuable for them: a business, a job, a loved one,” he says. “We learn to appreciate things when we lose them, unfortunately.”

OK, so Joni Mitchell said it more lyrically, but you get the point. The time to be grateful is now. So grab it, along with that turkey leg.

Happy Thanksgiving.

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Gratitude and Optimism: Crucial Components of COVID Coping

Tragic optimism and gratitude protect well-being under stressful circumstances..

Posted September 24, 2021 | Reviewed by Ekua Hagan

Tragic optimism acknowledges good times and hard times, as well as life's pleasant and difficult moments.
Gratitude can be amplified via a "three good things" exercise.
Research shows gratitude and tragic optimism play significant roles in protecting well-being during the pandemic.

A global pandemic and the desperate search for “normal” in these strange times (see "Desperately Seeking Normal" here ) have taxed our individual and collective senses of well-being. Studies (e.g., Kleiman et al., 2020) demonstrate a link between the positive psychological attribute of optimism and one’s capacity for connecting to and receiving support from others during the COVID-19 pandemic. Recent research has also shown that a subtype of optimism, tragic optimism, and gratitude , can significantly protect well-being during the pandemic. This post delves deeper into what tragic optimism is and looks like.

Tragic optimism

Tragic optimism (Wong, 2019) is defined as “optimism in the face of tragedy” and a stance of acceptance in spite of the tragic triad of pain, guilt , and death (Mead et al., 2021). It can be differentiated from more traditional optimism in its emphasis on hope despite distress and suffering, and therefore has relevance to our current experience of the Delta variant and as juvenile hospitalizations are spiking.

Another way of thinking about how traditional and tragic optimism differ is like this: Toxic optimism is positivity no matter what is happening, singing “Everything is coming up roses” while the people around you are experiencing various forms of mourning and loss (i.e., 675,000 fellow citizens have died of COVID, and that's a lot of loss). Toxic optimism is anti-inclusive and rather oblivious to very real struggles, whereas tragic optimism acknowledges that life comes with both good times and suffering.

Tragic optimism resonates with components of the Serenity Prayer. In fact, two items of Wong’s Life Acceptance Measure (2019), a new measure of tragic optimism, read “I accept what cannot be changed in my life” and “I have learned how to face and adapt to whatever life throws at me.”

Gratitude is a general orientation of appreciation for life and the people in it and has been found to contribute to well-being (Portocarrero et al., 2020). A recent study (Bono et al., 2020) showed that higher levels of gratitude early in the pandemic in the months of January to March 2020 predicted lower psychological harm and higher subjective well-being in April and May 2020.

A grateful stance is conscious of how human life is very fragile, and along with that one is more likely to appreciate people, leading to prosocial behavior (Gulliford et al., 2013; Ma et al., 2017) This makes a lot of sense, because if one is grateful and realizes the importance of inclusion, then one is more likely to reach out and make contact with them, leading to the perception (and experience) of social support.

If you’re an introvert like me, sometimes you need time to recharge your social battery before heading back out there and spending time with people. But in the end, if you are appreciative of others and occasionally show it, you will be more likely to be able to tap into social support from your network. (I just texted a friend and thanked him for touching base; it wasn’t that difficult). Some of my own research has pointed to the importance of social support to sustain our resilience (Killian, 2008).

The proof is in the pudding. In a study with 138 participants, Mead et al. (2021) found that gratitude and tragic optimism were the only variables to contribute significantly to a model of well-being during COVID (gratitude, B = .38, tragic optimism, B = .22). This study’s results corroborate and extend past research in psychology that has found that tragic optimism and existential gratitude are crucial to coping with suffering and for aiding survival and growth during adversity (Wong, 2020).

The "three good things" exercise

How might one enhance one’s gratitude and tragic optimism? For the former, one can engage in the “three good things” activity which you can do by responding to the following prompt (Lai, 2017):

“There are many things in our lives, both large and small, that we might consider as a form of blessing. It could even be those who help us to reach our goals , or just make our lives easier with small details. If we appreciate their efforts, and notice the voluntary nature of their acts, we have a good reason to feel grateful. Please reflect and write down three things in your life that you are grateful for.”

For developing tragic optimism, you can re-evaluate the sets of expectations you carry with you into every event and encounter, and assess how much that is constraining your ability to be just present and accept life with all its wonderful moments and also some temporary limitations. Further, you can reflect on what meaning you can derive from the difficult, adverse experiences of the past year and a half as well as what you’ve learned about yourself and others and apply those learnings.

Cultivating gratitude and tragic optimism can build and protect well-being, as well as nurture a sense of inclusiveness and consciousness of others as we move forward together.

Bono, G., Reil, K., & Hescox, J. (2020). Stress and wellbeing in urban college students in the U.S. during the COVID-19 pandemic: can grit and gratitude help? International Journal of Wellbeing , 10 , 39–57.

Gulliford, L., Morgan, B., & Kristjánsson, K. (2013). Recent work on the concept of gratitude in philosophy and psychology. Journal of Value Inquiry , 47 , 285–317.

Killian, K.D. (2008). Helping till it hurts: A multi-method study of burnout, compassion fatigue and resilience in clinicians working with trauma survivors. Traumatology , 14 , 31-44.

Kleiman, E. M., Yeager, A. L., Grove, J. L., Kellerman, J. K., & Kim, J. S. (2020). The real-time mental health impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on college students: an ecological momentary assessment study. JMIR Mental Health , 7, e24815.

Lai, S. (2017). “The Three Good Things” – The effects of gratitude practice on wellbeing: a randomised controlled trial. Health Psychology , 26 , 10.

Ma, L. K., Tunney, R. J., & Ferguson, E. (2017). Does gratitude enhance prosociality?: A meta-analytic review. Psychological Bulletin , 143 , 601–635.

Mead J. P, Fisher, Z., Tree, J.J., Wong, T.P.P., & Kep, A.H. (2021). Protectors of wellbeing during the COVID-19 pandemic: Key roles for gratitude and tragic optimism in a UK-based cohort. Frontiers of Psychology , 12 , 647951.

Portocarrero, F. F., Gonzalez, K., & Ekema-Agbaw, M. (2020). A meta-analytic review of the relationship between dispositional gratitude and well-being. Personality and Individual Differences , 164, 110101.

Kyle D. Killian, Ph.D., LMFT is the author of Interracial Couples, Intimacy and Therapy: Crossing Racial Borders.

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In Times of Crisis, a Little Thanks Goes a Long Way

Sabina Nawaz

Five ways leaders can make gratitude routine.

As managers, it’s essential to express gratitude to your employees, especially in this time of uncertainty and social distancing. People are battling fears about the situation and juggling home and work in close proximity. Almost every employee needs to hear that their dedication is noticed and it matters. Further, gratitude is proven to show improvements in self-esteem, achieving career goals, decision making, productivity, and resilience.

Here are five strategies to show more gratitude to your employees and across your organization. First, bring people together for a gratitude shower. Next, tailor your thanks to what the person did and how they like to be appreciated. Third, make a point to recognized invisible work. Fourth, popularize positivity by creating a pay-it-forward movement in your company. Finally, foster teamwork by working with others to recognize someone in a positive way.

In these difficult times, we’ve made a number of our coronavirus articles free for all readers. To get all of HBR’s content delivered to your inbox, sign up for the Daily Alert newsletter.

The chatter in our cafeterias and conference rooms is replaced by the disquiet we’re experiencing inside our socially-distanced bubbles. From general malaise to specific maladies, many employees are afflicted by stress and anxiety that make brushing teeth and cooking a meal feel like the day’s crowning achievements. My clients, executives in a variety of organizations, feel overworked, underappreciated, and cut off from their colleagues. While there’s no panacea for these current ills, regularly practicing gratitude can help.

Sabina Nawaz is a global CEO coach , leadership keynote speaker, and writer working in over 26 countries. She advises C-level executives in Fortune 500 corporations, government agencies, non-profits, and academic organizations. Sabina has spoken at hundreds of seminars, events, and conferences including TEDx and has written for FastCompany.com , Inc.com , and Forbes.com , in addition to HBR.org. Follow her on Twitter .

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Front Psychol

A Perspective on Mature Gratitude as a Way of Coping With COVID-19

Associated data.

The original contributions presented in the study are included in the article/supplementary material, further inquiries can be directed to the corresponding author/s.

Aim and Methods

This perspective presents evidence of mature gratitude as a way of coping with the threats and boundaries of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19). This narrative, non-systematic review will be based on studies from the COVID-19 period in association with more general literature on the characteristics of mature gratitude related to good mental health.

The results from the literature suggest that a confrontation with our existential vulnerability during a pandemic is not only a crisis but also an opportunity to view our lives in a different way. Mature gratitude, as proposed in this perspective, can help us in coping with the threats and boundaries that are part of our lives due to the COVID-19 pandemic. This time of crisis gives us the opportunity to self-reflect on our current life and plans for the future and to reframe them through a positive lens which can encourage individuals to actively strengthen their psychological resilience and coping skills.

Cultivating an attitude of mature gratitude through actions of kindness, expressing being thankful for life and God, and enjoying all the small things in life helps in coping with the current threats of COVID-19 and building lifelong resilience for the future. Knowledge about these associations can help psychologists, counselors, and coaches to support people who experience psychological issues due to the current pandemic and all crises to come.

Introduction

As the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic continues, we all must adjust to a threatening world that was already been scourged by conflict, natural disasters due to climate change, and other serious adversities. The severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) forces us to physically distance us from others and abstain from important social behavior causing loneliness, anxiety, and depression. We live under lockdown and are strongly advised to refrain from larger gatherings and unnecessary traveling. This leads to disruptive agitation in the population of an individualistic and hedonistic society where immediate need fulfillment now must be postponed for the sake of collective health. Furthermore, there is serious economic damage whereby many people have lost their jobs and face poverty and homelessness. Above all, there is an existential fear that lingers in our daily life now that COVID-19 is threatening mostly the lives of the vulnerable and old, but also young and healthy people are at risk of becoming seriously ill.

These times show the necessity for positive psychology 2.0 (PP 2.0), the successor of positive psychology 1.0 (PP 1.0). Whereas PP 1.0 focuses on the pursuit of happiness ( Seligman and Csikszentmihalyi, 2000 ), it becomes clear that we cannot avoid or ignore unpleasant issues like suffering and human weaknesses, something that was already known in suffering societies across the world before the COVID-19 pandemic. Our mental health is not immune to adverse effects, and we need a way to cope with these disruptive issues acknowledging that suffering is part of living. PP 2.0 posits that life is a struggle in a difficult and dangerous world. The only way to achieve sustainable well-being is to embrace and transform suffering and human weaknesses into our advantage for personal growth, happiness, and success. This can be achieved through learning how to make the best use of the dynamic and dialectic interplay between positive and negative life experiences in each context ( Wong, 2019 ; Wong et al., in press ).

Aim and Scope

The aim of this perspective is to present evidence of mature gratitude as a way of coping with the threats and boundaries due to the COVID-19 pandemic. This manuscript is a narrative review. The purpose of a narrative review is to describe a topic of interest. They have no specified search strategy, are not systematic and do not follow specified protocols ( Ferrari, 2015 ). For this narrative review, studies were included from the COVID-19 period in association with more general literature on the characteristics of mature gratitude such as dispositional gratitude, existential gratitude, state gratitude, spirituality, and religion. Relevant articles were found through database search or references in given articles. Knowledge about these associations can help psychologists, counselors, and coaches to support people who experience psychological issues due to the current pandemic.

Mature Gratitude

One of the ways to learn to cope with positive and negative life experiences is mature gratitude; a concept associated with positive psychology 2.0 (see Figure 1 ). This concept arose over time as more and more became known about gratitude and its many facets. In the beginning, trait gratitude was defined as a wider life orientation towards noticing and being grateful for the positive in the world ( Wood et al., 2010 ). A definition of gratitude that includes more facets of life is proposed by Jans-Beken (2018) : “Trait gratitude is viewed as a general tendency to recognize small to large benefits, to experience sufficiency, and to acknowledge anything in the world, both human and non-human, with grateful emotion and expression of this emotion which promotes personal well-being and the well-being of others.” ( Jans-Beken, 2018 , pp. 10–11). Although not explicitly, this definition of an attitude of gratitude already includes two dimensions: a horizontal and a vertical dimension.

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Conceptual model of mature gratitude.

The horizontal immanent dimension includes gratitude for prosperity and adversity that is conceived consciously and within earthly borders. The horizontal gratitude is directed at materialistic and naturalistic objects, expected and unexpected events, and the people with whom we interact. Being grateful for the good things in life is the easier part ( McCullough et al., 2002 ). One of the most common gratitude interventions is the Three Good Things exercise which focusses solely on the good and consists of writing down three things that went well that day along with their causes and consequences ( Seligman et al., 2005 ). This intervention is often used in experiments and the results showed that inducing gratitude with the Three Good Things exercise is associated with less psychopathological symptoms and more happiness ( Gander et al., 2012 ; Lomas et al., 2014 ; Sexton and Adair, 2019 ). Being grateful for broken objects, disheartening events, and people that are annoying or hurtful, is a more difficult part of gratitude. In times of adversity and uncertainty such as a pandemic, people feel powerless and they lose their sense of control over their life and their faith. If they realize that everything they have and counted on, may be taken away, it becomes hard to take it all for granted. When people become aware of their mortal limitations, this awareness will enhance their sense of gratitude for life. People can gain the most from a grateful perspective on life during a crisis ( Emmons, 2013 ; Frias et al., 2011 ). In a study by Jans-Beken and Wong (2019) the results showed that gratitude for good and adverse aspects – existential gratitude ( Jans-Beken and Wong, 2019 ) – predicted better well-being in people with symptoms of PTSD, while gratitude for only good aspects – trait gratitude – was not ( Jans-Beken and Wong, 2019 ). This shows that it is necessary for good mental health to accept and transform frustration, powerlessness, and hurt that one experiences into growth and thriving.

The vertical dimension is the experience of gratitude for phenomena that cannot be precisely and mentally located in space and time. Illustrations of this vertical gratitude are cosmic gratitude ( Roberts, 2014 ). Gratitude to God, non-directed existential gratitude ( Lacewing, 2016 ) or spiritual gratitude that can be elicited by, for example, gratitude for ancestors or spirits, but also cultural expressions such as music or art, or an awareness of being part of something big. There are many definitions of spirituality and religiousness where spirituality is considered a personal experiential belief, such as belief in a higher power, or having a sense of belonging with others or the universe. Religiousness includes these personal beliefs, but it also incorporates organizational or institutional beliefs and practices such as church membership and attendance, and commitment to the beliefs system of an organized religion ( Zinnbauer et al., 1997 ).

Spiritual or religious people have a stronger tendency to experience gratitude than do less spiritual or religious individuals ( Emmons and Kneezel, 2005 ). Findings on spirituality and gratitude showed that self-reported spirituality and spiritual behaviors such as prayer and meditation, increased a sense of gratitude. Spirituality brings awareness to an individual’s feelings of gratitude ( Lambert et al., 2009 ; Olson et al., 2018 ). Thanks giving to God is one of the most basic religious expressions and is one of the most common themes of people’s prayers and descriptions of their religious lives. Being religious might facilitate gratitude in two ways. First, it might amplify the perception of benefits during trying times, and second, by transforming negative experiences by adding spiritual or religious meaning to the event. Even in situations that are distressing, finding meaning in some way can strengthen someone’s sense of gratitude ( Frankl, 1959 ; Krause and Hayward, 2013 ; Rosmarin et al., 2015 ). The question arises if non-theist can feel grateful in the first place. Lacewing (2016) posits that a “psychologically rich and satisfying account of appropriate non-directed existential gratitude is available to the non-theist” ( Lacewing, 2016 , p. 14). Thus, feeling grateful does not necessarily require the vertical dimension but it will deepen and intensify the experience of it. Mature gratitude might play a vital role in preventing people from depression, anger, and anxiety because of suffering, by teaching people a better and adaptive way to embrace their hardship ( Jans-Beken and Wong, 2019 ).

Mature gratitude and COVID-19

In 2020, every country on the Earth faced various threats from the SARS-CoV-2. First, there is the physical threat from the virus itself. Although everyone can get infected by the SARS-CoV-2, especially vulnerable and older people seem to be susceptible to become life-threateningly ill due to COVID-19. Many of us fear losing our elder parents and other elder family members. Some of the patients end up in the intensive care, and when they survive, residual complaints invalidate the survivors for a long time and perhaps even for life ( Bij de Vaate et al., 2020 ). Second, there is an economic threat. For almost all countries in the world, the unemployment rate has risen dramatically ( Bureau of Labor Statistics and U.S. Department of Labor, 2020 ; Eurostat, 2020 ; Statista, 2020 ). For most of the people who were able to hold their job or business, income and revenue, respectively, dropped. Many governments provided social safety nets for entrepreneurs and companies to prevent them from going bankrupt, but although this can prevent some in going out of business, there still will be companies that will cease to exist after 2020. Many people have lost the possibility to provide for themselves and their family, increasing poverty and homelessness around the globe ( Community Solutions, 2020 ; Slicker, 2020 ; Sumner et al., 2020 ).

Both the physical and economical threat can cause the experience of existential fear; people must cope with the fear of losing a safe home and not being able to provide food or care for their children, and there is a realistic possibility of becoming ill or even die. This existential threat is new for many of us, and it may lead to severe psychological difficulties ( Blustein and Guarino, 2020 ; Son et al., 2020 ). A review of the early evidence regarding mental health and COVID-19 suggests that anxiety, depression, and self-reported stress are subsyndromal mental health issues following the COVID-19 pandemic ( González-Sanguino et al., 2020 ; Peteet, 2020 ; Rajkumar, 2020 ).

Studies from 2020 showed that state and trait gratitude was associated with better mental health. Grateful participants reported less anxiety and depression and better subjective well-being during the COVID-19 pandemic ( Bono et al., 2020 ; Butler and Jaffe, 2020 ). State gratitude – which is defined as the emotion of gratitude ( Fredrickson, 2004 ) – increased from before to during the pandemic for students from lower SES families, whereas the opposite was observed for students from higher SES families ( Bono et al., 2020 ). Nurses working under immense pressure during the COVID-19 pandemic mentioned in a qualitative study that their gratitude grew for the support from colleagues, relatives, friends, and all sectors of society. Most nurses said that they would continue working and living with gratitude in the future. The respondents who were able to self-reflect on their own values and mortality during the hard times found positive forces to grow in a psychological way ( Sun et al., 2020 ). This is in agreement with the scarcity heuristic explanation which proposes that when individuals are reminded of or confronted with death in a personal manner, they appreciate their own life more ( King et al., 2009 ). Microsoft was one of the companies that immediately introduced working from home and coupled this with a study including gratitude. They asked their employees to reflect daily on their previous day. Data from 4,641 nightly reflection diaries showed that 47% of the employees experienced a positive impact of grateful reflection and 35% reported an increase of feelings of control during these uncertain times ( Butler and Jaffe, 2020 ). Gratitude seems to contribute to mental well-being, also during a crisis such as a pandemic.

Some studies were conducted regarding spirituality and religion in association with mental health during the COVID-19 period. One study from Spain reported higher levels of spiritual well-being as a strong predictor for reduced symptoms of depression, anxiety, and post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) during this period ( González-Sanguino et al., 2020 ). In a sample of American Orthodox Jews, direct exposure to COVID-19 was correlated with higher religiosity; positive religious coping, intrinsic religiosity, and trust in God strongly correlated with less stress and more positive impact, while negative religious coping and mistrust in God correlated with the inverse ( Pirutinsky et al., 2020 ). A sample of Iranian adults reported a mediating role of spiritual health on the association between the adverse effects of pervasive anxiety on positive future attitudes and quality of relationship with the family ( Kamran and Fazlollah, 2020 ). A study with American youth found that those who are not religious reported worsening of their mental health during COVID-19 compared to those who consider themselves religious. The adolescents who turned to their faith and those whose religious beliefs helped them through difficult situations reported to have their faith strengthened during COVID-19 ( Kang et al., 2020 ).

A mixed-method study including gratitude and spirituality among women reported that women who considered themselves spiritual but not religious reported that during the pandemic, a certain feeling of being grateful for a connection with God gave them hope. Other women reported that they were grateful for little things in their lives and the opportunity to slow down and spend more time doing joyful activities. Some women explained how they maintained their gratitude, for example, by keeping a gratitude journal and by downward social comparison thinking the situation could be worse ( Roberto et al., 2020 ). These findings highlight that, for some, faith may promote resilience and mental health, especially during crises.

The first strategy against the spread of the SARS-CoV-2 that many governments issued was the lockdown. The strictness of the lockdowns varied from a strong advice to stay home and work remotely if possible to being prohibited to leave home including a ban on buying tobacco and alcohol ( Wasserman and Moynihan, 2020 ). As the virus spreads by droplets and aerosols that cross a certain distance while talking/laughing/singing/sneezing/coughing, the experts advised to keep a physical distance from other people, which they wrongfully called “social distancing.” However, this physical distance of at least 1 m prohibits people to engage in important social touching behaviors such as shaking hands for trust and comforting others by hugging ( Dolcos et al., 2012 ; Forsell and Åström, 2012 ). This lack of closeness and affection can lead to psychological distress in healthy people and can deteriorate the mental health of people already suffering from psychological illnesses ( Venkatesh and Edirappuli, 2020 ).

Another problem in maintaining limiting strategies to prevent the spread of a deadly virus to protect the population is the individualistic and hedonistic nature of many societies in 2020. Strategies such as the lockdown are derived from communally oriented East Asian cultures. The way that culturally relevant concepts of rights and freedoms underpin COVID-19 restrictions in individually oriented countries appears to be troublesome. We see people in the streets demonstrating against the restricting policies. People are standing up against the new boundaries because they cannot immediately satisfy their needs to go out or go on a vacation due to the lockdowns and limitations in travelling. They claim that their human rights are being violated and that governments use this pandemic to restrict people’s freedom of movement. They cannot believe that the strategies are there to protect public health and that sticking to the rules contributes to the greater good ( Bolsover, n.d. ). This anger, based on lingering fear and hopelessness, is also a serious threat to one’s psychological health ( Trnka and Lorencova, 2020 ).

Gratitude was overwhelmingly expressed during the lockdowns across the world. People came to their doorsteps or balconies to clap and make noise to express their gratitude for the effort of frontline staff. A study by Mead et al. (2020) was based on the GENIAL model, which is characterized by a life-course biopsychosocial approach that places individual well-being within the dynamic interplay of individual, social, communal, and environmental ecosystems. They included physical activity, tragic optimism, trait gratitude, social support, and nature connection in their study of mental well-being during the COVID-19 pandemic. According to this study, gratitude was positively associated with mental well-being, along with tragic optimism during the lockdown ( Mead et al., 2020 ). In a qualitative study of patients and carers, the lockdown was mentioned to be a benefit for which one could be grateful. Patients expressed to be grateful for the continuation of their medical treatment despite the pandemic, and carers felt grateful for being able to be at home 24/7 ( Bryan et al., 2020 ). Fear, anger, and hopelessness were the most frequent traumatic emotional responses during the first stage of outbreak of the COVID-19 pandemic ( Trnka and Lorencova, 2020 ). To deal with these traumatic emotions, gratitude, among others, was associated with more adaptive and prosocial responses to the pandemic, realizing that one is not alone on this world but part of a larger whole ( Syropoulos and Markowitz, 2020 ). Thus, gratitude could potentially help regulate the negative impact that a lockdown might have on a person’s mental well-being and their social relationships.

Regarding the concepts of spirituality, and religion, few studies associated with COVID-19, lockdown, and social distancing were available. A Brazilian adult sample mentioned spirituality and religion to be important contributions to the relief of suffering due to the physical restrictions by having an influence on mental health outcomes such as lesser worrying, sadness, and fear ( Lucchetti et al., 2020 ). An issue with religion during the COVID-19 period was the ban of large gatherings of people including live religious services. For many faithful people, attending live services is an important part of their lives and it preserves their mental health ( VanderWeele, 2020 ). However, alternative initiatives to the live religious services were implemented to maintain a sense of belonging of the religious community, which appeared to be able to provide spiritual comfort, religious care, and engagement with the religious community during the pandemic ( Frei-Landau, 2020 ; Ribeiro et al., 2020 ).

Both gratitude and spirituality were able to contribute to good mental health during the lockdown. In an Italian adult sample, a country severely affected by the COVID-19 pandemic, the virtues in action (VIA) strengths were included to study psychological distress and COVID-19-related self-efficacy. They found that the transcendence strengths—zest, perseverance, gratitude, spirituality, self-regulation, love, and hope—were strongly associated with less psychological distress and more COVID-19-related self-efficacy. Individuals high in transcendence strengths reported higher scores for general mental health; lower scores for psychological distress such as fewer symptoms of depression, anxiety, and stress; and higher scores for self-efficacy in coping with the lockdown situation ( Casali et al., 2020 ).

The hedonic society and the immediate fulfillment of needs shimmered through the study of Bono et al. (2020) . They showed that students from higher SES families tended to feel less grateful during the beginning of the pandemic compared to students from lower SES families. This shows that higher SES students, who feel more like having to give up the good life from before the pandemic, tend to use gratitude to cope with the adversity of the pandemic less than their lower-SES peers. An explanation for this can be the gain-loss framing. The pandemic with its threats and boundaries frames the situation for the high-SES students more as a loss than for the low-SES students who might experience losing less or even have a sense of gain ( Bono et al., 2020 ; Fiedler and Hillenbrand, 2020 ). Thus, regarding the new boundaries due to the COVID-19 pandemic, gratitude and spirituality support coping with handling previous activities differently and contribute to good mental health in such a limiting situation.

Future Research

Mature gratitude is a new concept associated with positive psychology 2.0 and it fits in existential models such as the dual-systems model by Wong (2012) , This model highlights that a life worth living consists of positive and negative conditions and positive and negative outcomes ( Wong, 2012 ). This narrative review shows that mature gratitude with its focus on both positive and negative aspects of life, including spirituality, can have important ramification in coping with crises and trying times such as the COVID-19 pandemic. Mature gratitude is a broader and more comprehensive concept than trait gratitude or Gratitude to God. It does include gratitude to the good and it contains a spiritual dimension, but it also includes gratitude to adversity and suffering. It is a concept that is more applicable in a dangerous and threatening world, more applicable to reality. Future research should investigate mature gratitude in more depth. It is important to know if mature gratitude is a better and stronger predictor for good mental health than the previously frequently used narrower concepts of gratitude. The study of Jans-Beken and Wong (2019) does suggest this better and stronger association and it warrants further investigation into the concept of mature gratitude. Forthcoming studies should include a questionnaire on gratitude with the focus on the good and the bad, such as the Existential Gratitude Scale ( Jans-Beken and Wong, 2019 ) combined with a questionnaire on spirituality such as the Spiritual Coping Questionnaire ( Charzyńska, 2014 ; Jans-Beken, 2019 ) or the Spiritual Well-Being Scale ( Paloutzian et al., 2012 ). Future research should include longitudinal studies and Experience Sampling Method studies which can help entangle the concept of mature gratitude and its merits.

The aim of this perspective was to present evidence of mature gratitude as a way of coping with the threats and boundaries due to the COVID-19 pandemic. The narrative review searched for studies from the COVID-19 period in association with more general literature on the characteristics of mature gratitude related to good mental health during a crisis. The above results from the COVID-19 period suggest that a confrontation with our existential vulnerability during a pandemic is not only a crisis but also an opportunity to view our lives in a different way. Mature gratitude as proposed in this perspective can help us in coping with the threats and boundaries that are part of our lives right now due to the COVID-19 pandemic. This time of crisis and fear gives us the opportunity to self-reflect on our current life and plans for the future and to reframe them through a positive lens that can encourage individuals to actively strengthen their psychological resilience and coping skills.

This narrative review is by no means a full account of the literature on mature gratitude and mental health during a crisis. However, many studies that were conducted during the COVID-19 period were included and all of them showed similar results with the literature on gratitude and mental health from before the pandemic. This shows that mature gratitude can still be and perhaps even especially be an important way of coping with the dire circumstances during a crisis such as a pandemic. Cultivating an attitude of mature gratitude through actions of kindness, expressing being thankful for life and God, and enjoying all the small things in life helps in coping with the current threats of COVID-19 and building lifelong resilience for the future ( Schiraldi, 2017 ; Jans-Beken et al., 2019 ; Kanekar and Sharma, 2020 ; Mead et al., 2020 ). Knowledge about these associations can help psychologists, counselors, and coaches to support people who experience psychological issues due to the current pandemic and all crises to come.

Data Availability Statement

Author contributions.

The author confirms being the sole contributor of this work and has approved it for publication.

Conflict of Interest

The author declares that the research was conducted in the absence of any commercial or financial relationships that could be construed as a potential conflict of interest.

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The novel coronavirus, first detected at the end of 2019, has caused a global pandemic.

The Coronavirus Crisis

Reflections on a lost senior year with hope for the future.

Diane Adame

Elissa Nadworny

East Ascension High School Valedictorian Emma Cockrum at her home in Prairieville, La., on June 1, 2020. Emily Kask for NPR hide caption

East Ascension High School Valedictorian Emma Cockrum at her home in Prairieville, La., on June 1, 2020.

Emma Cockrum was in her second week of quarantine when her father discovered an old bike behind their house.

And that bicycle turned out to be a gift: With school closed at East Ascension High School in Gonzales, La., bike riding for Emma became a way of coping with the loss of the rest of her senior year.

"I would say the first two to three weeks we were out of school, I was not the most fun person to be around. I was a ticking time bomb," says the 18-year-old, who's headed to Northwestern State University in the fall. "One minute, I would be fine and dandy, and then the next minute, I would be crying."

As she pedaled through her neighborhood each day, those bike rides forced her to stop and take in the world around her — and they became the inspiration behind these words in her valedictorian speech:

"I got to see life happening. I saw families spending time together, like children playing basketball on their driveways, or fathers teaching their own kids to ride bikes. When we stop to observe our surroundings, we are oftentimes provided with new perspectives on our situations."

Dear Class Of 2020: Graduation Messages From Frontline Workers

The coronavirus pandemic has caused many high school graduations to be replaced with virtual, drive-in and other alternative ceremonies. And so, the tradition of valedictorians and salutatorians addressing their classmates at this huge moment in their young lives is a little different this year.

NPR spoke with a few student leaders about their speeches and how a not-so-typical senior year inspired their words for the class of 2020.

Emma Cockrum

Valedictorian, East Ascension High School, Gonzales, La.

East Ascension High School Valedictorian Emma Cockrum with her dog Hercules in front of her old play house at her home in Prairieville, La. Emily Kask for NPR hide caption

East Ascension High School Valedictorian Emma Cockrum with her dog Hercules in front of her old play house at her home in Prairieville, La.

Aside from her bike rides, Cockrum was also inspired by a few words from Sol Rexius, a pastor at The Salt Company Church of Ames in Iowa. She says Rexius uses the analogy of a dump truck full of dirt being emptied all over their senior year. Here's how she put it in her address to her classmates:

This may sound harsh, but it's not untrue to how some of us feel. It is easy to feel buried by our circumstances. However, he [the pastor] goes on to paint a picture of a farmer planting a seed. Did the farmer bury the seed? Well, yes, but he also planted it. Instead of feeling buried by our situation, we must realize that the pain and heartache that has been piled upon us is not meant to bury, but to plant us in a way that will allow us to grow and prosper into who we are meant to be. As you stop and take in the circumstances around you, will you allow yourself to be buried or to be planted?

As we move on from this place and embark on the next big journey of life, whether that's college, the workforce or something else, life will at some point begin to feel like it's going too fast. My bike rides have taught me a new way to handle these times because they allow me to exercise and be among the beauty of nature, which are things that cause me to slow down. When life becomes too much like a race for you, it may not be riding a bike. It may be playing an instrument, sport, creating art or something else entirely. I encourage you to find that one thing that allows you to unwind and refocus when life seems too much to handle. Now, I'd like to take you on a bike ride with me as we share this experience together in our faces, something that is both exciting and terrifying: freedom. We sit atop our bikes of life as high school graduates and now have the freedom to choose who we are and where we will go.

Salutatorian, Paducah Tilghman High School, Paducah, Ky.

Chua says he wanted to make his speech something that would provide some happiness to people, even if only be for a little while. Before offering some advice, he began his speech with a personal take on the famous line from Forrest Gump : "Life is like a box of chocolates."

"Life is like a fistful of Sour Patch Kids," Chua says in his speech, recorded on video from his home in Paducah. "Right now things are sour, but eventually they will turn sweet."

The sharing of knowledge is just as important as receiving it because, without sharing, knowledge has no value. The first piece of advice I want to share is to always try new things and challenge yourself, even if you think it's a bad idea in the process. Always attempt to answer questions and solve problems. Find new ways to do the same tasks. Wear all white to black out. Take that ridiculously difficult course load. Buy that oversized $30 pack of UNO that is literally impossible to shuffle just so you can say you own it. Just spend responsibly, kids. All in all, just make life spicy. Make life something you want to reminisce on. The second lesson is simple. Just be nice to people. Trust sows the seeds of freedom, and a little respect truly does go a long way. It could even solve a few of the world's problems. You never know when you'll need to fall back on someone, so build strong connections early and maintain them. Lastly, the phrase "I don't know" is powerful. By admitting ignorance, you are asking to learn. Inevitably, I know I will come upon a hard stop, and I hope that when I do, I'll remind myself to pause and ask for a hand of enlightenment, so that I might come back from that hard experience knowing more than when I started. Life rarely hands you a golden opportunity, so make one. Just as the tornado creates a path in the wake of its destruction, this class of 2020 will, too, create their own, hopefully without the whole destruction part.

Kimani Ross

Valedictorian, Lake City High School, Lake City, S.C.

Valedictorian Kimani Ross leads the Lake City High School parade through downtown Lake City, SC. Taylor Adams/SCNow hide caption

Ross says she wanted to remind her class that they can get through any obstacle. She recalls the adversities they've gone through together — like the death of a beloved coach — and the people that doubted her.

Ross says she'll attend North Carolina A&T State University in the fall, where she plans to study nursing.

Many people didn't, and probably still don't believe that I have worked hard enough to be where I am now. I've had people tell me that I don't deserve to be where I am now, and that really made me contemplate, "Do I really deserve this? Should I just give up and let them win?" But look at where I am now. I'm glad that I didn't stop. I'm glad that I didn't let them get to me. I'm especially glad that I earned this position so that all of the other little girls around Lake City and surrounding areas can look and say that they want to be just like me. I want those little girls to know that they can do it if no one else believes in them, I will always believe in them. Classmates, when we're out in the real world, don't get discouraged about the obstacles that will approach you. As Michelle Obama once said, you should never view your challenges as a disadvantage. Instead, it is important for you to understand that your experience facing and overcoming adversity is actually one of your biggest advantages.

Valedictorian Kimani Ross and her family at the Lake City graduation in Lake City, SC. Taylor Adams/SCNow hide caption

Valedictorian Kimani Ross and her family at the Lake City graduation in Lake City, SC.

Lindley Andrew

Salutatorian, Jordan-Matthews High School, Siler City, N.C.

Andrew says her mind flooded with high school memories as she tried to write her speech. This inspired her to get her fellow seniors involved. With the help of her class, she strung together a timeline of national events and local victories.

"Sometimes it's the small, seemingly pointless experiences that leave the most lasting and impactful memories," she says.

Some of us lost our senior sports seasons, our chances to be captains and team leaders. Some lost our final chances to compete for clubs that we've given our all to for the last four years. Some of us lost our final opportunities to perform or display our art, and all of us lost the chance to have all of the fun and closure that we were promised would come in the last three months of our senior year. Losing the last third of our senior year to a virus was not what we had planned, but it's definitely an experience that will affect our lives forever and a memory that we will never, ever forget. We are made up of our experiences and memories. All of the things that we have been through up to this point make us who we are, and the best part is, we're not done yet. We'll continue to experience things and make memories every day that mold us here and there and to who we truly are and who we are meant to become. What kind of experiences will you create for yourself? What kind of memories will you make? When things don't go quite as planned, like our senior year, how you handle the disappointments and challenges that you face will determine the experience that you have and the memory you walk away with.

Favio Gonzalez

Valedictorian, Central Valley High School, Ceres, Calif.

Gonzalez says there were many other events besides the pandemic that helped his class develop their character. In his speech, he highlights the election of President Donald Trump and the prevalence of school shootings. Despite what was happening in the world, he says his class never victimized themselves.

Gonzalez will be attending the University of California, Riverside, where he plans to study biology.

The real test came our senior year with the current pandemic. Although society has developed a higher level of understanding, comprehension and acceptance in years prior, self-victimization has become a common occurrence and is a major impediment in achieving our goals. We expect others to find the solutions to our problems and to provide excessive help, since we truly are powerless in stopping the external factors that impact us constantly, whether it'd be natural disasters, terrorism or disease. Yet, what many people don't realize is that the impact these unfortunate events have on our lives can be nullified by the effort we place in improving our condition. Learning this from past experiences, our class did not victimize itself. Studying and mastering new material is difficult enough with the help of our amazing teachers, with the added responsibilities of helping more at the house, working an essential job and other challenges that come with being at home, it seemed impossible to keep up with schoolwork. We had to face a multitude of barriers with our unrelenting will to succeed. Standing here today, despite all of the setbacks and obstacles, because of our drive, our perseverance, our willpower to endure is stronger than any deterrent. Now, as we step into adulthood and start to reach our goals, there will be harder challenges to overcome. But our willpower has been proven irrevocable. Never forget classmates, that as long as you use your unrelenting well, you're an unstoppable force.

Barrie Barto

Valedictorian, South High School, Denver

Barto says when her school closed, she tried ignoring some of the emotions she was processing. "I realized that you need to take the time to acknowledge what we have lost and celebrate how we have grown and how this is going to change us as a class," she says.

This inspired her to write the speech she felt that she needed to hear.

To be honest with everyone, when I sat down to write this speech, I really wanted to avoid talking about everything we miss as a class. It would be way easier to reminisce about when the homecoming bonfire was in the back parking lot. But when people told me they were sorry that my whole senior year was turned upside down, I shrugged it off and said it's not a big deal. It's a hard thing to talk about, and not talking about it seems less painful. But it is a big deal. We missed senior prom and graduation and our barbecue and awards. I would even go back for one more class meeting in the auditorium just to sit in South for one more Thursday. This pandemic was not the defining event for our class. Don't let it be. We had monumental events occur every year we were at South. We have supported our teachers when they rallied for themselves. They've supported us when walking into school was harder than it was any other day. We supported each other through the pains of block day, and air conditioning only working in the winter time, but also shifts in friendships and hard times with family. South brought us all together to teach us something about ourselves that we didn't know before.

Haylie Cortez

Valedictorian, Bartlett High School, Anchorage, Alaska

Cortez says she feels lucky to still be able to give a message and was inspired by what has been helping her cope.

"One of the things that pushes me through everything is knowing that things will go on and stuff will change," she says. "I just want to remind everyone that the future is still there and it's still coming to us."

Cortez plans on attending the University of Alaska Fairbanks in the fall, where she wants to study civil engineering.

We all deserve to celebrate and be proud of ourselves. It's upsetting that we won't have a traditional graduation ceremony and sadly, we cannot control the circumstances that we face today. What we can do is choose how we respond to it as we take these next steps in life. It can be hard to imagine what life could look like as time progresses. The only certainty we have is that time goes on and the future will arrive. We can use the pandemic as an excuse for why we can't move on in life, or we can use it as a motivator to find our purpose. Whether we plan to go to college, trade school, the military or straight into the workforce, there is no denying that society will gain something worthwhile. The situation we are living through shows how valuable everyone in society is. The world is finally realizing the importance of the jobs of janitors, cashiers, teachers, politicians, first responders and more. Whatever we plan on doing after we graduate, it will impact society. I invite everyone to look to who you can't thank, and take your time to do so, although the door for high school has abruptly shut for us. I would like to remind everyone that another has opened and we can do with it what we want.

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Graduation Speech During Pandemic: ‘To Forgive and Be for Giving’

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“I have met some truly impressive talents and kind personalities among our lecturers."

Angelica Balajadia

“I have found my people here, I have networked here. I am open to doors opening and so many doors are opening already."

Wiranpatchara (Sandy) Wongchanapai

Master of International Business

"Whilst studying at ICMS, I was able to have a strong work/study life balance".

Cameron Colvin

Bachelor of Business (Marketing)

"My work experience boosted my confidence and allowed me to apply theoretical knowledge in practical settings."

Taylor McLeod

Bachelor of Business (Sports Management)

“The small, intimate environment in my lectures makes me feel like I am being heard and that I am getting the most out of my studies."

Julie Williams

Bachelor of Business (Fashion and Global Brand Management)

"I chose ICMS because they have provided me with the opportunity to kickstart my career through their many industry partners".

Keegan Du Preez

Bachelor of Business Management (Accounting)

"ICMS is realistic. They understand the realistic expectations of various markets. It’s not just textbook knowledge, especially compared to every other competitor".

Michaela Mayes

"ICMS' Work Integrated Learning gave me the ability to gain real life experience before I even graduated".

Alana Williams

Bachelor of Business (Accounting)

“I worked full time whilst studying, with ICMS allowing for such a great work to study ratio and balance, where I was flexibly allowed to do both.”

Juliette Wilson

"I think the biggest thing is that you get a personalised experience, and you’ll be treated like a person, not a number".

Calum McKnight

“Very quickly, ICMS gave me a circle of friends who are pretty driven – but who also like to have fun – and when I see where they are now it’s pretty exciting and it drives me further.”

Ewan Metcalfe

"Through being at this college and the geographical location, it always reminded me to stay grounded, keep working hard to further improve my life and stay happy".

April 22, 2021

A good graduation speech should have two objectives: be memorable, and leave your audience with two or three takeaways. At the April 2021 ICMS graduation ceremony Dyan Suaco’s speech did just that. The petite Filipino graduate stood before the Class of 2021, Board Members and Faculty – as well as over 7000 online viewers – and made them laugh – then cry – as she shared her moving and deeply personal story.

Not only was it a memorable speech but Dyan gave the audience an “important insight into the resilience of international students and the sacrifices that achieving one’s goals can sometimes demand,” according to ICMS CEO Rowan Courtney O’Connor.

Beginning her ICMS journey in 2018, Dyan made the move from her home country of the Philippines to the ‘Castle on the Hill’ in Manly. She has notched up an extensive list of successes during her time at ICMS, including receiving a Postgraduate Innovation Scholarship , becoming the 2018 Student Representative Council (SRC) Vice President, and working as a volunteer Student Experience Associate.

She has made such a good impression at ICMS that in February 2021, she was offered a staff member position in the City Campus as a Student Engagement and Administration Officer.

Dyan’s graduation speech titled ‘To forgive and be for giving – a graduation amidst the global pandemic’ has touched the hearts of fellow graduates, community and staff members here at ICMS. In the speech, Dyan explained her transfer from the Philippines to Australia, her adjustments during COVID-19 as well as the struggles she faced whilst studying, including those of the passing of her mother.

Three takeaways from Dyan’s Graduation Speech: ‘To Forgive and Be for Giving’

When life is tough, it is important to forgive yourself if your path to achieving your goals is not a straight one.
Sacrifices may need to be made. Forgive yourself for making difficult decisions.
Sometimes the best way to ‘give back’ is to keep working towards your goal.

We are extremely proud of Dyan and wish her all the best in her future endeavours.

Please Watch and Read Dyan’s Graduation Speech Below:

WATCH DYAN’S SPEECH HERE

‘to forgive and be for giving a graduation amidst the global pandemic’, by dyan suaco.

“I would like to begin by recognising our parents, families, and loved ones, especially my mum and dad, who, may not be physically present with us, but who are, as always, cheering us on from the screens of the Great Hall or on their devices; our lecturers for imparting their wisdom – who have recently acquired the number 1 spot in the recent QILT survey across NSW; all faculty and staff whom I have witnessed first-hand display their resilience amidst these unprecedented times; Ann Whitelock Courtney O’Connor for spearheading the various scholarship opportunities; Rowan Courtney O’ Connor our CEO, and Daryl Courtney O’Connor our founder and chairman who have been ever-present in three graduation sessions throughout the day.

On behalf of the Graduates of 2021, thank you all for being our foundation and support system. And of course, to my fellow graduates, congratulations! We have finally reached the culmination of our postgraduate journey. The past months have certainly been tough and unforgiving but if there’s two things I can take away from everything, it is to forgive myself and be for giving towards others.

3 years ago, I was in this same chapel. Sitting and watching in awe for my orientation in what would be an extended stay in the International College of Management, Sydney . You see, I didn’t start my degree with this cohort. My first term was in February 2018, so I was expected to complete by November 2019. But as we’ve all experienced, nothing can ever be set in stone – heck, even Keeping up with the Kardashians reached a series finale.

My mum was diagnosed with pancreatic cancer just before my 2nd term in ICMS. This began the gruelling episodes of doctor’s appointments, surgeries, pharmacy runs etc. etc. It was in this time that I was most thankful for the college which allowed me to take numerous leave of absences and eventually also submit my assessments offshore.

During the day, I would tend to my mum’s medical visits – taking down notes from the doctors and assisting with her chemo. After 9PM, I would work on my reports. And by 4AM, I would get ready for bed to then start the day again at around 7 or 8 in the morning. You see, the Philippines doesn’t have the best medical facilities or benefits in the world. That is one of the main reasons I decided to come here to Australia – that one day I can enjoy the advantages of a first world country. Funny enough, I got into a castle on a hill – like finally becoming a royal. I guess this is what Meghan Markle felt when she married Prince Harry.

As an international student, much like almost everyone in this room, we live within limited capacity. As much as we want to work and fund our education ourselves, we are constricted by legalities. Some have thus resorted to cash only jobs. While others have ultimately been extorted by their employers. We would do anything to make ends meet. I don’t know about you. But I distinctly remember picking up my first microwave from the streets here at Manly.

As an international student, I had to be away from my family to pursue my dreams. I had to leave my ill mum to finish my education. I had to persistently apply for a scholarship for me not be a financial burden. As an international student, I felt how unfortunate my country was. As an international student, I had to remain in this country.

Yet remaining in this country is the safe option. It has been a haven from the conditions around the world. Every day, thousands of cases of COVID-19 are in the headlines of the US, Brazil, India, France, Russia, South Africa, the Philippines. During my mum’s medical journey, I have witnessed how many Filipinos have had to wait in line just to get in a private room – some of whom have been on a wheelchair outside the hospital for 48 hours. Treatment was and still is not a right but a privilege.

Our experience with COVID was far different from this. I still remember that final day just before the shift to online classes at the halls of the City Campus. There were ongoing questions of, “how will this work?”, “will I be able to focus?”, and “are we getting a refund?” We’ve gone from classrooms to bedrooms, corporate clothes to pyjamas, and excursions to breakout rooms. There were times we would wake up 5 minutes before class, cook lunch while the lectures were ongoing, or here that faint sound, “this train is stopping at Strathfield” in the background of our Zoom classes.

We were in lockdown. Locked down from social events and work. Locked down from what could have been boundless opportunities. Locked down from the benefits of being a citizen of a country we live in. And a good number of us, chose to leave and return to our home countries.

We are graduating in the midst of a global pandemic.

As international student, now an international representative, I have a binary if not a multitude of perspectives of the situation around us.

My mum passed away just before the pandemic even began. There has not been a day that I have not forgotten saying goodbye at the airport or sitting by her bedside on the final days of her life. But I stand before all of you today because I try to remind myself that while the universe can be unforgiving, I have to learn to forgive myself. Because the ongoing trauma in my mind has moulded the desire for me to empathise with those who are still suffering, wailing, and hoping for change. Because as someone who had the privilege of earning a second degree through the immense support of this international college, I hope for the chance to change the globally divided system.

I am leaving this chapel with a new batch of ICMS graduates. We shall now officially step down from the hill towards a world far different to how we once perceived it. You and I have persisted amidst our own personal journeys and towards the greater and more perplex communal journey among us.

To the graduates of 2021 here before me and behind the screens, I have shared with you my story, our story, and the current conditions that span the world. May we all continue to conquer our battles be it within us and among us. And if the world has been and would certainly be unforgiving, may we all remember to forgive and be for giving .

Maraming Salamat po. Thank you very much”.

________________________________________

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Greater Good Science Center • Magazine • In Action • In Education

Workplace Articles & More

How nurses are practicing gratitude, even in a pandemic, with resources from gratitude practice for nurses, health care providers around the country are finding ways to see the good and say thanks..

The hall looks like any other busy hospital corridor in the U.S., with medical staff hurrying along the polished floors and the buzz of constant activity. But there, hanging from the wall, stirring in the breeze as people whiz by, is an eye-catching sight: a handmade “Gratitude Tree.”

Its foliage is a flutter of Post-it leaves, each bearing a handwritten note. Some of the notes begin with a printed prompt, “Today I am grateful for…,” and in the blank, the people who work along that corridor have written things like “being safe,” “being alive,” “good family and friends,” “my job,” and “our team who continues day in and day out.” One reads, “The OR says thank you. Great job!”

The display is the work of nurses at a hospital in Phoenix, Arizona, one of the 136 facilities run by CommonSpirit Health, a huge nonprofit system. As they go about their demanding jobs, nurses here pass the Gratitude Tree. And often, these days, even in the midst of the pandemic pressure and time restraints they face, they stop for a moment, to take in someone else’s gratitude, or add their own note of thanks.

The campaign at CommonSpirit hospitals is the result of a Greater Good Science Center partnership with the American Nurses Foundation: Gratitude Practice for Nurses is a new initiative that encourages the cultivation of gratitude within the nursing profession. It’s intended to increase appreciation for nurses, help nurses deal with stress, and strengthen their well-being and positive social connections in the workplace.

The Greater Good Science Center at UC Berkeley launched the initiative following research about the role of gratitude in improving psychological health for both individuals and the organizations they work for. The Toolkit supplied to nurses and nurse managers offers research-based strategies aimed at fostering gratitude, even in busy health care settings. The tools in the kit include suggestions for writing a letter of thanks, keeping a gratitude journal, adding meaningful moments of gratitude to the workday, walking with a sense of appreciation, and creating a gratitude wall.

But how would that actually work in practice, given the pressures of the job? It’s a more-than-challenging time for the medical profession in general—and for nurses in particular. That’s pretty evident from current headlines. There’s also plenty of research showing that the simple practice of gratitude could make things better, and can help nurses maintain their resilience. After the Gratitude Practice for Nurses Toolkits went out, I contacted a number of nurses to see how they were putting the principles of gratitude into action—and to ask how it was working out. I found some lessons here for myself and for other professions. If gratitude can help nurses get through a global pandemic, it might help your own workplace to face its own challenges.

Phoenix, Arizona: Tools for gratitude

“Our health system has really embraced this campaign,” says Lesly Kelly, a Ph.D. nurse scientist at CommonSpirit. Even when pressed for time, Kelly says, “We are figuring out a way to practice gratitude.”

The nursing staff at CommonSpirit used the Greater Good Toolkit to kick off their campaign. “Ten of our facilities really came together and said, ‘We’re going to implement this and measure the outcomes,’” says Kelly. Each hospital decided which particular approach they wanted to focus on. “We coordinate together,” says Kelly, “and I work with them to measure outcomes.”

One group initiated a Thank Bank and Cheers for Peers activity, a way to show gratitude to fellow workers by offering a gift from the bank. During a meeting before annual evaluations, a manager began by having everyone write a thank-you, using a format from the Toolkit. “The whole team received thank-you’s from each other, and they were meaningful,” Kelly says. “It drastically changed the conversations that took place and the understanding that we truly care.”

Nonetheless, finding time in the nursing profession for anything extra is always a challenge and, given current conditions, more so. “We can’t get out of this COVID surge,” Kelly says. But that doesn’t stop her. “Gratitude is something to draw upon even if the surge is still happening. It provides something positive and an optimism in our work.”

Practicing gratitude has helped Kelly herself, as well. Even in the midst of challenges like cutbacks and changes in the health care system, she’s found that taking a moment can make a big difference. “Every time my paycheck hits my bank account and I get the notification, I pause and have a moment of gratitude: ‘I am thankful for my job.’ When my kids’ teachers email me, I take a moment to pause and be grateful for those teachers.”

The Savoring Walk idea—being aware and grateful for things along the way—has actually slowed her down a bit, too. “I’m a big walker,” says Kelly, “but I used to walk fast and be on my phone. Now when I get up from my desk, I take a moment, take a pause.” Then she walks around more slowly, pausing to be thankful for what she sees.

Savoring Walk

How a stroll outside can help build lasting happiness

“So far it’s working,” she says. “One of the things we got from our data is that nurses are practicing gratitude, some said daily. We are grateful for our work, for our families, for our health. I’ve heard from our community that it’s a way for everyone to come together.

“It’s tough right now, but the gratitude is a bright spot,” says Kelly.

Washington, D.C.: Checking yourself with gratitude

A few thousand miles away in metropolitan Washington, D.C., gratitude is also at work, in this case in a pediatric unit at Children’s National Medical Center. They have an artful paper gratitude tree as well, covered with “leaves” bearing handwritten expressions of thanks—for the health of someone’s family or for the support of colleagues in stressful times.

“That was the easiest and first thing that came to mind,” says nurse Shari Washington. “It’s right over the copy machine, so you have time to stand there while you are making copies and think about what you are grateful for.”

Washington, who has been a nurse for 36 years, working mostly in neonatal intensive care and pediatrics, currently works in nursing education and professional development with nurses in the pediatric resident programs, as well as with student nurses.

“We have seven people in the department, including support staff, so we are really tiny,” she explains. “But we currently have 40 or 50 leaves. Sometimes other people visit for a meeting and on their way out they ask for a leaf.” As winter nears, the current batch of leaves will be moved to the base of the tree, and a new stack of cut-out paper snowflakes will be set out, waiting for new expressions of gratitude.

When she got Greater Good’s information for the gratitude campaign, Washington welcomed it. “We kicked this off to support the well-being of our nurses. It’s one very positive thing we do within the department,” says Washington. “Everyone is focused on the positive and the good rather than the challenges. COVID-19 has stretched everyone I know to the limit.”

When Washington leads classes for residents, she sets aside time for everyone to check in and say how they are doing. “Sometimes they are having a really tough time, staff leaving, and other stresses, and the comments aren’t very upbeat.” she says. “But I always try to do something positive and get some gratitude in there during check-in.” She adds:

Working with others makes me check myself every day, because you can’t be a hypocrite. You can’t talk to people about being grateful if you are complaining. I try to meditate every day—it depends on how early I am getting started—and that keeps me pretty grounded, as far as what’s really important and what I should be grateful for. It’s made me more aware of practicing the things I am preaching.

Sacramento, California: Saying thanks in a surge

Janet Sohal is director of clinical education practice and informatics at Kaiser Permanente in Sacramento, California. A 38-year veteran nurse, she welcomed the Greater Good program with great enthusiasm, and so did her staff.

“In June, 100 people participated in an introduction to gratitude practices,” she says. “We did a 45-minute session, and of 100 people there was nobody who said they did not benefit.”

Gratitude Practice for Nurses

offers research-based strategies to support your well-being and help build a culture of gratitude in your organization

In July, Sohal led another group. “They had the ability to sit, do deep breathing, and self-reflect on what has happened in the pandemic, and what has happened to them. A lot of what they said they were grateful for was that they were well. Some had had family members who had died. Some had family in other countries they couldn’t visit. It was just the ability to be truthful and to be able to say what’s in your heart at that moment.”

The program started in July during a local dip in the number of COVID-19 cases, so Sohal thought it was time to try new things. But then came another surge and plans had to be cancelled. What was already a hard job has just gotten harder.

Still, Sohal begins staff meetings by inviting personal reflections on gratitude, and she ends with a minute of deep breathing. For her own well-being, she keeps a gratitude journal . “I also make sure I thank somebody at least every day, and I make sure I round with my nurses and listen and see how they are doing.

“I just wish I could do more,” she says. “There’s definitely a need. “

Dayton, Ohio: Finding what’s gone right

In Dayton, Ohio, Patricia O’Malley is another nurse who has been giving gratitude a lot of thought. “Gratitude is a deeper thing than just being thankful,” she says. “It involves putting yourself in a position where you recognize that you would not be where you are without the assistance of your community.”

Having worked in critical care and palliative care for 44 years, O’Malley is currently a nurse researcher/scientist. Her hospital, the Dayton flagship for Premier Health, was dealing with the COVID-19 surge in September, and care of those patients, naturally, was taking precedent. Nonetheless, she and her staff were using the Greater Good suggestions to work gratitude into their days whenever possible. “We’ve held a session on how to use gratitude science to build resilience and cope better, especially during this fourth wave,” she says. This has involved integrating gratitude practice into their nursing huddles, “when the staff gets together and plans for the day.” O’Malley describes the results:

We’ve done a lot in 90 days. Gratitude, I think, can be a powerful antidote to being a victim of your circumstances. I can have a different perspective. I can find meaning in my work. And I can provide care with intention and compassion. I am so glad I am a part of this group of nurses going forward, that I can be a conduit for all this work in Ohio. It’s been very powerful to hear other people’s experiences integrating gratitude into their personal and professional lives, and bringing it to their families, as well. It’s a change of world view. There’s so much focus in our culture right now on what is wrong. This is another lens to say what is right.

O’Malley hasn’t experienced any pushback from participants. She says, “In fact, after a presentation, one nurse walked up to me and said, ‘You have no idea how I needed this. This is really going to help me.’”

Santa Clara, California: Getting permission to say thanks

“We often hear, ‘We’re too busy, we’re too busy,’” says Stacey Aggabao, a longtime nurse and currently emergency department director for Kaiser Permanente in Santa Clara, California. “I say, ‘Okay, let’s just take two minutes.’”

During a nurses’ huddle, she tries to encourage just a quick reflection, a quick moment of gratitude. “I think we have to give people permission. They don’t feel like they can take the time,” she says. “Patient volume is up, as we are seeing across the nation. Short staffing is an issue, and we’ve had a lot of people leave the profession and that’s been very challenging.”

Given such stresses, Aggabao has had to be resourceful, both to support her large staff, and to keep herself going. Now at the end of a shift, the group makes it a point to talk about what went well, turning the meeting into a “gratitude huddle,” besides just passing along necessary information to the next shift.

“We are really just getting started, we’ve been so busy with COVID,” she says. “We’re looking to revamp the gratitude wall, not just to have it in the staff lounge, but putting it where others can see it, including patients and colleagues in the medical center. It really gives staff the opportunity to recognize each other.” Practicing gratitude has helped her personally, as well:

When I wake in the morning, I am grateful that I have a day and that I get to do what I do. If I am going into a contentious meeting, I can reflect and I can be grateful for the opportunity to have that conversation, and can do a lot more active listening and ask small questions. It’s a privilege to do the job that we do.

It was heartening to hear about the many ways that nurses facing a pandemic were slipping gratitude into their busy days. If these health care providers can steal a moment to pen a note of gratitude, shout out a thank-you to a colleague, turn an otherwise practical huddle into a quick pause of reflection and thanks, what does that say for other people under stress—restaurant workers, teachers, sanitation workers, parents?

“We have to take those small moments of gratitude when we get them,” says Stacey Aggabao. That seems like good news—and good advice—for the rest of us.

About the Author

Karin Evans

Karin Evans is author of the forthcoming book, The Gift of Each Other , about the 21st century experience of community.

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Recognition of Employee Dedication and Perseverance During COVID-19

Colleagues,

I want to begin by thanking all Department of the Interior (Department) employees who are presently working at their duty stations, from home, and other locations to fulfill the important duties that conserve our public lands and resources, provide necessary information to the public, promote public health, and ensure public safety. Your continued perseverance and dedication to continue the work at hand is recognized and appreciated.

Now, as we continue to strive to slow the spread of COVID-19, your ongoing hard work on behalf of the American public is more vital than ever. If you are unable to telework or you intend to be absent or unavailable during a specific timeframe, please be mindful of when to request leave and coordinate with your supervisor who would otherwise rely upon your availability for assigned work. I appreciate and expect that all Department employees will continue to fulfill their duties and responsibilities as assigned while also taking necessary steps to preserve their health and safety and attend to the needs of their families.

Failure to work earnestly at this critical time would be disruptive to our Department’s important mission and increase burdens on colleagues. All of us have committed to accomplishing our assigned tasks even under these challenging circumstances. Doing so is not only our duty, it is a requirement of Federal service, fulfilling the trust that has been placed in us by the American people.

Your can-do attitude during these unique times has been nothing short of inspiring. I am humbled to work alongside such a dedicated crew and appreciate your continued commitment to serve the American people.

David L. Bernhardt Secretary of the Interior

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The pandemic changed the way we understand speech

A new study examines how certain now-common words influence what we expect to hear.

Our brains are great at filling in the blanks.

During the COVID-19 pandemic, we’ve been inundated with words and situations that were uncommon to many people before then. We’ve been in lockdowns, maintained social distance, worn masks, and taken vaccines and boosters, and have been talking about these topics seemingly nonstop. Life has looked very different for most people since the start of the pandemic, and new research suggests it has even altered the way we understand certain words.

Our study , 1 recently published in PLOS ONE, shows how likely we are to perceive these newly common words as a result of the pandemic — to the point that we expect to hear words like “mask” and “isolation,” even when a different but similar-sounding word is actually spoken. What word do you hear in these clips?

Now that we’ve lived through multiple years of the pandemic, you probably thought that the speaker is saying “lockdown,” “infection,” and “testing.” In reality, each recording is only a partial word: “--ockdown,” “in--ection” and “te--ing,” with a cough replacing the missing sound in each word.

The pandemic presented a once-in-a-generation opportunity to study rapid changes in the way we process language, as those changes were in the process of occurring. The abrupt change to everyone’s lives, and to the words that were on everyone’s lips, gave us a naturalistic way to study how the human brain understands speech and engages in statistical language learning. It also allowed us to study how the brain perceives words in noisy situations — like in a bar or on a train — where it’s not always clear exactly what word someone is saying. This research both helps us understand how our brains perform the highly complex task of understanding language, and may also help to better train AI models tasked with understanding human speech.

From April 2020 through February 2021, a total of 899 subjects participated in four experiments, conducted on Amazon Mechanical Turk, testing how they understood words like “mask” and “isolation” — words that did not feature prominently in our speech before COVID, but have now become extremely common. We found drastic, long-lasting cognitive effects in the way our brains understand these words.

What was that you said? What our 10-minute experiments taught us over 10 months

As cognitive psychologists, we love thinking about language and human interaction, and what happens in the brain when we talk to one another. As it became obvious that the sudden, massive societal shift caused by COVID was also changing the frequency with which we heard certain words, we wondered if it would cause any lasting changes to how our brains process language — a critical component of what makes us human.

At the time, we had no idea how the pandemic would unfold or that it would still be with us two and a half years later. This made the fact that we ran our first experiment just weeks after the start of the soon-to-be-commonly referenced “lockdowns” all the more prescient.

First, we decided on a set of 28 words which had become much more frequent after the onset of COVID – words such as “mask” and “lockdown.” To determine both the pre-pandemic frequency of these words (how often they were spoken between January and December 2019), and the post-pandemic-onset frequency of those same words (how often they were used between January and December 2020), we used the News on the Web ( NOW ) corpus — a dataset of thousands of newspaper and magazine articles containing billions of words, which, critically, includes when the articles were published and thus the date that each word was used. It was striking to see how much the frequency of individual words changed in such a short period of time: COVID-related words like “mask” were used three times as frequently during 2020 as they had been during 2019, even though similar-sounding words, like “map”, didn’t change at all.

Our experiments used the phonemic restoration task to test what words listeners understand when they hear something ambiguous. This works by recording a full word — for example, “knockdown” — and then removing one sound from the recording (here, the initial “kn” sound). Then, we replaced the deleted “kn” sound with a noise, as you can hear in the sound clip at the top of the post. We asked participants what word they heard when they listened to this now-incomplete and ambiguous recording. All the words we recorded were one sound away from a COVID-related word, such as "knockdown" instead of “lockdown,” and “task” instead of “mask.” And all of the recorded words were equally common in English as their COVID-related counterparts in 2019, but were much less commonly spoken in 2020.

The roughly 10-minute-long experiments presented each qualified participant with ambiguous auditory inputs. For example, a participant would hear a spoken word accompanied by an overlapping cough, much in the same way we might hear a word spoken in a crowd.

The pandemic changed the ranking of certain words we perceive

We ran a set of four experiments over the course of 10 months, and found that people now understand a slew of spoken words differently. For example, now that “mask” is more common, an ambiguous recording of a similar-sounding word “task” is misunderstood as “mask” three times as often as an ambiguous recording of the word “tap” is misunderstood as “map.” Our study is the first to demonstrate the presence of long-lasting changes in lexical accessibility induced by rapid changes in real-world linguistic input.

More research will be needed over time to confirm whether these pandemic-related words will recede to their pre-pandemic frequencies in our mental lexicons. But the implications are clear: Our brains rapidly adapt to the changing linguistic statistics of the world around us, and we predict and expect more common words compared to less common ones.

This research helps us to better understand how the brain processes language input, and adds to a growing body of research – including from our IBM Research colleagues studying other forms of sensory input – which may eventually inform the building of new AI models structured like our own brains. For example, this understanding of the brain's ability to rapidly adapt to changing word frequencies in real-world input could be applied to help digital assistants adapt to individual users' speech more effectively as well.

Rachel Ostrand

Kleinman, D., Morgan, A.M., Ostrand, R., Wittenberg, E. Lasting effects of the COVID-19 pandemic on language processing . PLOS ONE. June 15, 2022. ↩

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About the Author

Karin Evans

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