Attitudes of Gratitude: How to Give and Receive Joy Every Day of Your Life

by M.J. Ryan

M.J. Ryan teaches readers how to unlock the fullness of their hearts and lives through the expression of gratitude.

Genres: Self Help, Nonfiction, Personal Development, Spirituality, Personal Growth, Psychology, Inspirational

189 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 1999

About the author

MJ Ryan is one of the creators of the New York Times bestselling Random Acts of Kindness series and the author of The Happiness Makeover (nominated for the 2005 Books for Better Living award in the Motivational category), Attitudes of Gratitude, The Power of Patience, Trusting Yourself, The Giving Heart, and 365 Health and Happiness Boosters, among other titles. Altogether, there are 1.75 million copies of her titles in print.

Reviews

[Tom Currier · Rating 5 out of 5]

Terrific, highly recommended,

I love this book. I consider this to be required reading for everyone. I don’t think there’s much better stuff on the planet. This book is certainly a positive life-changing resource. I want to begin a chain-book with this one!

[Linnea · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book made me so happy to be alive and now I’m sitting on a train sobbing because I am writing to everyone I know how grateful I am and that I love them 🥹🥹🥹🥹🥹

[Cara Hinton · Rating 4 out of 5]

Lovely reminder about being grateful every day and how to achieve this. Lots of ideas on how to be thankful and how to show it.

[Lauren · Rating 3 out of 5]

3.5/5

[Steve Kingsbury · Rating 5 out of 5]

A very uplifting book with concise and heartwarming messages that are sure to brighten your perspective. ❤️

[Maria · Rating 5 out of 5]

A little gem :)

[وضحه · Rating 2 out of 5]

A nice reminder but nothing too special

[Michael Boitel · Rating 4 out of 5]

Thank you for this book

[Karen · Rating 3 out of 5]

Going through some rough times with my mom not letting me see my sister and needed to focus on something else. Found this in the library sale. So many good nuggets in here. I do have to be careful because I don't agree with everything in this book but the good nuggets are worth me finishing it...krb 7/1/19

[Robyn · Rating 5 out of 5]

I love this little book of countless ways you can show and feel gratitude which is really the beginning of faith, hope, happiness, contentment, humility, and peace. Wonderful, favorite little book!

[{erika} · Rating 5 out of 5]

I am very glad I own this on Kindle. I made a plethora of highlights as I went along. I followed the advice in the introduction and first chapters of reading this slowly chapter by chapter and reflecting and not rushing through it. I actually started this book at the airport when I was waiting several hours for a flight out of San Antonio and only finished it today. I have tried many, many times to grasp the concept of writing 5 or so things I am grateful for each day and it never clicked. I would cycle through the same items pretty quickly. I am grateful for my husband, my dog, my family, my friends, my job, my home, being alive. It really took this book and this author to help me make the connection and expand outward. For a few days I started employing this consciousness and immediately felt the benefits. I felt myself being grateful as second nature; waking up a little before an alarm and being grateful for for the few extra minutes, grateful for a warm and comfortable bed. Things like this I was feeling with a barely conscious mind in the morning! I have gotten out of the habit (already) but it's something I aim to bring my attention to further and so in keeping with mindfulness. Life is after all as fickle as the swish of a horse's tail. I hope to work hard to incorporate this more into my daily life and there are some quick and handy suggestions in the back that also sound good. I would love to read more of this author's work as well who really helped bring things home for me ♡

[Kathy · Rating 4 out of 5]

We did this as a book club read and had our discussion last evening(November 17th) with some interesting take aways, things to try and additions for those of us who had already been doing a regular gratitude practice. My journal practice has two columns - one that includes what I am grateful for and the second column is what had it be so. The book added many additional good practices that did not involve journaling. The quotes were inspiring and although some of the text that followed did not seem to totally connect or relate they offered value especially if you took a pause and reflected. You could keep it on your shelf and randomly open to see where you are in your gratitude practice and what is something new you might glean and practice. I loved this - "appreciating the good, makes the good blossom". - So true!

[Barbara · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book included many wonderful quotes by authors, religious, and more.

One quote from M Ryan includes that we are here to grow our souls, to heal our wounds, and to become more loving, kind, fearless, and hopeful.

Melody Beattie is quoted in this book stating that gratitude unlocks the fullness of life. It turns what we have into enough and more. It turns denial into acceptance, chaos into order, confusion to clarity...gratitude makes sense of our past, brings peace for today, and creates a vision for tomorrow.

Start where you are, and begin living in the here and now and light up what is already there.

[J A · Rating 4 out of 5]

Not a regrettable read and realistic.

If one already understands the importance of gratitude, as so much of it is being said nowadays, this is a great refresher and may probably introduce some more facets and artifacts.
For those well versed, it could serve for fine tuning.
I appreciate that it doesn't lead or advise you into spiritual bypassing nor denial (which could be a common pitfall for books on the positive side.)
There are some great references of other books and sources.
And it's not the longest read but contains in right approximation what's said within its length.

[Bonnie Staughton · Rating 4 out of 5]

"Attitudes of Gratitude" shows through stories, some exercises, quotes and some spiritual insights how to--as M. J. Ryan says - Give and Receive Joy Every Day of Your Life. This book isn't meant to be read straight through and then put on a shelf. It is meant to be read in passages, given thoughtful consideration and digested. Everyone talks about giving gratitude these days and in this book you will find out how to do it and bring joy to your life.

I really got a lot out of this book and will continue to come back to it and learn more.

[Nikhil · Rating 2 out of 5]

What started off with a few good reminders devolved into saccharine, pollyannaish fluff, with an unfortunate dip into pseudoscience. That said, one important takeaway, gleaned early in my reading, was that practicing gratefulness can often be an accessible stepping stone into the broader practice of mindfulness, if mindfulness initially seems too daunting or confusing for you. However, for those of us who are already mindfulness practitioners seeking to deepen and enrich our practice, this book is too elementary.

[Indre Pliuskyte-Zalieckiene · Rating 5 out of 5]

I was literally highlighting the whole chapters of this book. It is the book I will keep on re-reading over and over again, I hope. After finishing it this morning I made some adjustments in my gratitude journal to finally make sense of it. I learned about some practices that were very inspiring. Also I learned I’ve been already doing some of the things intuitively. Like expressing personalised gratitude in Christmas cards for my friends and relatives. After finishing the book my journey of gratitude only starts.

[Karen · Rating 5 out of 5]

How to be Grateful

Approaching life with an attitude of gratitude is a healthy way to live .The author gives concrete and helpful information on how to live life gratefully. Her writing style carries the reader along through the pages with wonderful stories and quotations to illustrate her teaching. At the close of the book she offers the reader a treasure trove of how to cultivate gratitude in life.
I truly appreciated this book and recommend it to all who want to find the joy in life and live to the fullest.

[Jeanine · Rating 5 out of 5]

This was a delightful read. It had a plethora of suggestions to increase your attitude to being a more grateful person. I especially liked her tip to carry a worry stone in your pocket. When you touch the stone you find something to be grateful for in that moment. I purchased heart shaped worry stones and started giving them away.
The book was reinforced with a church sign that reminded faithful “We don’t need more to be thankful, we need to be more thankful.” Well stated Free Will Baptist Church. MJ Ryan’s book was full of such sayings.

[Charles Reed · Rating 3 out of 5]

61%

This book comes off as being very inauthentic. While the author does make efforts to point out good studies and be relatable, it comes off as extremely not genuine and just full of positive talk platitudes because it's not personal, it sounds like a lot of these stories about your friend are made up, and it's adopted from other people, which makes it seem like the author is lying. So I was not appreciative of this book, but it does seem to be putting out good positive messages overall, and that is something that I can appreciate.

[Maha Al Zahrani · Rating 3 out of 5]

Reading this book felt calming and uplifting. It made me rethink how I approach challenges and made me feel more content overall. I especially loved how it emphasizes that gratitude is a practice, not just an occasional feeling. It shares practical ways to bring gratitude into daily life, which I found easy to apply. The exercises and reflections helped me pause and appreciate moments I might otherwise overlook.

If you’re looking for a book that inspires a more positive outlook and helps you find joy in everyday life, I’d definitely recommend it.

[Hill Krishnan · Rating 5 out of 5]

3 interesting things I learned:
1. Gratitude is like a torch that you can light up in the darkness and recognize (focus on) the things you have in your backyard that you didn’t think you had.
2. As you forgive your gratitude increases.
3. Looking back what are your grateful moments? Those are accessible to you anytime to savor those moments again!
4. It doesn’t matter how much money they make they think a little more will make them happy!

[Carole Thompson · Rating 5 out of 5]

I originally bought this book in 2000 and hadn't read it again recently. There are so many things to be thankful for . This book is a good guide in how to live with gratitude from breathing to the smile on a baby's face. The author reminds us not to take life for granted or all the blessings around us. Even on a "bad" day, there are blessings to be found. Look for your blessings and express them to yourself, to others, or to God.

[Barbara Lifland · Rating 5 out of 5]

Great little book that I wish could be required reading for teenagers. While I already follow many of the tips, if I’d learned how to work to live with gratitude at a younger age I would have been much happier. Unfortunately I don’t think it’s the kind of book most teens will pick up. Ms. Ryan, if you see this, please revise into a graphic novel!

[Julie Akeman · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is a keeper. No big secrets in this one, but we all struggle in being grateful for what we got, when it seems the world says we need more. What you really need is love and to be able to give love to others, it's the real soul food.

[SahooraQ · Rating 4 out of 5]

الكتاب مقسم لثلاث فصول تحوي مجموعة من القصص والمقالات والأمثال والحكم التي تحث على الامتنان بما نملك والسعي للحفاظ على راحة البال ومنه السعادة للفرد ولمن حوله..كما يحوي الكتاب على مجموعة من التمارين التي تساعد في الوصول لحب الذات ونشره للآخرين بأساليب بسيطة وفعالة..

[JLS10 · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book offers short little sections focusing of different aspects of gratitude. It’s a great read heading into a new year. We need to take stock of all we have to be grateful for and to remember to take time to be in the moment so that we can appreciate all of our blessings.

[Kanan Jani · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book was recommended to me by a friend and I’m so grateful that I purchased and read it. It has transformed my life for better. Never been as grateful in my life as I have been since I read the book. The one I’d love to read again and again! Highly recommend it for anyone who thinks any slightest thing negative about life in general or who doesn’t know how see all the positive that life has in store for us. Thanks to this book I am able to see positive in even the negatives of my life and just be ultra grateful! Thank you, MJ Ryan! <3

[Bonnie Westmark · Rating 5 out of 5]

What a beautiful little book! I finished it while recovering from surgery. It makes you aware of all we have to be grateful for. It will lift your spirits and have you counting your blessings, despite the situation and world events surrounding you.

[Mary Cutter · Rating 4 out of 5]

Gratitude

I appreciate this book and the author. In reading it, I have discovered that my ability and Awareness of all that is unique in this world is because of my appreciation and gratitude! Thank you!

-- Mary C