101 Reasons to Be Grateful For What You Have

  • By: Ryan Kane
  • Updated: February 21, 2024
  • Time to read: 5 min.

There are all kinds of things to be grateful for: Relationships, nature, laughter, and more. Here’s a list of 101 reasons for gratitude, to add a spark of inspiration to your gratitude practice.

If you’ve ever tried gratitude journaling or following the common mindfulness practice of thinking of 3-5 things you’re grateful for each day, you’ll know that over time, it’s easy to run out of steam.

But gratitude doesn’t just have to be the big things in life.

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It can be the small things that bring you a bit of joy or satisfaction or comfort:

Nature, air conditioning, weekends, music, modern medicine, travel, and laughter, just to name a few.

To add a spark of inspiration to your gratitude practice, here’s a list of 101 reasons to be thankful.

Reasons to be grateful 1
To see the full list, click below and download the PDF

101 reasons for gratitude

  1. Everything on Earth that supports your existence, from the organisms in the soil to the plants and animals
  2. The Sun’s rays which warm your face and nourish the plants that feed you
  3. Electricity, which only became common in homes in 1925
  4. Everyone who’s helped you become who you are now
  5. Grocery stores and the fact that you don’t have to hunt for your food
  6. The increasing ability to work from home, or work from anywhere
  7. Clean streets and the sanitation workers who make them possible
  8. Smartphones and their ability to keep you connected anywhere on Earth
  9. GPS for helping you never get lost again
  10. The chance to know yourself better over time
  11. The Moon, for being perfectly positioned to affect the tide and for lighting your way at night
  12. Traveling to new places and the sense of adventure and variety that brings to your life
  13. The unique talents and abilities that you’ve been able to share with the world
  14. The chance for growth when challenges arise
  15. The sense of accomplishment that comes when you do something you worked hard at
  16. Your mother and your father for bringing you into the world
  17. The Internet and the way it brings the world to you
  18. Humor and comedians and moments of joy that funny people bring into your life
Reasons to be grateful for clean drinking water
Clean drinking water is an incredible privilege.
  1. Clean water and not worrying about thirst or disease from what you drink
  2. Clean air and the ability to take deep breaths without inhaling pollution
  3. Your partner or most important relationship and every time they’ve put you first
  4. The printing press and the exchange of ideas that books have allowed
  5. Air conditioning and the ability to be comfortable in hot climates
  6. Bicycles and the sense of exploration they give you from childhood to adulthood
  7. The ability to listen to any song you want in the world, at any time
  8. Dogs, cats, and other pets and their ability to make us laugh and keep us company
  9. The feeling of warm sun on your skin
  10. Nature and the feeling of awe and beauty it inspires
  11. Health, in whatever capacity you’re experiencing it
  12. Your body and the movement it allows
  13. Your ability to communicate with others through language
  14. Having a roof over your head for protection from the elements
  15. The feeling of wonder that comes from looking up at the stars at night
  16. Children and their ability to remind you to be playful and adventurous
  17. Video calls that let you chat with friends and family all over the world
Reasons to be grateful chance to restart each morning
Each morning is a chance to reimagine how you want to show up in the world.
  1. Each morning which brings a fresh start
  2. Sunrises and the beauty they bring to each day
  3. A warm cup of coffee or tea on a cold morning
  4. Experiencing a rainy day while you’re comfortably inside
  5. The joy of witnessing the laughter of babies
  6. The fact that you have shoes to protect your feet
  7. Clean clothes and the change they can spark in your feelings about yourself
  8. Your ability to experience hope that life can keep getting better
  9. Clouds, and the beautiful scenes they paint on the sky
  10. Reading and losing yourself in a good book
  11. Your ability to heal from physical and emotional wounds over time
  12. Dancing
  13. The feeling of jumping into a cool pool on a hot summer day
  14. The ability to taste food, and all the amazing sensations that come with it
  15. Your sense of smell and how it helps you experience the world more richly
  16. Hearing birds chirping, and hearing the wind moving through the trees
  17. Your vision and how it helps you navigate the world around you
  18. The changing of the seasons
  19. The beating of your heart which keeps you alive in each moment
  20. Going to see music performed live
  21. The energy and nutrients you get from food
  22. The fact that you can learn from mistakes
Reasons to be grateful motivation to become better
It’s amazing how we each have the motivation to become a better version of ourselves
  1. The motivation you have to become a better version of yourself
  2. Your ability to learn from others
  3. All those who’ve come before you and the knowledge they’ve left. As Isaac Newton said, we are standing on the shoulders of giants!
  4. When emotional pain and depression give you the motivation needed to make changes in your life
  5. That particular smell when it rains on a warm day (it’s called petrichor!)
  6. Dreams and the inspiration they bring to your life
  7. Giving and receiving massages
  8. Sleep and the way it recharges your body and refreshes your mind
  9. Refrigerators, freezers, and your ability to save food for later
  10. The feeling of your bare feet on soft grass
  11. Streaming videos and not having to run to Blockbuster anymore to rent a movie
  12. Airplanes and the way you can travel anywhere in the world in a day
  13. The challenge of learning a new language
Reasons to be grateful laughing till you cry
There’s nothing like laughing so hard you start to cry.
  1. The feeling of laughing until you cry
  2. Microwaves and popcorn and having food ready to eat in two minutes
  3. The excitement of going to the movie theater
  4. Alone time and the peace it can bring
  5. All kinds of chocolate
  6. Cars and the independence, freedom, and mobility they give you
  7. Naps
  8. Candlelit dinners
  9. Exploring the outdoors
  10. Old friends and new friends
  11. Podcasts and the ability to learn from smart people around the world
  12. The feeling of receiving a gift
  13. Modern medicine and the security that comes with knowing more and more conditions are survivable
  14. Building peace inside yourself
  15. Being next to a warm fire on a cold night
  16. Sunsets and the gorgeous pictures they paint upon the sky
  17. Those moments of pure silliness where you experience a major belly laugh
  18. How far you’ve already come in life
  19. Floating in rivers and playing in streams
  20. Hot showers and the way they keep your body clean and smelling good
  21. The endorphins that come with exercise
  22. The ability to take photographs and hold onto a memory of the past
  23. Tender kisses
Grateful for road trips
There’s an indescribable freedom and energy that comes with road trips
  1. Road trips and the freedom of the open road
  2. The joy of painting and drawing
  3. The ability to meet your basic needs
  4. The luxury of having leisure time
  5. Struggles that remind you that happiness is worth fighting for
  6. Getting lost in a good novel
  7. The childhood experiences that built who you are today
  8. How a walk outside can reboot your energy and spark creativity

Further reading

For more on gratitude, check out: