The Thankful Heart: Exploring Gratitude with Richard Eyre

On today's episode of the "Helping Families Be Happy" podcast, host Adina Oberman will discuss the topic of "Attitude of Gratitude" with Richard Eyre, who is one-half of the renowned author duo, Richard and Linda Eyre.

 

With a writing career spanning four decades, the Eyers are New York Times #1 best-selling authors who have appeared on major national talk shows, including Oprah and Today. Their books, which emphasize family and relationships, have been translated into multiple languages and have garnered them opportunities to lecture in over fifty countries.

 

Episode Highlights

• 02:31: Richard mentions his experience writing for well-known publishers such as Simon and Schuster, Random House, McGraw Hill, Penguin, and Golden Books. He expresses personal dissatisfaction with the bureaucracy of some major publishers.
• 03:17: Richard expresses a desire for a publishing partner rather than just a publisher due to the inconsistent treatment they received based on the success of their books.
• 04:20: Richard provides a brief history of the book on gratitude, mentioning its original title as "The Thankful Heart" and describing it as a comprehensive exploration of the philosophy of gratitude.
• 04:51: Around 30 years ago, Richard's family started sending Thanksgiving cards instead of Christmas cards. Richard would write a poem about gratitude to be included in these cards.
• 05:44: Richard introduces a book called "Thankful Heart" which later was condensed into a gratitude journal called "Daily Thanks." The "Daily Thanks" gratitude journal has a section for each month, starting in November and each month has a different theme or focus for gratitude.
• 06:12: Richard shares a quote from the book which emphasizes that gratitude is essentially a form of happiness that we can control.
• 08:18: Richard speaks about the evolving nature of gratitude, and how the journal has different perspectives for each month. He shares his personal experience with the journal and describes how January in the journal is about becoming more aware of one's senses and writing about new sensations each day.
• 10:13: Richard stresses the importance of self-care, especially for mothers who tend to neglect their own well-being while taking care of others. He shares a personal anecdote about advising a stressed woman with young children to keep a gratitude journal.
• 12:16: Richard discusses the challenges of staying positive during tough times and the importance of gratitude in shedding a positive light on life. He emphasizes that even amidst challenging days, finding just one thing to be grateful for can shift the perspective to a more positive one.
• 13:21: Richard discusses the different approaches people take to gratitude journaling, mentioning that many choose to practice it at night, reflecting on their day. He shares the perspective of those who practice it in the morning to set a positive tone for the day.
• 14:59: Adina agrees with Richard's points, highlighting the challenge of finding a starting point and carving out time for gratitude in one's daily routine.
• 15:43: Richard talks about his experience of transitioning from sending Christmas cards to sending Thanksgiving cards and emphasizes the innate ability of children to express gratitude and how they can teach adults to be more appreciative.
• 17:09: Richard reflects on the beauty of late autumn in Park City, UT and shares a poem from the Gratitude Journal for the month of November. The poem beautifully captures the essence of gratitude and reflection during the autumn season, leading up to Thanksgiving.
• 18:25: Adina speaks about the importance of being mindful and grateful amidst daily responsibilities and highlights the idea of sharing and how it affects perspective.
• 20:13: Richard links gratitude to Christmas and explains a family tradition: giving gifts on Christmas Eve focuses on gratitude, while Christmas morning is about receiving from Santa Claus.
• 21:57: Christmas can be used as an opportunity to teach gratitude. Richard recounts how his family used to write thank-you letters to Santa Claus the day after Christmas.
• 22:42: Richard stresses the importance of gratitude. Suggests sitting down with children before gift-giving occasions to teach them the value of being grateful to make both the gift giver and the receiver feel happy.
• 24:43: Adina narrates an incident where they donated toys to an empty donation box, which was a special moment of realization and gratification for both the adults and the kids in her family.
• 25:24: Richard discusses the profound connection between gratitude and generosity, emphasizing that the two are inseparably linked and explores the contrast between gratitude and an entitlement attitude highlighting how developing gratitude in children naturally leads to developing generosity.

 

Key Points:

1. Richard Eyre emphasizes the "Attitude of Gratitude" through practices like sending Thanksgiving cards and gratitude journaling.
2. Richard believes gratitude is a controllable form of happiness and stresses its importance for well-being.
3. Richard highlights the connection between gratitude and generosity and suggests ways to nurture these values in children.

 

Tweetable Quotes

• "Gratitude is essentially a form of happiness that we can control." - Richard Eyre
• "Even amidst challenging days, finding just one thing to be grateful for can shift the perspective to a more positive one." - Richard Eyre
• "The profound connection between gratitude and generosity shows that developing gratitude in children naturally leads to developing generosity." - Richard Eyre
• "Amidst daily responsibilities, it's crucial to be mindful and grateful; it affects our entire perspective on life." - Adina Oberman

 

Resources Mentioned

• Helping Families Be Happy Podcast Apple
• https://valuesparenting.com/
• Podcast Editing