It is good to hope. We know that. Hope is much better than no hope. But how do we find hope?

I have experienced some dark days and in the depths of them I found it almost impossible to see how things could ever get better. I struggled to find hope. However, over time I noticed that the following day would be slightly better and then the day after that would be better again. Eventually I would find my way back to being hopeful – I never go stuck in despair. So I know that if I can make it through today, tomorrow will inevitably be better.

But what changes? How do we get to a place of hope if we currently have no hope?

BJ Fogg, author of Tiny Habits, suggests that it’s gratitude that gives us hope. Simple.

Gratitude points us to the good things in our life, that have already happened or are happening now.

Gratitude is for the past.

Hope is for the future.

Because there have been good things before, I believe that good things will happen in the future and so I hope.

That makes gratitude the greatest tool in our kit. If we can put it to good use it will focus our thoughts on what we have been blessed with which has the power to bring a positive outlook for tomorrow.

Don’t wait for the dark days to come before you start using gratitude though. It’s much harder to think of those things then. Make note of things regularly that you are grateful for now, this makes it easier during the times when you are without hope, because then you can read what you have written previously.

If you are unable to find anything to be grateful for right now, think about how many times you have inhaled and exhaled whilst reading this. That is a great place to start…you are still breathing.