101 Things to Be Grateful For

One of my favorite activities, whether by myself or with one of my teams, is to make a gratitude list. After all, research proves that gratitude is a key element of happiness, so what better way to get in a good mood or get your team in a good mood than a little gratitude.  The activity is quite simple: Set a timer for 3-5 minutes (everyone has 3 minutes to spare, right?) and then write the words "I am grateful for" and make as long a list as you can. Write down everything that goes through your head- it's all good, as long as you feel gratitude throughout the process. I'll demonstrate, right here and right now: 
I am grateful for: 
1) my new son (pictured above)  2) the sun which keeps our planet warm enough 3) my daughters, one through marriage & one through childbirth  4) my family  5) my friends from high school  6) my friends from college  7) my awesome team at Likeable  8) the internet  9) social media  10) LinkedIn  11) love  12) my first boss  13) my teachers  14) the train that takes me to work each day  15) New York City  16) great theater (just saw Hamilton, amazing!)  17) great books (Give and Take is a must read!) 18) dancing  19) learning  20) laughter  21) tv commercials that make me cry  22) you for reading this and my other articles  23) my amazing editors  24) ice cream  25) anything gluten-free that actually tastes good  26) the Mets  27) tennis  28) musicians at Penn Station  29) Thanksgiving  30) my trampoline  31) my house  32) my orange shoes  33) opportunities to learn and grow every day  34) my investors  35) mentors who've believed in me  36) my amazing wife Carrie (don't be mad for being #36, I am so grateful for you my love!)  37) my parents  38) my brothers  39) my neighborhood  40) sunsets  41) rainbows  42) butterflies  43) unicorns, even if they're not real, for the joy they bring my daughter Kate  44) escalators  45) planes  46) my health  47) my doctors  48) police officers and fire fighters who keep us safe  49) Apple and my iPhone 6+  50) my advisory board  51) unbiased reporters  52) non corrupt politicians  53) clocks  54) Christmas music (even if I'm Jewish)  55) God and my religious community  56) the amazing opportunities I was born into in the United States  57) Twitter  58) strawberries  59) Darryl Strawberry  60) dark chocolate  61) green tea  62) sushi  63) my executive team at Likeable Local  64) small businesses  65) my winter coat  66) vodka sodas  67) tolerance  68) kisses  69) discounts  70) my favorite bloggers (I'm looking at you, James Altucher!)  71) seasons  72) water slides  73) our partners  74) Disney  75) snow  76) my kids' teachers  77) anyone who can make exercise fun for me  78) fruit salad  79) protein  80) likeable salespeople  81) startup entrepreneurs  82) non-annoying marketers  83) my forum from Entrepreneurs Organization  84) great nonprofits like Donors Choose  85) my life  86) standing desks  87) our core values  88) Mark Zuckerberg  89) fantasy and dynasty league baseball  90) vacations  91) bold people  92) dreams  93) parades 94) jokes  95) enough money  96) helium  97) lessons I've learned even if they seemed tough at the time  98) children's books  99) online education  100) Venn diagrams  101) babies  There you have it, my latest gratitude list! I feel amazing right about now! How about you? Want a hit of what I'm having? Leave your own gratitude list, long or short, in the Comments section below! Let's create the world's largest gratitude list right here! And Happy Thanksgiving to those who celebrate. 

---- Dave Kerpen is the CEO of Likeable Local, the Chairman of Likeable Media, and the NY Times bestselling author of 3 books, including the upcoming The Art of People: 11 Simple People Skills That Will Get You Everything You Want.        BONUS: 13 Things Entrepreneurs Said They're Grateful For

  Here's what my friends at The Young Entrepreneur Council (YEC) shared that they're grateful for: 1. For Being an Oddball I've always been a little kooky, a little over the top, a little intense. Growing up, this sometimes resulted in bullying or feelings of isolation. I often had an awareness of not quite fitting in. But those painful experiences built the mental and emotional toughness entrepreneurship requires. What's more, I've built a wildly successful brand around my unique aesthetic. Now I'm glad I'm a weirdo! – Erica Easley, Founder & CEO, Gumball Poodle 2. For Chasing What I Knew I Could Achieve I'm thankful I didn't listen to the people along the way who told me I couldn't do X, Y, Z. Even though I didn't know what being an entrepreneur was when I was starting out, I blazed my own trail. I think we're set up to believe that there is a distinct path to everything. Be that college, moving up the ladder at a job or even living in a specific area. Follow your passion! – Lee Salisbury, Founder & Creative Director, UnitOneNine 3. For Reading the Book That Changed My Life Four years ago, my brother challenged my attitude and how it created negativity in my life. He pushed me to read "How to Win Friends and Influence People" by Dale Carnegie. The book is more than tips for interpersonal skills. It's about leading, creating what you want and reshaping how you treat yourself and others. It was the spark I needed to create change in my life, and ultimately SkyBell. – Andrew Thomas, Co-Founder, SkyBell Video Doorbell 4. For My Dog Entrepreneurship is oftentimes a lonely journey, and having companionship in the late nights and early mornings is nice. That's why I'm grateful for my dog -- for keeping me company and being there to bounce ideas off of -- even though his English is lacking. – Brett Farmiloe, Founder, Marketing Auditors 5. For My Parents You understand how crucial being born into a specific family is when you read Outliers. It's very important that I was born to parents who are open minded, understand creativity, and literally believed I could change the world. – Chude Jideonwo, Managing Partner, Red Media Africa, Red Media Africa 6. For Being 24 At this point in my life, I have been able to accomplish a lot. But, I have also made a lot of mistakes. Learning from my small (and big) mistakes gives me an opportunity to polish myself before I head into the prime of my career (and start developing higher impact relationships). The lessons I have learned over the past two years are ones that stick with me every single day. – Vlad Moldavskiy, Partner and Chief Growth Officer, Mabbly, LLC 7. For Being First Generation I was born in the U.S. to an immigrant family. I'm lucky to be an American born citizen, familiar with the culture and educated locally. However, I have also grown up with humility and collective community values that are typical of immigrant families. I have the opportunity to chase my American Dream and the work ethic to back it up. – Faraz Khan, COO, Go Direct Lead Generation 8. For My Family Values I'm grateful for my parents and grandparents instilling proper values in me when I was young. Many times, my life could have gone either way. I had to make decisions that could have led to success or that could have really hurt me. But because my parents' and grandparents' teachings were ingrained in my mind, I made good choices even when I wasn't intentionally practicing what they said. – Vladimir Gendelman, Founder and CEO, Company Folders, Inc 9. For Adversity Although the difficult experiences I've had were incredibly painful while I was going through them, I now look back with gratitude for how they shaped me. Those challenges helped me build the resilience so crucial for entrepreneurship and also increased my willingness to take risks -- another important ingredient for building a successful business. – Martina Welke, Co-founder & CEO, Zealyst 10. For My Grandfather My grandfather was completely bonkers but he was also a successful businessman. I can remember being a small girl and him sitting me down and saying "Joanna, remember low overhead!" He instilled in me a sense that as a woman I could succeed as an entrepreneur. – Joanna Schneier, CEO, Cognotion 11. For Investors Who Turned Me Down When I look back on the building of my company, I realize how important the individuals who let me down and didn't agree to invest in my ideas and startup were. They were the ones who truly pushed me to where I am today. Some gave criticism and advice that steered me away from decisions that could have been mistakes and others made me want to prove them wrong. They were huge motivators. – Miles Jennings, Founder and CEO, Recruiter.com 12. For Good Health I’m a Type 1 Diabetic and lost my brother at the early age of 34 to heart disease. Despite this, I still am grateful for the health of myself, my wife, my family and all those around me whom I love, because there are so many people in this world who are worse off. Without health, nothing else is important: money, fame, power or even happiness. – Mike Seiman, CEO, Chairman and Founder, CPXi  13. For The Luxury to Worry About Changing the World I think it's amazing that, as an entrepreneur, I get to think about how I can change the world. I don't have to worry about so many of the really difficult problems that people I know have gone through. I don't have a family I need to take care of (at the moment), my parents were never abusive, my physical health is good, my mental health is good, and I'm really grateful for all of that. – Mattan Griffel, Co-founder & CEO, One Month There it is, another gratitude list! How about you? Want a hit of what we're all having? Leave your own gratitude list, long or short, in the Comments section below! Let's create the world's largest gratitude list right here! And Happy Thanksgiving to those who celebrate.