Author Michael Floissac Explains Why You Should Live in Gratitude

Have you ever thought about how blessed you are? If not, you should learn to live in gratitude. It will change your life.

Michael Floissac is an author and a lawyer who felt compelled to write about gratitude because he believes so strongly in living it. He hopes to explain to people why they should learn to do the same. His book is called, Thank You! With Deepest Gratitude.

In these days of social media, it’s so easy to compare yourself to others and get upset because you don’t have what they have. Let me tell you, comparing yourself to others is nothing more than you taking your eyes off the prize. It’s you not realizing how valuable your life and the things in it are, and you not acknowledging your life deserves your appreciation and acceptance for who YOU are and what YOU have. 

Floissac is passionate about inspiring people to learn about gratitude so they can live in gratefulness. Through his book, he hopes to spark an interest in people to take a hard look at themselves and their life to find their reasons to be grateful.  

With that said, what are you grateful for? 

I had a conversation with Michael Floissac and he shares his thoughts on this important topic of living with gratitude. 

We hear a lot about having gratitude these days. Tell us, what gratitude is and why it matters?

I think Gratitude has many definitions, but I see it as a practice of being grateful and appreciative for all aspects of our lives, an acknowledgment that all life is a gift, though we may not always see the gift at first glance. It goes beyond seeing the glass as “half full” rather than “half empty.” It’s a genuine appreciation that flows from the inside out. Gratitude can help one see things in a more positive way; it’s an awareness. It does not mean that you won’t have sad times, but gratitude allows us to find the positive in all situations and to have acceptance. 

What are the benefits of being grateful and how can it help someone in their life?

Practicing gratitude helps us to see we are not alone; we are humans collectively having a human experience. It’s not perfect, but that means we get to grow. There is some relief in that mindset, that it’s not all about you and what you can accomplish on your own. There have been scientific studies on the benefits of gratitude that speak of improved sleep, improved cardiac health, and increased self-control, to name a few. 

Gratitude involves self-reflection and self-improvement. When you’re more grateful for certain aspects of your life, you want to take care of them, and honor them. For instance, we may examine a weak point in our life, like stress, anger, or whatever it may be, and come up with a healthier, more positive alternative. Making this time for self-reflection affords us the opportunity to break the habit in our brain that says, “if this, then do that.” One can work to rewrite their response and then put it into practice, one day at a time, fueled by gratitude. Like any habit, it will never work if you don’t start. But you can do it. 

What are some ways to practice gratitude? 

I will share three things we do as a family at my home. They are concepts I think anyone can adapt for themselves if they wish.

1. The Gratitude Jar – We have designated a jar, the Gratitude Jar, and throughout the year as life happens and there are moments we are thankful for, we write a note and place it into the jar. The only person who knows what is on the note is the person who wrote it. In order to make this process festive, we use colorful pens and special paper to enhance the experience. Then we pick a day during the holiday season, a few good ones are Thanksgiving Day, Christmas Day, or New Year’s Day, to gather in a circle around the jar and read the notes as a family.
2. Criss Cross Applesauce – We turn off the TV and gather on the floor in the living room in a circle while sporting our favorite pajamas. (We tend to sit cross-legged, so that’s why my daughter gave it that name. My son calls it “circle time.”) Then, each person says three things they are thankful for that day. There are no rules and nothing is off-limits. The thanks can be as small as “thankful for mom and dad” or as big as “I accomplished a voluminous task at work today” and anything in between. 
3. Visual Expressions – We have various visual expressions of gratitude posted around the house, which include uplifting quotes, or images to remind us to spread love. We find as we take breaks throughout the day to breathe, that the simple act of our eyes catching one of these gentle reminders is quite soothing, and reminds us to be grateful and to simply give thanks.

You wrote a book. Tell us the name of it and why you wanted to write about gratitude?

The book is called, “Thank You! With Deepest Gratitude.” It contains personal reflections and stories from my lifelong effort to live a life of gratitude, as well as prompts to help the reader explore their stories. I wrote this book, in part, because I wanted to rewrite the narrative of what I was observing in the world. I think people need to hear real-life examples of how it really is possible to find the good, or better yet, create the good, in all the happenings of our lives.

What do you hope people will get from your book?

I hope it is a tool that will spread love throughout the universe and maybe an acknowledgment of thanks to all those who read it. I hope each person will see their role in the collective universe and see their acts of gratitude as contributions to making the world a better place than how we found it. I also hope this book will be a companion journal that one could open when they are feeling challenged or just when one needs a reminder to be thankful. And I hope they will see, through the universal topics I cover, that we are more alike than different, and it is in fact, possible to find gratitude in all aspects of their life.

What’s next for you?

As an attorney, I am always cautious to say what’s next as someone may hold me to it. Well, right now, front and center are spending time playing and engaging as much as possible with my two toddlers. We are usually so busy in the week with our daily daycare routines that we look forward so much to the weekends where we get to plan fun activities and just engage with the kids. I also have an idea of the title of my next book, but it is just an idea for the moment. I am actively spending time promoting “Thank You! With Deepest Gratitude,” learning about the different social media platforms for connecting with my followers and just trying to get the word out. 

Where can people follow you on social media?

Directly via the form on his website: www.michaelfloissac.com 

Facebook: @michaelfloissac, Instagram: @mfloissac 

You can purchase his book by clicking the link: Thank You! With Deepest Gratitude

Featured Image Credit: JC Penny

Writer, Debbie Stokes is a contributing writer. Follow her on Instagram @iamdebbiestokes

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