Gratitude compels us to give back. That reciprocity is not to be equated as a tit for tat exchange or scratch my back and I’ll scratch yours strategy. It’s about something bigger – it’s about connection. Giving has a deep connection with life satisfaction.

Gratitude taps into neuroplasticity. Neuroplasticity is a fancy word for an acknowledgement that our brain capacities are not fixed, there are aspects of our brain that are changeable. There is plenty scientific research out there that you can refer to in your own time. We won’t bore you by writing a research paper, instead we will share with you some stories of real life experience with gratitude.

Louise Schwartzberg, is a pioneer of time lapse cinematography. Over 30 years of his career he has spent mastering this art form. When people see his work they often marvel by simply saying ‘Oh My GOD’. I heard Louise describe what OH MY GOD really means – OH means it caught your attention, it makes you present, it makes you mindful. MY means it connects to something deep inside your soul. It creates a gateway for your inner voice to rise up and be heard. God is a personal journey we all want to be on, to be inspired, to feel like we are connected to a universe that celebrates life.

Gratitude is an OMG moment – where there is connection, expression and participation.

Gratitude is a state where you realise that ‘you are enough’, which leads to mental stillness, we step into a space of inter-connectedness and then we chose to pay it forward. Gratitude is not a passive act, it’s rather generative. Here are some examples from the food industry that validate the generative power of gratitude –

Lentils As Anything

When you are in Sydney try and visit Lentils As Anything, in eclectic Newtown – http://lentilasanything.com/sydney. Lentils As Anything is a restaurant where customers pay for what they feel the food is worth. Irrespective of what day of the week it is, I find this place swarming with people. Whenever I have eaten here, I have been overwhelmed by their generosity and ethos of their business (YES, OMG moment).We always find ourselves digging deep to pay for our meal here. They have restaurants in Abbotsford Convent, St Kilda and Footscray, Preston and Sydney.

Karma Kitchen

Karma Kitchen http://www.karmakitchen.org – Imagine a restaurant where there are no prices on the menu and where the check reads $0.00 with only this footnote :”Your meal was a gift from someone who came before you. To keep the chain of gifts alive, we invite you to pay it forward for those who done after you”. Karma Kitchen has 22 restaurants worldwide. They are growing with generosity!

These are powerful examples of innovative ideas established by the food industry, ideas that have the potential to transform how we think about life and business!

We will end with a short film created by Louis Schwartzberg, it’s titled Happiness Revealed. It’s a beautifully made short film that will fill your heart with gratitude. We are rooting for you to fall in love with the practice of gratitude and realise that YOU ARE ENOUGH!