Last month at the World Cup, the world took notice as Japan became a prime example of expressing gratitude. Japan is not known for its soccer team, yet they quickly became the headline when, after a defeat in the final 16, the Japanese fans crying in defeat, stayed behind to clean the empty stadium. The Japanese team also cleaned their locker room and left behind a note in Russian thanking their host and expressing their gratitude for the opportunity and welcome shown by the Russians.

We can learn to cultivate a sense of gratitude at any age and doing so results in a greater sense of well-being, less anxiety and a lower risk of depression. Looking at life through the lens of gratitude is also self-perpetuating.

We experience that sense of well-being and happiness when someone is appreciative of us, but we also experience it when we express appreciation and gratitude. According to researchers, gratitude creates “an upward spiral of emotions.”

In February, Jennifer Beheny Wallace stated in The Wall Street Journal that, “A growing body of research points to the many psychological and social benefits of regularly counting your blessings…It also suggests that it’s never too late…to learn the subtle joys of appreciating the good in our lives. Gratitude can be cultivated at any age, whether it finds expression as a mood, a social emotion or a personality trait.”

A study published by Asurion in November 2017, found that the average millennial user checks his or her phone every five minutes, or over 150 times per day.

Now, there is a beautiful tradition in Judaism to say 100 blessings (berachot) every single day. While this may seem high, it is not so daunting. After all, it is less than the number of times we check our phones each day!

A few short months ago, you received an acceptance letter from Washington University, and you were probably over the moon with happiness and grateful for the opportunity to attend.

When you arrive on campus, you are probably thankful for this opportunity to learn and grow, to make new friends and to have new experiences. And while you are thankful for this, there are times when it may feel overwhelming or stressful. It is at those times that it may be difficult or feel impossible to be thankful. This is especially true if we begin to compare ourselves to others. Comparison, especially negative comparison, kills joy; gratitude promotes it.

Incidentally, frequent users of social media are more likely to suffer from anxiety and depression for this reason. It cannot be healthy to repeatedly compare one’s actual life with the curated realities projected by one’s peers.

How can we promote gratitude? Start out small. Think about the “everyday stuff” you have for which you can be thankful. Create a gratitude journal and begin to write a list of things for which you are grateful. Start out with five, and add to it each day. Soon enough, you should be aware of 100 blessings in your life for which you are thankful. Practicing gratitude regularly will eventually become a habit; and learning to “think gratefully” will lead to greater emotional well-being and can eventually become a personality trait that others will seek out, creating a greater sense of connectivity.

Dr. Richard Weissbourd, faculty director of the Making Caring Common initiative at Harvard University’s Graduate School of Education says, “In a society that has become so splintered and self-focused, gratitude is a common bond and offers one of the best ways for us to connect with one another.”

So, each day when you get into bed or check your smartphone, think about what you have to be thankful for: a good friend, a loving parent, a good grade, a good meal, clean laundry, a beautiful sunset. Send a text to someone for whom you are grateful to let them know it. You will sleep better, and you will wake up thankful for another day and another opportunity to appreciate your life.

Rabbi Hershey Novack is beginning his 17th year serving as campus rabbi and director of Chabad on Campus–Rohr Center for Jewish Life serving Washington University. Readers are invited to a dinner and open house, to be held later today, Thursday afternoon, August 23, from 4:45 – 6:00 p.m. at the Chabad House at 7018 Forsyth Blvd. Come and meet Jewish student leaders and the Chabad House staff to learn about the many opportunities for connecting with Jewish campus life, Israel-related matters on campus and Birthright Israel trips.