II. How does gratitude and savouring work?

In our fast-paced, multi-tasking lives, and surrounded by communications and advertising, it is too easy to forget to be grateful and joyful about the smaller things. When we sit down to a good meal, or have a laugh with friends, or share the close embrace of our loved ones, we can often lose sight of the pleasure each of those events can bring us. Gratitude and enjoyment of these moments on a regular basis can be a way of giving ourselves a “dose” of happiness each day so that we can accumulate and generate a sense of happiness in our lives. Showing gratitude can also have a “snowball effect”, enabling you to find more things to be thankful for [4,5]. The giving of positive gratefulness to others is more likely be reciprocated, and in turn builds upon each positive event or situation. Nurturing this type of relationship and positive exchanges will provide you another means of coping and motivating yourself.   
Some people may feel that savouring regular moments of pleasure can become habitual, preoccupying or even addictive. Focusing too much on pleasure may be a form of escapism from the real world of stress and pain, instead of dealing with the negative emotions head on. If too much pleasure is the case, share it with others [17].

In our modern world, we also have access to many services, products, gadgets, and technology at the click of a mouse, the “send” of a cell phone call, or the thumbing of a text message. But having too many choices may not always leave you fulfilled or appreciative of what you do have, and may even leave you less happy.  The “illusion of choice” often blinds us from seeing what we have right in front of us.  Having too many choices can induce stress and prevent you from savouring pleasure in your day-to-day experiences [2, 10]. Having too many choices can stop you from focusing on what is really important, like all the things that can help you feel fulfilled, happy or emotionally gratified.