Appreciation & Gratitude - How They Differ

Every year, around Thanksgiving, I hear people discussing what they are thankful for. After all, that's what Thanksgiving is about; taking inventory of one's good fortunes. It's great to have a day that we set aside to acknowledge the people, and the things, that we are grateful for. At the very least, it causes us to assess what we value.

But it's not the same as appreciation. They are similar, but different.

You can have gratitude and keep it to yourself. Appreciation is meant to be shared with others; it is the expression of a feeling of gratitude. You can take a day, a season, or an entire year and tally up what you have to be grateful for. You will feel tremendous gratitude in doing so, but what you do with those feelings is appreciation.

Gratitude recognizes value; appreciation embraces what is dear.

Parents feel validation for years of sacrifice and commitment when their children express appreciation for those efforts, but their children must first have gratitude before they can express that appreciation.

Employers say that good employees are hard to find (and keep), but studies show that 66% - 76% of them leave when they don't feel appreciated. This doesn't mean that their employers didn't have gratitude for them, but it clearly shows they didn't express it. This is (somewhat) understandable when you consider that appreciation is emotional. And dare I broach the importance of appreciation in relationships? Nothing solidifies or strengthens them more.

Scientific research confirms that appreciation and gratitude have positive psychological benefits, including better health, both physically and mentally. Studies also show that gratitude effectively increases happiness and reduces depression.   

No one will get penalized or punished for confusing or interchanging appreciation with gratitude. Their definitions are about more than meaning; they are about meaningfulness. The grateful individual who has difficulty expressing appreciation is quite common; however, it is uncommon for one to live life richly without gratitude, and conversely, to live poorly while having appreciation. They work in tandem, sort of like left and right hands, which I'm sure you are grateful to have, and can now express appreciation for.