"Thank you" may not always be the words that come to mind when struggling through a difficult lesson or dealing with a mountain of homework in school. But in this episode of KUT's podcast "Higher Ed," Southwestern University President Dr. Ed Burger and KUT's Jennifer Stayton discuss the role that gratitude can play in learning and education.
Ed firmly believes that those two little words can play a big part in enhancing learning - especially when the going seems tough.
"What if that frustration actually ended up being kind of a positive? What if we became grateful for being frustrated, as a state?" asks Ed. "The truth is, I think that gratitude is such a powerful mindset to move us in a positive direction."
Ed maintains that expressions of gratitude have a ripple effect on all manner of work in and out of school.
"If we can embrace gratitude and be thankful for any aspect of life or any aspect of one's work, it uplifts us," says Ed. "It allows us to be more creative, to be more innovative, to see things more clearly, [and] to look for opportunities and potential."
For some people, expressing gratitude feels difficult. Ed understands where that comes from says the benefits are worth the effort.
"It's a vulnerability, and we don't like being vulnerable. We don't like to put our feelings and our heart on our sleeves," says Ed. "But, we have to remember that we are human. To embrace our humanity is a great gift to ourselves and to others. And one way to embrace our humanity is to show appreciation and to express gratitude."
Listen to the full episode to hear more about the benefits of being grateful. And hopefully. you will be thankful for a new puzzler.
This episode was recorded on Oct. 22, 2019.
For all the Higher Ed episodes, you can subscribe to the podcast on iTunes here.
