The Gratitude Habit Your Personality Type Needs This Thanksgiving

Gratitude is a scientifically proven way to boost your happiness and wellbeing so when Thanksgiving rolls around, it’s the perfect time to count your blessings and reflect on what you’re grateful for. But because gratitude looks different for everyone, you may not know where to start. 

A quick and easy way to cultivate gratitude over the holiday is to adopt a “gratitude habit.” Each personality type has its own way of expressing thankfulness—here’s the gratitude practice that best fits yours.

ENFP: Share Your ‘Thank Yous’

ENFPs love creating authentic connections with others, so it makes sense that gratitude starts with reaching out to the people you care about. Thanksgiving might be stressful—who isn’t worried about burning the turkey?—but it’s also the perfect time to put your people-focused nature into practice.

Try to make a daily habit of telling others why they’re so special to you. Make a list of everyone who’s impacted you this year and share a short “thank-you” voice note, text or social media post for each of them. These messages don’t have to be long or serious. Since you thrive on spontaneity, pick someone who’s on your mind right now and send a message of appreciation, explaining why you’re thankful for them. 

INFP: Start A Creative Reflection Journal

You love to get deep into your feelings INFP, and you are supportive and encouraging of the people in your life. You’re also big on nurturing yourself through your own personal growth journey. Thanksgiving, with all its distractions, might feel like a difficult time to get into your feelings, but there are ways to create time for yourself while you’re planning, cooking and baking.

Try exploring why you’re feeling grateful by making a creative reflection journal. This can be a scrapbook of sorts, incorporating souvenirs from meaningful events, or something like a bullet or junk journal. Whatever form you choose, write about moments throughout the year that have touched you. Consider why you’re grateful for these moments and how they have influenced or changed you for the better. 

ENFJ: Send ‘Impact’ Emails

You see the best in everyone, ENFJ, and you love exploring possibilities for those around you. Turkey Day is the best time to celebrate the people in your life. So take your natural optimism and empathy and highlight why the people in your life are special.

A gratitude habit you can implement is sending “impact” emails. While you prefer to publicly highlight someone’s impact on you and the world, a private note can feel more authentic and less like an interruption during the busy holiday season. In your email, highlight a specific achievement or growth you’ve seen from the people in your circle, and why you feel grateful for knowing (and helping) them. People often don’t realize just how much they’ve grown, so your thoughtful perspective can help them see strengths they might overlook. 

INFJ: Start A Gratitude Jar

As deep and introspective as you are, INFJ, you sometimes struggle to analyze your own thoughts, especially when you have a lot going on or are caught up in anxieties. Writing a gratitude journal can feel like a big and overwhelming task, so take time this Thanksgiving to start a habit that feels more manageable and also gives you a fresh perspective.

A good option for you is to create a gratitude jar. Grab a jar, then choose a day of the week to reflect on something you’re grateful for that happened during the past seven days. The reflections can be as sweet and as simple as, “I enjoyed a pleasant walk on a new hiking trail.” Fold those notes up, and look back at them later to feel grateful about the memories and connections you’ve made.

ESFJ: Engage In Acts Of Service

You love helping and nurturing people, ESFJ, and your values reflect your deep appreciation of loyalty, tradition and loved ones. Channel your nurturing energy this Thanksgiving into giving small, helpful acts of service (and try not to get distracted by all the hubbub).

Acts of service are something you already do naturally, but aim for a bit more intention. Go the extra mile for your loved ones by doing the dishes, writing cute notes for the fridge or placing a chocolate on someone’s pillow. Since life is busy at this time of year, these small gestures can be a quiet reminder to loved ones that they matter—even if it’s just a moment in a hectic day.

ISFJ: Make A Self-Care And Journaling Routine

You love your traditions, ISFJ, and your practical, caring nature makes you a natural protector of your loved ones. Normally, your gratitude is directed toward others or the rituals you hold dear, but you can also use the holiday for some self-appreciation and meaningful acts of kindness just for you.

Get into the habit of performing a quiet gratitude ritual at the end of your day, incorporating some self-care. Light a candle, make a hot drink and reflect on the ways you’ve supported your loved ones and contributed to the world around you. Giving yourself space to notice these moments, without interruption, can help you feel grounded and remind you of the positive impact you’ve made.

ENTP: Try A Gratitude Scavenger Hunt

Playful curiosity is kind of your thing, ENTP, so why not include it in your gratitude practice? 

Even when things get busy during the holidays, setting aside just a few minutes for a game-like gratitude ritual can keep things light and energizing.

Try a gratitude scavenger hunt, where you challenge yourself to locate mementos or reminders of the people and experiences you’re grateful for. These items can be anything from a ticket stub to a funny text from a friend. Curtail the rules to your liking—maybe give yourself a number goal of gratitude items for the week, or give yourself a five-minute timer each day to find a new thing you’re grateful for.

INTP: Research And Analyze Gratitude

INTPs are often deep in thought and getting out of your head can feel like a challenge, though you’re typically more interested in your latest project than spending time on personal reflection. 

As you ponder the concept of gratitude this Thanksgiving, try coming at it from your preferred analytical angle.

Instead of thinking about gratitude as reflecting on your “feelings,” approach it as something to observe and track. Start by reading about the science of gratitude, and then connect your own experiences to those findings—what patterns or causes do you notice? Why did that person have such a positive impact on you? Examine the whys behind it all, and your gratitude habit will be more likely to stick.

ESTP: Make A Gratitude Photo Album

You prefer to go through life with positivity, silliness, fun and a fast pace, ESTP, so getting reflective with a gratitude journal isn’t for you. That said, Thanksgiving may give you time to take on a fun project that helps you understand gratitude in a more relevant way.

Creating a gratitude photo album is more your speed. While you’re out and about or celebrating at home with family, take photos that make you feel grateful—a beautiful sunset, your best friend’s dog or that favorite aunt who flew out for the holiday. Having pictures to look back on will put you back in the moment and remind you of all the great things in your life.

ISTP: Express Gratitude Through Action, Not Words

You have a hands-on, action-driven personality ISTP, and that means you’re more inclined to do gratitude rather than speak it or reflect on it. Whether you’re staying home for Thanksgiving or traveling to see family, the holiday is a chance to show your appreciation through action, not words. 

When you have time, plan small, easy-to-achieve activities that you can do with others. That could be offering to fix something, pitching in with a task, or inviting someone on a quick drive or a spontaneous day trip. These hands-on moments can mean more than a big speech over dinner, helping you share gratitude through experiences and time spent together.

ESFP: Make A Gratitude Highlight Reel

ESFPs take pleasure in so many things that it can be difficult to pin down what you’re grateful for. Others might sit quietly and reflect, but you’re far more likely to remember your favorite moments by jumping in and living them. Thankfully, Thanksgiving can bring the loud, fun energy you thrive on and give you plenty of moments to soak up and feel grateful for.

This year, combine your twin loves of spontaneity and fun by creating a personal highlight reel. Capture voice memos and video clips of fun moments you’re grateful for, or make a collage if you’re more into hands-on creativity. Keep your recordings and creations in a folder you can revisit later for a gratitude boost. You can even make it a series of fun social media posts to share with family and friends.

ISFP: Express Your Gratitude Through Art  

For ISFPs, your love of aesthetics, creativity and sensory experiences can all help a gratitude habit stick. Instead of sticking to a written journal, try channeling your feelings into a gratitude painting, song or poem to wrap up the end of your day or week. 

Creative habits like these help you process emotions naturally, letting gratitude feel genuine, never forced or routine. If one medium doesn’t fit your mood, switch it up and choose whatever artistic expression feels most enjoyable in the moment. Adding a favorite photo, keepsake or meaningful object can turn your art into a tangible reminder of what you treasure most, and revisiting these pieces later can give you a boost when you need it most.​

ESTJ: Make A Gratitude-Based ‘Done List’

ESTJs are hyper-focused on meeting their goals and taking charge when things need to get done. How often do you look back and express gratitude for everything you’ve accomplished? I’m guessing you do it less often than you’d like, since you’ve already moved on to the next challenge. 

Since you naturally work with to-do lists, use the same energy to create a gratitude-based “done-list.” It’s the opposite of writing down what you need to do—instead, you’ll list everything you have already done, from the small wins to the big wins and even mundane tasks like “talked to mom on the phone.” Those little list items will show you just how much you’ve accomplished, and how many of those list items gave you pride.

ISTJ: Pair Moments Of Reflection With Your Tasks  

Ever-dependable ISTJs take pride in following through on all their duties, to the point where you’re too busy to contemplate everyday gratitude or even the satisfaction of a job well done.  Yes, there will be plenty of tasks for you to undertake over Thanksgiving. But why not use your multitasking skills to tie little moments of gratitude into your routine?

Practice thinking about something you’re grateful for while getting something done. For instance, when you’re planning out your participation in a Turkey Trot, think about what in your schedule makes you grateful. Or when you’re cooking dinner, think about a memorable time you ate out with loved ones. Even a single moment of gratitude, paired with something practical, might make your busy day feel just a little more satisfying.

ENTJ: Make A Personal Wins List

Ambition and drive are key strengths, ENTJ. You love a good challenge, and sometimes a gratitude practice sounds kind of silly when you’re more focused on big accomplishments. But taking stock of what you’ve achieved can be surprisingly energizing.

At the end of the feast (or any other spare moment of downtime), jot down three personal wins and three professional wins from the past year. These can be small, like reading your kid a bedtime story, or large, like hitting a big goal in your business. The main point is to pause and reflect on what you’re grateful for and how much you've accomplished. 

INTJ: Create A Gratitude Self-Audit

INTJs look at the big picture, with a focus on efficiency and outcomes, when viewing the world, so honing in on the small events as moments of gratitude can feel a bit pointless at first. But Thanksgiving is a chance to step back and see how those small wins actually shape your bigger journey.

Your best practice is to treat gratitude as a self-audit. Once during the holiday, or even once a week, take five minutes to review the major achievements in your life, both the professional successes and the personal moments, like a great conversation with a friend. Take a tally to see how that uplifting conversation made a difference in your week, and remember that those small steps are the vignettes that paint the entire portrait of your life. 

Taking Time To Reflect 

Thanksgiving might be hectic or stressful but it also offers space to reconnect with yourself and your loved ones. Use the holiday to view gratitude in a way that makes sense to you, whether that’s through connection with family, a creative activity or time to yourself. So many events, people and choices go into shaping your year, and when you truly stop to think about it, there’s a lot to be grateful for. And who knows, you may even decide to carry your gratitude habit into the new year.