What do Sara Blakely, Oprah, Tim Ferris and seven other successful entrepreneurs know that you should, too?

For more than 20 years, research on gratitude has revealed numerous benefits. For entrepreneurs, gratitude yields many benefits, including helping develop a positive mindset, improved creativity and innovation, building resilience, improved health and well-being, and strengthening relationships. 

Gratitude has also been linked to positive emotions and speeding up recovery time.

While these and many other benefits have been discovered in the lab, are there any benefits that have shown up in the field? In other words, do people who practice gratitude see these benefits, too? 

One only needs to read what these 10 world-renown entrepreneurs have to say about gratitude to get your answer. 

 Here are 10 successful entrepreneurs known for their expressions of gratitude: 

Oprah Winfrey – Author, producer, former television host

Oprah frequently emphasizes the importance of gratitude in her life and career. She's known for keeping a gratitude journal and regularly expressing appreciation for the people and opportunities in her life. 

“Gratitude is the single greatest treasure I will take with me from this experience.”

— From the final episode of The Oprah Winfrey Show 

Richard Branson – Serial entrepreneur

The founder of the Virgin Group often speaks about the role gratitude plays in his success. He believes that showing gratitude to employees and customers is essential for building a strong business.

“Just like a flower needs water, people flourish when they are praised. Even the finest criticism can be so damaging especially if it comes from the person running the company.” - Pendulum Summit in Dublin, 2018 

Tony Robbins – Motivational speaker

For Tony Robbins, gratitude’s power comes in achieving success and fulfillment. He encourages his followers to cultivate a mindset of gratitude in all areas of life. 

“Without appreciation and gratitude for what you already have, you’ll never know true fulfillment.” 

Sara Blakely – Founder of Spanx

Sara Blakely has spoken about the importance of gratitude in her entrepreneurial journey. She credits gratitude for helping her stay focused, resilient, and grounded amidst the challenges of building her business. 

“I've always had that gratitude that I had the opportunity to pursue my potential. So I think my story says that, when women are given the chance and the opportunity, that we can achieve a lot. We deliver. We can make the world a better place, one butt at a time."

Arianna Huffington – Founder, Huffington Post and Thrive Global

According to Arianna Huffington, gratitude is a key component of well-being and success. She encourages practicing gratitude as a daily habit. 

“I find that I’m not only grateful for all the blessings in my life, I’m also grateful for all that hasn’t happened—for all those close shaves with “disaster” of some kind or another, all the bad things that almost happened but didn’t. The distance between them happening and not happening is grace. (From her book, Thrive.) 

Sheryl Sandberg – Former Meta board member and COO, author

For Sheryl Sandberg, gratitude has helped her overcome adversity and find resilience. She encourages practicing gratitude as a way to navigate challenges and build resilience in both personal and professional life. 

“Finding gratitude and appreciation is key to resilience. People who take the time to list things they are grateful for are happier and healthier. It turns out that counting your blessings can actually increase your blessings. My New Year’s resolution this year is to write down three moments of joy before I go to bed each night. This simple practice has changed my life. Because no matter what happens each day, I go to sleep thinking of something cheerful. (From her 2016 commencement address at the University of California, Berkeley. Full transcript here.) 

Gary Vaynerchuk - Serial entrepreneur and five-time New York Times bestselling author

Gary Vaynerchuk often emphasizes the importance of gratitude in his talks and writings. Here are a couple of his quotes: 

"Gratitude is the fuel to your hustle. If you're not grateful for what you have, you will not get more. Period."

"Gratitude is one of the most powerful emotions you can practice in your life. It's the antidote to things like anger and jealousy. Gratitude is the one thing that can instantly flip everything." 

Tim Ferriss – Five-time New York Times bestselling author, podcaster, angel investor

Dubbed by some as the “Oprah of Audio”, Tim Ferriss is known for his insights on productivity, optimization, and self-improvement. Although the topic of gratitude per se, is not central to his quotes, he has mentioned it in passing in his writings and interviews. 

"I try to be grateful for the abundance of the blessings that I have, for the journey that I'm on, and to relish each day as a gift."  

Lewis Howes – New York Times best-selling author, podcaster

Lewis Howes frequently discusses gratitude and its transformative power in his podcasts, books, and talks. Here are a couple of quotes attributed to him: 

"Gratitude is the gateway drug to positivity. The more you focus on what you're grateful for, the more you realize you have everything you need in this moment." 

 "Gratitude turns what we have into enough. It shifts our focus from what we lack to the abundance that surrounds us." 

Brendon Burchard— Three-time New York Times bestselling author, motivational coach, online pioneer

Brendon Burchard often speaks about gratitude and its importance in achieving success and fulfillment. Here are a couple of his quotes: 

"The more grateful I am, the more beauty I see."

"Gratitude is the antidote to misery. Where gratitude thrives, happiness blooms." 

Conclusion

For a wide variety of reasons, cultivating gratitude is important to these 10 world renown entrepreneurs. It is not pop psychology; rather, gratitude has been and continues to be supported by solid psychological research. Since its many benefits have been documented and since high-performing entrepreneurs embrace it, isn’t it time you, as an entrepreneur, start your own gratitude journey? 

Don’t waste a minute. Begin now. Just click below and grab your free “7-days to Gratitude Quick Start Guide.”