The Gratitude Adjustment with Becca Anderson

MP3 Download

In 2024, UC Berkeley studies showed that gratitude is a key component of our happiness. People who are grateful about the events in their life and even experiences from the past can help us transform our fears into courage, our anger into forgiveness, our isolation into belonging, and the pain of others into healing. However, this may not be our default mode, and most of us need to work intentionally to increase our feelings of gratefulness and have it become a way of life. Gratitude, says author Becca Anderson, is not positive thinking, it's inner work. Raised on a modest West Virginia farm where her father greeted every stranger as "neighbor," Anderson learned simple contentment early, later surviving on apples, potatoes, and Lipton tea while building a new life in San Francisco. A turning point came when she discovered children lacquering products in a factory she was set to visit for her import-export job. She quit on the spot and, on a friend's advice, found her true calling in book publishing. In this dialogue Anderson shares her morning intention-setting ritual, the "gratitude adjustment" she uses to counter negative auto-pilot thinking, and affirmations written as "I am" rather than "I want." She describes small random acts of kindness, from her "Take What You Need" flyers to a chance gift of cookies that changed a stranger's day, along with journaling, vision boards, and the practice of deep listening, including letters from a friend on Ukraine's front line who thanked her simply for hearing him. (hosted by Justine Willis Toms)

Bio:

Becca Anderson is an American writer, teacher, and gardener based in the San Francisco Bay Area, best known for inspirational books celebrating gratitude, women’s lives, and spiritual wisdom. She comes from a long line of preachers and teachers from Ohio and Kentucky. The teacher side of her family led her to become a women’s studies scholar. She credits her spiritual practice with helping her recover from cancer and wants to share this with anyone who is facing difficulty in their life.

Becca Anderson’s books include:

• The Book of Awesome Women: Boundary Breakers, Freedom Fighters, Sheroes and Female First  (Mango Publishing Group 2017)
• Every Day Thankful: 365 Blessings, Graces and Gratitudes (TMA Press 2017)
• Badass Affirmations: The Wit and Wisdom of Wild Women (Mango Publishing Group 2018)
• I Can Do Anything: Positive Affirmations, Inspirational Thoughts and Motivational Words Card Deck (Mango Publishing Group 2021)
• Badass Gratitude: Affirmations for Slaying Your Way to Contentment (Andrew McMeel Publishing 2025)

To learn more about the work of Becca Anderson go to: Instagram.com/beccaandersonwriter

Topics Explored in This Dialogue 

• What is gratitude and how does it differ from positive thinking
•  How can a daily morning intention practice change your day
•  How can hardship or a setback become the doorway to your true calling
• How do affirmations work, and why write them as "I am" instead of "I want"
•  What is a "gratitude adjustment" and how does it interrupt negative auto-pilot thinking
•  What are simple, low-budget acts of kindness that can change someone's life
• Why keep a journal and a vision board, and how do they support manifestation
•  What makes deep listening one of the truest acts of love

Host: Justine Willis Toms           Interview Date: 7/11/2026            Program Number: 3868

Music Playlist

Album: Bring the Flavors
Artists: Jack Gates

Track: 12 Choco Latte