The gratitude journal advice that made mine actually stick

I quit gratitude journaling three separate times because writing three generic good things daily felt hollow within a week, and hollow habits die fast regardless of how good they're supposed to be for you.

What made it stick on the fourth attempt: specificity requirements, not quantity. One sentence, but it has to include a person's name and what they specifically did, not a vague category like "my health" or "my family." Specific gratitude engages memory differently than generic gratitude, and it stopped feeling like a chore once it stopped being generic.

Eighteen months in now, longer than my previous three attempts combined. The habit wasn't the problem. The vague version of it was.

Part of the deeper dive: The Anxiety and Habit-Building Guide for People Who've Tried Everything Once.