Who among us does not want to enjoy life and feel happy? To do this, you need to acquire habits that will help you maintain inner peace, notice the good and confidently move forward, no matter what happens “overboard”.
The American psychologist and philosopher William James once said: “Our life, although it has a certain form, is still mainly made up of habits – practical, emotional, intellectual, systematically organized for our happiness or sorrow, habits that irresistibly lead us to our fate, whatever that fate may be.”
In order to “come” to the fate that you dream of, it is worth consistently improving what is happening in different areas of your life. This will help the following habits, which should be introduced into your daily existence.
1. Don’t bite off more than you can chew. If you set ambitious but unrealistic goals, you won’t get very far, but you risk burning out. Tiny changes are the key to global transformations in life. It takes a couple of months to get used to doing something automatically: promise yourself to last such a short time and see what happens.
Finally say goodbye to ideas of how things should be
2. Stop guessing. What does the coming year bring to us? Will things only get worse? Thinking in this way, you untie the hands of anxiety. Instead, try to open up to new possibilities. Maintain flexibility and the ability to change your point of view, in our rapidly changing world, this is an indispensable quality. And rigid thinking is a direct road to the “swamp”.
3. Take full responsibility for your actions and happiness. Life will immediately change for the better, you just have to focus on what you can control. At the end of each week, take 5 minutes to be alone with yourself and understand what helps you and what makes you unhappy. Focus on the first and get rid of the second.
4. Think over the daily routine and follow it. Do not neglect the routine, daily repetitive actions – this is the only way to do everything that you have planned. Correctly prioritize in business, concentrate on what brings more results.
5. Don’t let expectations rule your life. Do not take responsibility for what you cannot influence – focus on behavior, actions, on attracting into your life what brings you joy. Say goodbye, finally, to ideas about how everything “should be”.
6. Notice even the smallest victories. Success is a marathon, not a sprint. It can take a long time to get to where you want to end up, so try to enjoy the journey itself. Do not dwell on failures, but be sure to analyze what you succeed.
7. Learn to completely disconnect from work. Putting your phone down at least an hour before going to bed, stop answering calls and checking your mail – you won’t believe what miracles these simple actions can do for the brain. This is one of the best ways to take your mind off work and recharge before the next day.
8. Come up with an evening ritual that will help unload your head. Read good books, write in a diary, communicate with loved ones – anything, as long as you really relax.
9. If you have trouble sleeping, take it seriously. If you’re having trouble sleeping, cut back on caffeine, eat dinner early, and dim your smartphone, laptop, or TV screen an hour or two before bedtime.
10. Schedule breaks at work. Many feel literally tied to an office chair. Make it a rule to get up, for example, every 45 minutes and stretch, walk around the room or drink water.
Read books to help you think differently
11. Enter any changes consistently, step by step. Do you want to start writing? Don’t make it your goal to write 1000 words a day, start with 500. Do you want to get in the habit of reading a lot? Start with two pages a day. Want to lose weight? Start eating on a smaller plate.
12. If you want to exercise, start small. The first intense 30-minute workout runs the risk of being the last. Start with a 5-minute stretch in the morning. From 15 squats, not from 50. Climb stairs whenever and wherever possible. Even the smallest step will bring you closer to your goal.
13. Be sure to make time for things that calm you down. Even if you feel like you’re busy with nowhere else to go and there are no free lines in your calendar, find an opportunity to include pauses in your daily routine when you can focus on what calms your active mind. It could be a 10-minute walk, a half-hour nap, or reading.
14. Make time for reading. This is one of the best gifts you can give to the brain, and by stimulating it, you stimulate life. Read books that will help you start thinking in a new way.
15. Learn new skills. Putting all your eggs in one basket is not a good idea. Learn, get new qualifications that will help you continue to remain a sought-after specialist. Don’t bet on a single skill.
Yes, in most cases we cannot globally influence what happens in the world, but our own satisfaction with life is often in our hands. So go ahead, to new productive habits that will help you enjoy every day to the fullest!