How happy are you with your life? Did you know that anything that isn’t making you jump for joy can be fixed or changed? The key, however, is that only YOU hold that power to make your life joyous. It’s not up to your spouse, kids, parents, or boss.
To the extent that anyone’s life can be controlled, you are the one with the most control. And you deserve to live the life of your dreams. So how do you do that?
Your brain is crucial and food either enhances and sustains your brain or food slowly kills your brain and your body. But that is another blog post for another day.
Today, we are focusing on the brain and the mindset you hold. Having a growth and positive mindset is a critical foundation upon which we can build tiny habits that help you to put that positivity into action, and thereby change your life.
Sometimes it seems as though we have been stuck in “Groundhog Day”, the movie where we live the same day over and over. After a while, you don’t even know what day it is. It stagnates the mind.
Mindset (coupon code CARE50 for 50% discount!) and mindfulness are buzz words we hear a lot about. They refer to those learned attitudes we hold about absolutely anything. We have a money mindset, a career mindset; in a business setting you’ll hear terms like ‘fixed’ or ‘growth’ mindset. Starting with a mindset (coupon code CARE50 for 50% discount!) that works for you is certainly important to how we perceive life and being mindful of how we think affects what we get from life.
As I’ve said in previous posts, to make real and lasting changes in our lives, we need to embrace the development of tiny habits. Tiny habits that combine over a period of time become automatic habits that we don’t have to think about. These automatic habits compound into many small successes, which can also help change our mindset. It’s a huge cycle but one which can be changed at any point.
How to Add Tiny Habits to Your Day
Since every person’s goals will be different, so will every person’s tiny habit choices. These are just a few ideas and certainly not a comprehensive list. Choose whichever tiny habits make you happy and more fulfilled (and moving toward your goals) and continue building on those.
To begin, decide what exactly makes you unhappy then think of a resolution. Now, what is one small thing you can do to start to change the situation? It’s not enough to just THINK about a resolution; you must then take action. Creating tiny habits one at a time will change your life.
Some general tiny habits that anyone can add to their routines include: meditation, yoga, cardio exercise, writing a gratitude journal, journal about all areas of your life or your goals, listening to empowering podcasts, praying, and healthy eating.
If you’re specifically unhappy at work:
- Spend 5 minutes a day looking for a new job; apply for a new position inside your current company; rewrite your resume; seek a mentor for advice; get active with business networking groups; upgrade your skillset; write down a daily work goal and cross if off the list when achieved.
If you’re unhappy with your relationships:
- Start venturing out with groups of friends; reconnect daily with spouse or partner; go on regular date nights where you don’t talk about work or kids; try a new hobby or activity together; reconnect with old friends or family members.
If you’re unhappy spiritually:
- Start keeping a Bible planner, such as My Bible Planner (click to see + coupon code CARE50 for 50% discount!); create a meditative morning and evening routine; spend time every day doing self-care routines; seek advice from religious or spiritual leaders; listen to spiritual podcasts or music; volunteer to help the less fortunate.
If you’re unhappy with yourself:
- Start taking better care of yourself. This is something I’m consciously trying to do. I often find myself sitting and working on the computer hours upon end. Then when I get up, I realize I need to move my body more. And my “addiction” to sugar is contributing to the “fog” in my brain. Here is a methodical way to guide this self-care process: Taking Better Care of Me in 30 Days journal. And here’s some incentive to get started! Use coupon code SELFCARE10 to get $10 off the already low price!!
As you can see, there’s no magic wand that can change your level of happiness. It’s up to you to take the action and to implement these tiny steps toward your ultimate goals. Need a system to work through this process of creating tiny habits to change your life? Here’s an excellent book that helps you define the exact process that works for you – Tiny Habits: The Small Changes That Change Everything by B.J. Fogg. You can do this! Time to get your life on track and come out of the fog (no pun intended, B.J.) of living by default.
Disclosure: My blog posts sometimes contain affiliate links. This means I earn a small commission if you click through and make a purchase, which is at no additional cost to you. Thank you!
I’m Vicki Peel, former home economics teacher and educational administrator. If you are not receiving my emails, coupons, and freebies, look for the Subscribe block (below right) and submit your contact information. I will not share your information with anyone, and all the content you will receive as part of our community is free. I may occasionally promote someone else’s paid content, offer a product for your consideration or share an item that I think might be of use to you. However, you are under no obligation to purchase anything – ever. So, sign up now so you won’t miss anything during our July through September focus on LIFESTYLE!
Love your blog and you covered important areas. I went to a one day university talk at NC State University to hear the neurologist from Duke University talk about The Brain. He said sleep is very important for our Brain and recommended the book, The Sleep Revolution by Arianna Huffington.
Miss you!
Thank you, Tensil! I really appreciate your comments! Yes – sleep is crucial. I monitor mine regularly. Am working on a course on sleep right now. And thanks for the book recommendation. I’ll check it out!
We did have some great times working together, didn’t we? It was a lot of fun!