Many of us start the new year with great goals and ambitions. We think about everything that seems to be missing in our lives and imagine ourselves on the other side of the massive change much happier and more fulfilled.
There is no denying that certain benefits can increase our life satisfaction, but I have found that our daily habits make the greatest contribution to our happiness.
You can have a job that inspires you, the best body of your life and the perfect partner for you, but none of them will fully satisfy you if you do not prioritize the daily habits that promote your general well-being. His.
If you want to feel good and your life, you have to do the things that make you peaceful, happy and alive on a regular basis.
With this in mind, I recently asked twelve Tiny Buddha employees (all involved in our upcoming Best You and Best Life Bundle sale) to share a habit that is worth adopting in the New Year. Here's what they had to say:
1. Start the day with positive intentions.
“The moment I wake up, I don't move. I stand still for a few minutes. I think about properties that I want to offer for the day.
Then I silently repeat the following statements:
I offer peace this day.
I offer joy this day.
I offer enthusiasm this day.
I offer friendliness this day).
And I keep going until I feel like I'm done.
Some days are more difficult than others, especially when I get up very early, still tired with the prospect of a long day.
However, this simple, robust practice sets the right tone. It fills me with gratitude and puts me on the right track.
From this point on my day is going well and everything is in the best possible and highest way, even if / when and when challenges arise. "
~ Personal growth teacher Julie Hoyle (truealignment.org)
2. Practice mindfulness.
"For someone who is striving for a change in his life – to stop doing something destructive, to do something healthier, to become more confident, to go into the version of himself that he knows that it really is – The best habit of cultivating is mindfulness.
Mindfulness is the ability to intentionally pay attention to the present moment without judgment. This is the first step to change. It helps you to recognize when you are doing what you want to change. It helps you understand when you get stuck. It helps you to see what you really feel and think.
It gives you the starting point of your map. You can see what's really happening – "Oh, I went back to the worst-case scenario. That scared me and made me uncomfortable. So I'm looking for an excuse not to go to the party."
From here you can leave the feelings of fear and discomfort behind and look at the situation objectively. You can make changes from here. You can challenge your thinking. You can reshape the situation. You can remember where you want to go. You can make a plan.
We live so easily from the autopilot. This is not because we are lazy. It's just the more efficient way our brain works.
Create a habit and you don't have to think about what to do in the next situation. This gives your brain energy to do other things. However, efficiency is not the same as excellence. This autopilot lifestyle means we don't notice what's really going on. Without mindfulness, we get stuck in our feelings, we ponder like a record, we always make the same unhealthy decisions.
It is a very simple skill to be aware of. However, there was no strong biological or evolutionary need to cultivate this ability to survive, which is why most of us do not have this ability naturally. We have to work on it. We have to keep repeating it until it becomes a habit. But it's worth it.
It's actually a very subtle change in your thinking, but it's incredibly profound. As if standing under a waterfall, take a small step out of the water and see the waterfall in front of you. Small step, big difference. "
~ Stress and anxiety coach Sandra Wozniki (stressandanxietycoach.com)
3. Accept a meditation practice.
"Do you know this feeling when you've been away from home for a while and then finally come in the door? It feels good, doesn't it? It's hard to put into words, but something in your heart opens up.
Home is a place where we can open up because we feel safe, warm and firm. It's a place we can always go back to, no matter how long we've been away. There is a feeling of belonging.
For me meditation is like that. A return home. As my mind begins to calm down, there is an increasing feeling of silence and my heart reacts. Silence brings a feeling of peace, clarity, stability and a deep feeling of connection and clinging.
As we move through this life, we all yearn for the feeling of being at home. A foundation. Sense of belonging.
We often create a sense of home in the world, in a physical place, to replicate what we heartily access.
The return to silence is a return home at its most important level.
In a world where we are constantly bombarded by distractions, incentives, dramas and conflicts, it is easy to forget what it feels like at home. Add to that a busy, emotionally reactive and confident mind, and it's easy to forget that we actually have a feeling of home, peace and warmth.
Do it!
Silence is always there, in the background of our consciousness, ready and waiting to support us, but our minds are usually too busy to notice. And when our life is dramatic, turbulent or overwhelming, silence offers a very stable place to rest. But if we don't practice knowing silence, it will be difficult to find silence when the drama and turmoil come.
Meditation helps us remember and build our relationship with silence by leading us out of our head and into our heart. The more we visit silence through meditation, the more it permeates us, which means that it is more readily available to us in everyday life.
When we are in a stressful situation, we have to let the silence hold us.
Does that mean it will work every time? Not necessarily. But with consistent practice, you change your relationship to the things that trigger and exhaust you because you have chosen to have a different, more important relationship. A relationship with silence.
And your heart is the bridge. "
~ Meditation and Mindfulness Instructor Ben Fizell (peacekeeperproject.com)
4. Use mantras as affirmations.
“I am a big fan of mantras as affirmations. Sometimes life can feel like it is getting out of control, and our minds can develop discouraging scenarios that increase our levels of stress and anxiety. A simple mantra can very effectively help remove the noise and bring us back to a single focus.
One of my favorite mantras is: "I'm safe. I am loved. I am good enough. “I say this at least three times and reaffirm the words every time I repeat.
I recommend creating your own mantra with words that feel earthy to you. Be brief – one or two sentences are enough. The use of affirmative words (especially loud) can lead to a healthy and strengthening habit of self-awareness and self-care. "
~ Author and artist Skylar Liberty Rose (skylarlibertyrose.com)
5th game in nature.
“How you play in nature is up to you. It could mean sitting in your garden, on a balcony, or even next to an open window, indulging in the silence of a tree or the melody of a bird.
It could mean traveling to a new neck of the forest or strolling along a familiar path while taking the time to notice all the little things that we normally miss in our haste or concern: the soft green moss ; the frightening blue tail of a lizard, half hidden under a rock; or the curious expression of a wren watching you from the bush next to the trail.
Playing in nature not only relieves stress and anxiety and improves general health, but can also help us to find our way literally and figuratively.
As Rumi says: "Everyone was created for a certain job, and the desire for this job was stuck in every heart."
We have so few opportunities to follow our hearts in our daily lives that most of us have forgotten how to do it. We walk freely in the open air, follow our curiosity and our desires and learn to let go in order to arrive somewhere and discover the joy of simply taking the next step on our own unique path.
When I started reconnecting with the natural world, I couldn't help but rediscover my own human nature: my true self, that is; the gifts that I have to give to the world and where I fit into the ecosystem of life.
When I walked through the forest, I realized that like every other living being on this planet, I have to make an important contribution; When my mind finally calms down, I hear a low voice of wisdom telling me what it could be. and if I listen to that voice, I can also take my place in the Family of Things to borrow from Mary Oliver's sentence. "
~ Certified Integral Coach Meredith Walters (meredithwalters.com)
6. Try habit stacking.
"I strongly recommend a self-care practice that I call" habit stacking ". Several small habits are used and summarized in a time window, that is, first when you wake up.
For example, you could start with a short meditation that would result in you drinking a quarter of water, followed by ten minutes of walking, and then perhaps preparing a green drink. Habits are motivated by triggers so that each activity stimulates the craving for the next in your body.
Do this regularly at the same time for a few weeks, and they will settle down. Your habit stacks can work any time of the day or night, depending on when you want to set up your own self-sufficiency zone. "
~ Author and speaker Suzanne Falter (suzannefalter.com)
7. Connect to your body daily.
“A habit that is worth learning in the New Year is to take a few minutes each day to connect to your body. Pay attention to how it feels, how you feel. Think about how you want to feel and what you can do to bridge the gap between them, if there are any.
This is superpowerful because we are so caught up in obsessive thoughts about all the things that we think we should do for our bodies (and that we normally shouldn't) that we never stop dealing with connect them and hear what it really needs.
This also works for mental health. When you wake up and feel depressed, angry, stressed, overwhelmed (etc.), ask yourself what my head / heart / soul needs today? You will often find that you really only need a break. Give yourself that. Or maybe you need to find something that nourishes your soul and makes you enthusiastic about something in life.
Too often we go through the movements of life in survival mode just because we are so busy staying busy that we don't stop long enough to figure out what we need to feel alive, happy, and fulfilled.
If you're struggling with healthy eating, go one step further by applying it to food. Take a second before you eat and ask yourself how I will feel when I eat this. Do I want to feel like this? Why? This is a very powerful tool as it provides space between an autopilot pulse and the following action to make a conscious decision based on what is best for your body at that moment.
The other reason it is so powerful is that it helps you notice if / when you are deliberately punishing yourself with food.
If you go through these brief questions and decide to eat something consciously, it will make you sick or continue eating when you are already full and know that eating more makes you sick (and you don't care), you punish themselves with food. Knowing when this is happening is the first step in learning how to change it. "
~ Coach for Cognitive Behavior Roni Davis (ronidavis.com)
8. Practice breathing work.
“A habit that I think could benefit many people is to include some form of breathing work in their routine. This can be simple mindfulness meditation, boxing breathing or one of the more advanced pranayama exercises in yoga – whatever works for you. In my experience, just a few minutes a day can have a profound impact on your stress level and your quality of life.
Whether you want to be a stronger athlete to promote your mental health, be a more present partner or friend, or be more productive at work, I really can't imagine areas in life that don't exist. t improves through regular breathing work. "
~ Movement trainer Luke Jones (heromovement.net)
9. Select the news sources you are prepared for.
"It is admirable to be up-to-date on current events, especially in an election year, but choose carefully the news sources you trust and limit your visibility even then." It is of no value to feel indignant for half a day, to have social media disputes that you can never win, or to be upset about events or people over which you have no control. The only thing you can achieve is that you pass on your personal power to others who are happy to accept it. "
~ Certified life counselor and NLP master practitioner Tim Brownson (adaringadventure.com)
10. Add gratitude to your apology.
"I'm not just saying:" I'm sorry. "I also say:" Thank you. "Instead of just saying," I'm sorry I was late. "I also say:" Thank you for waiting for me. "And instead of just saying:" I'm sorry I didn't notice something like that the other day. «I also say:» Thank you for being there for me in good and good times, not so good times. "
This subtle shift helps me feel better about my human disorders. It also improves my relationships – because I share my appreciation with people and gratitude is a good connection to the heart. "
~ bestselling author and award-winning designer Karen Salmansohn (notsalmon.com)
11. Talk to strangers.
“A habit worth adopting in 2020 is talking to strangers. This is a habit I started in 2010 and it was the best change I have ever made in my life.
Our relationships are probably the second most important determinant of our well-being and are only behind our health. All relationships and interactions – even with strangers – have a massive impact on how much you enjoy every moment.
By speaking to strangers, you improve your social skills, improve contact with people, and learn how to enjoy every moment with random people. If you can go to a book club, bar, or work conference alone and have fun, your life will improve dramatically. "
~ Blogger Rob Riker (thesocialwinner.com)
12. Sleep more and better.
“I have learned that the quality of our sleep determines almost everything in our lives! It affects our mental state, our physical health, our attitude to things, our relationships and ultimately our success in every area of life.
Sleep has taken a back seat in the world of healthy living, focusing on exercise and nutrition. However, all the evidence suggests that sleep is the basis of our overall health.
Science has shown that we eat badly and move badly when we sleep badly. When we sleep well, we make better decisions, choose better foods, exercise more effectively, and ultimately lead a more rewarding, effective, and successful life. It has a domino effect. "
~ Life and performance trainer Brendan Baker (startofhappiness.com)
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Do you already practice one of these habits? And are there any habits you want to add to the list?
** If you have not yet registered for the 31-day Healthier You Challenge, you can download a PDF here. After you provide your email address, you can win a free Best You, Best Life bundle that includes 20 life-changing tools worth nearly $ 1,900! The winner will be notified this Thursday, January 2nd – the bundle will also be available for purchase at this time.
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