So you want to live a better, more fulfilling life? You’re not alone, and it’s never too late to start on that journey. The key to a happy life is in the steps we take towards our goal, not their outcomes. It’s important that we consistently take small actions to define and affirm ourselves. In this blog post, we’ll share 10 ways that will help you uplevel your life and get the most out of every day.
1. Make Your Bed Every Morning
It’s a simple thing, but it can have a tremendous impact on your day! Making your bed first thing in the morning is a way to set the tone for productivity. It’s so easy, it can be done in under five minutes!
It also makes us think about the entire span of our day. As we lay the sheets and fluff our pillows, we are not only preparing for the day but making sure we have a wonderfully organized space to come back to and rest in at the end of the day. It creates a loose goal to accomplish and gives us a feeling of pride in our work.
If you want to instill this habit, perhaps you can set a reminder on your phone or a post-it note near the bed that reminds you to do it each morning. Eventually, the habit will become ingrained and you won’t even need to think about it. You will also get faster at it and may be able to make your bed in under 30 seconds with some consistency and practice! You might also consider adding this to your morning routine to get your day off to the best possible start.
2. Get a Good Night’s Sleep
You’ve heard it a million times, but it’s really true! Getting enough sleep is important for our mood, weight loss goals, stress levels, and spiritual development. But how should you actually define good sleep?
The Length of Time
The first factor in getting a good night’s sleep is the number of hours you spend sleeping. Most adults need seven or eight hours, and most people who get too little sleep each night don’t realize it!
The Quality of Sleep
The second factor is the quality of your sleep. Our bodies have a natural cycle, called a circadian rhythm, which tells our brains when it’s time to wake up and go to sleep. This clock gets thrown off if we are constantly exposed to light at night or get too little exposure during the day. It can also be disrupted by stress or illness.
The Regularity of Your Sleep Schedule
Finally, the third factor is how regular your sleep schedule is. Try to get to bed at roughly the same time every night and wake up at around the same time each morning. If you’ve had trouble sleeping recently, try avoiding screens an hour before bedtime (TVs, iPads, laptops, etc.).
How to Improve your Sleep
There are a few other things you can do to make sure you’re getting the best sleep possible. One is staying hydrated throughout the day, especially before bedtime! Another tip is to make your room as dark and cool as possible at night. This will help with regulating your body temperature so that it’s easy to fall asleep quickly when it’s time.
Lastly, it’s important to avoid stimulants before bedtime. This means cutting back on coffee and other caffeinated drinks after lunchtime or earlier in the day! Alcohol can also disrupt sleep even though you might feel more tired when drinking it because of its sedative qualities. It disturbs our natural cycle by delaying your REM sleep (the most restorative part of sleep).
You might consider using sleep affirmations if you find yourself worrying about the quality of your sleep. Affirmations can be very calming and help you drift off peacefully.
It’s important to remember that your body wants you to be well-rested! If you are having trouble sleeping, it is usually a sign that something in your life needs attention. Don’t ignore these signs and try the above advice if needed.
3. Drink More Water
Water is essential to life and it’s important that we consume enough of it every day. Drinking enough water ensures that our brains, muscles, organs, and skin stay hydrated, which helps us function properly throughout the day!
We often mistake thirst for hunger, so when we feel hungry during the day but aren’t really in need of food at all, it might be because our bodies are just craving water. It’s important to drink enough throughout the day so that we don’t get dehydrated, which can happen quickly without us even noticing.
How Much Should You Consume?
Most health experts recommend that we drink half our body weight in ounces each day. For example, if you weigh 120 pounds, aim for 60 ounces of water per day. You may need more or less depending on how physically active you are.
How To Increase Your Water Intake
Many people use apps or journals as a way to track their daily habits and see how they stack up against their goals. This provides a small rewards system for drinking water, since you’ll have a sense of satisfaction with each cup of water you drink.
Another way to increase your water intake is simply by carrying a reusable bottle with you throughout the day so that it’s harder to forget about drinking! Each time you take a sip of water, remind yourself how good it feels for your body and mind to get rehydrated. Synchronizing a positive mindset with drinking water will help you to enjoy it more.
If plain water isn’t appealing to you, try adding in some sliced lemons or oranges for flavor. You can also freeze grapes, mint leaves, or other natural flavorings into ice cubes and add them to your glass instead of regular ice cubes.
Did you know that one of the best ways to get your water intake is through food? Many foods like watermelon, cucumbers, celery, lettuce, and tomatoes are mainly made of water, so they help you to drink up!
Benefits of Drinking More Water
Drinking enough water each day is one of the best ways to improve your energy levels. This is because water helps your brain and the rest of your body function properly. When we’re dehydrated, our brains can feel foggy or groggy, which makes it difficult to focus all day long.
Drinking enough water also increases our metabolism, since about 75% of our bodies are composed of water! If you’re experiencing trouble sleeping at night then drinking more water is a must, since dehydration disrupts your body’s natural temperature regulation.
4. Eat real food
Michael Pollan has famously advised us to “eat real food, mostly plants, and not too much”. However, in a world where everything is hyper-processed and packed with chemicals, this can be a challenge. Real food is considered to be something that is either close to its natural state or has been minimally processed.
Health experts advise eating foods like fruits, vegetables, whole grains (like oats), lean meats, and healthy fats (things like avocado) for optimal health benefits. This means avoiding highly processed food items such as chips or crackers, since they don’t contain any of the nutrients that your body needs.
How To Increase Real Food in Your Diet
Do you need to drink a protein shake every day? No! In fact, these shakes are often packed with sugars and artificial sweeteners which is very different from natural food sources of proteins like lean meats or eggs. Try replacing one meal per day with a healthy plant-based option instead. This could be a vegetable omelet for breakfast, a salad with avocado as your main course at dinner, or even having some fruit and yogurt before bed.
When dining out try to avoid ordering dishes that have been fried, sautéed in oil, drenched in cheese, or heavy sauces. These are all foods that can take away from your daily intake of healthy nutrients. Instead, order grilled or baked options with fresh herbs and spices to boost your flavor without taking away from the health benefits!
Keeping a food journal is another great way to track everything you eat throughout the day, which can be helpful if you’re looking for specific changes that you’d like to make. This also makes it easier to see your caloric intake and where you might have room for improvement.
Benefits of a Whole Food Diet
We may already know some of the benefits of eating whole foods like increased energy, weight loss, and better sleep, but did you know that it can also have a positive impact on your skin appearance? Research points towards an increase in antioxidants when we reduce or remove processed sugars from our diets.
An unprocessed diet can also help us out tremendously with our overall health and help us to combat disease, obesity, and chronic conditions like heart issues. Food literally becomes medicine when we focus on eating whole foods rather than processed items.
5. Volunteer in your community
You may think that volunteer work is strictly for those who are retired, but the truth is that all age groups can benefit from giving back. Volunteering doesn’t just help others out; it has been proven to improve your mood and decrease stress levels as well!
We usually think of volunteering as being a very formal activity, like helping in a soup kitchen or cleaning up the park. However, you don’t have to go too far out of your way to do something big in order for it to be meaningful. Small efforts you make for loved ones also count as ways that you can give back to your community.
How To Volunteer In Your Community
For those who are still looking for ideas of where you could pitch in, here is just a shortlist of possible places you could help out:
- Retirement homes or assisted living communities
- Cleaning up the local park
- Animal shelters
- Libraries
- Public schools
- Local churches and religious centers
- Soup kitchens
If you don’t have time to give to a formal organization, consider making a financial donation. This way, you can still give to a worthy cause without having to add more hours to your day.
6. Start a daily gratitude practice
Gratitude is another practice that can benefit us in many ways. From opening our hearts to the world around us, to improving how we view ourselves and others, gratitude is a powerful tool for growth.
How To Practice Gratitude On A Daily Basis
The first step towards practicing gratitude on a daily basis is simply taking time out of your day to think about what you are grateful for. It can be as simple as thinking about how lucky we are to have the life that we do, or it could include deeper thoughts like having a roof over our heads and food on our plates each day.
The next step is writing these things down in a journal (or on your phone!) every night before bed. If you struggle with staying consistent, try setting an alarm for 15 or 30 minutes before bed (or every hour) to remind yourself.
Benefits of Practicing Gratitude
Gratitude has been shown to reduce feelings of negativity and depression as well as help us become more optimistic and hopeful. It can also help us to sleep better and reduce stress levels in our lives.
Gratitude can also help with the practice of forgiveness. When we practice gratitude, it is easier for us to forgive others and ourselves. It can also help with our interpersonal relationships by opening the lines of communication between partners or friends/family members, which leads to more positive experiences overall!
7. Start a creative hobby and stick with it
Creativity is one of the most important parts of our lives. Our brains are literally wired to be creative and it can benefit us in many ways beyond what we could imagine. However, we may find it hard to make time to become more creative, or may even say that we aren’t creative at all! This usually isn’t true, and with practice, we can learn how to achieve a flow state where we are fully immersed in our activities without any distractions.
How To Start A Creative Hobby And Stick With It
There are many different types of creative hobbies that you can try out, but here is just a shortlist to get you started:
- Painting
- Drawing
- Sewing/knitting/crocheting
- Writing
- Dancing
- Music-making
- Photography
- Cooking
The biggest problem that most people have when starting a creative hobby is not setting aside enough time for it. As you are getting started, set an alarm to go off every hour while you are practicing to remind yourself of your commitment. It also helps if you make a public promise to people that you know who will hold you accountable!
Once the alarm goes off, take a few minutes out of your day or night (depending on what time is best for you) and spend it working on your creative hobby. If at first, this seems difficult, remember that the more you practice, the better you will get and it will become easier.
Creative hobbies can be a great way to unwind from stress as well as make new friends by sharing your work with others! Your creative hobby doesn’t have to be anything fancy or complicated – stick figures are totally acceptable! Just try not to be too hard on yourself as you are practicing and remember to have fun!
8. Declutter your home
Having a cluttered space can make it hard to relax and enjoy our homes, while also making it harder for us to find the things that we need. However, decluttering is actually a simple process that can become easier once you get started!
How To Declutter Your Home
The first step towards decluttering your home is getting rid of all of the things that you no longer need. If you don’t use it regularly, then chances are that you won’t miss it if it isn’t there anymore! You can sell or donate items that you no longer need or want.
The next step is to organize the things that are leftover into categories like clothes, kitchen items, office supplies, etc. Get containers to use to separate these items and label them so that you can easily find what you are looking for. You can also consider getting an organizer or planner if this is something that would help!
Once everything is in place, it’s time to start looking at your home decor as well as the layout of your space. Critically think and decide if things are arranged in a way that creates the best flow and space in your home. Then look at the art in your home. Does it bring you joy? If not, consider removing it and adding more art that you love to your walls.
Once everything has been organized and decluttered, the final step is the maintenance of these systems – this means keeping on top of putting away items as they come in and taking out the garbage regularly. Keeping things clean can be a challenge, but it is definitely worth it when you get to enjoy your home!
The most important thing to remember while decluttering is that everyone has different needs for their homes – there isn’t one “right” way of doing things. What matters most is finding what works for you, what makes your space feel like home.
9. Start a journaling practice
Journaling can be a great way to reflect on our innermost thoughts and feelings. Journaling allows us the space to explore what we are thinking, feeling, and experiencing – without judgment or fear of being misunderstood.
Prompts for your journaling practice:
- What was my favorite part of today?
- What am I grateful for?
- How can I better handle this situation next time?
- Who do I need to forgive and what am I holding on to that is preventing me from moving forward in my life?
- What should I do tomorrow?
- What are my goals?
Writing in a stream of consciousness without worrying about making your writing perfect can be freeing and give you clarity on difficult or confusing feelings if a specific prompt doesn’t resonate with you.
10. Start a self-care routine
Self-care routines can range greatly and can be as big as a week-long retreat or as simple as a nice shower and a fresh new outfit. The important thing is that you are taking time for yourself to recharge your batteries, relax, and focus on what makes you happy! Self-care routines can be as simple or complex as needed – there isn’t one right way of doing things. Consider using self care affirmations as part of your routine if it resonates.
Self-Care Tips
- Start with a bath by adding in some Epsom salts, lavender oil, and essential oils.
- Take a quick walk outside to get the blood flowing.
- Light up your favorite scented candle
- Listen to music that makes you feel happy
- Get a massage
- Buy yourself a gift
- Treat yourself to some delicious dark chocolate or fresh fruit!
Final Thoughts
If you’re looking for ways to uplevel your life, these are definitely great places to start. In order to decide which tips are best for you, consider your lifestyle and what makes YOU happy. If all else fails, there is no shame in hiring a life coach or joining an accountability group to help support you on this big journey! We are not meant to go through this journey alone.