A number of weeks ago, one of my favorite sites (Reddit), posted an open forum on what small areas of your life you can subtly tune up where it delivered an incredible result. Here are the BEST of the 5000+ entries from people all over the world:
I gave up soda two years ago. I used to drink it like water. Now I drink water. I sleep better and have lost 5% of my body weight without another major change.
Going through my closets, shelves, etc. and getting rid of things that I haven't used or don't really need. As it's often been difficult in the past for me to part with "things," it's become necessary in order to maintain my sanity.
More risk taking, made me feel more alive. Just jumping in and doing something different, getting myself out of my comfort zone. Engaging in conversation with strangers, got me way more friends than I've ever had previously. Also leads to some powerful stories.
I threw out all my old socks, and bought 10 identical pairs. My life is so much easier.
I cut out sugar and vastly increased vegetable intake.
I started working out and trying to eat better, and girls notice me way more now. It was hard work, but I love being fit. It feels much more natural. A funny response to this tip: “Now if you just get a suit you'll be unstoppable.”
I started flossing on a daily basis about a year ago. I'm normally the guy who goes to the dentist and gets the lecture about taking better care of my teeth. The last time I went, the hygienist finished, looked me in the eyes and said "Your oral hygiene is excellent."
I got rid of all my credit cards 2 years ago. I am more careful with how I choose to spend money.
When I see people I know, even acquaintances, I act like I am genuinely really happy to see them and give them a big smile. Someone else did this for me once. I was hooked.
I quit playing video games and ‘surfing’ the web. The days are so long now I have no idea what to do with them. I actually started writing my dissertation and exercising out of sheer lack of anything else to do.
I started waking up at 5:00 AM so I can get in my personal time to read/work on projects before everyone else is awake to distract me. I used to dread waking up early, now I look forward to that time every night when I go to sleep. FYI - I go to bed at 10:00 PM.
Started dressing nicer. People really do notice.
Recently, I've been sitting up straight. I'm tall so I have a tendency to hunch over and slouch when I'm sitting. The posture makes me feel less sleepy and more alert, which is odd because I can't figure out how that works. The trick for me was to roll back my shoulders and the rest kind of follows.
I left my job in a cubicle to teach preschool. It's a lot less glamorous to tell someone that I work in childcare but it has really affected my lifestyle. Surprisingly, I'm a lot less drained at the end of the day. Something about staring at a computer screen for eight hours is just tiring. Now I come home and actually have energy to do stuff. I'm happier, and most importantly I don't dread work on Sunday evening.
Regular meditation. It definitely takes some patience and practice, but regular meditation has amplified my living experience substantially. I am more engaged in the richness of life as a result. I can glide through tasks with pleasant ease, and never feel like I'm flustered or frustrated. It's hard to explain the subtleties of how practicing meditation has improved my overall well being, its as if people, places, goals, tasks and basically everything else has changed around me plus I have a more confident outlook. HERE is a great beginners guide (direct .pdf download)
I stopped caring about what anyone thought about me. I went from being a shy kid, to a successful, confident, happy man!
Here’s my favorite (one person did this!):
- Remind yourself where you want to be, what you want to be doing, and envision yourself getting there throughout the day. If you have a solid vision, you can make it reality.
- Start the day with some change in a pocket you normally don't keep change in. Every time you say something nice to someone move a coin to another pocket. It is a powerful thing to know at the end of the day that, if nothing else, you made a few people feel good about something.
- Cook dinner for your friends once a week if you can. There is no better bonding than regular dinner as a family.
- Introduce yourself to everyone you come into contact with at social events. Everyone has a story to share and most have the desire to collaborate. You'll never know who you might have met and what you could have accomplished together if you don't say hi and they don't know your name.