5 Changes You Can Mindfully Make To Become a Happier You

Taking small steps to improve your life is a great way to go at your own pace and see gradual but effective changes to your happiness and wellbeing. But, you must ask yourself whether you are making these changes because you want to, or because you feel you need to. Making changes should be celebrated, but people too often do what they think others want rather than what they want. If you want to make mindful changes, here are some ways.

Don’t Be Afraid To Be Yourself More Often 

Everyone has a persona they showcase to the world, but there is another one where they are entirely alone that is the true them. This could be listening to certain songs or doing your hair differently so you can express yourself. Whether social pressure or a lack of confidence, people are too afraid to be themselves, but changing this and dressing how you like with keepsake jewelry and loud, vibrant outfits could help you make those important changes and give you the positive attitude you need to be more you. Don’t let the outside world, social pressure, news, and other people’s opinions deter you from being your authentic self. You are your own person for a reason!

Look At Yourself From a New Perspective

It can be challenging to make changes like creating new habits without really knowing where to start or what exactly you need to change. If you want to make effective changes, you should try looking at yourself from a new perspective. Imagine yourself as an artist that wants to transform a blank canvas into something special. From there, you can see what you want to work on and take steps towards making it happen. 

Stop Resisting and Allow Change 

Perhaps you’re sick of people telling you to go with the flow. It can often sound and seem disingenuous, you have real-life responsibilities after all. However, if you stop and think about how you could go with the flow, you might be able to make the changes you’re after. It might be that you’re not saying Yes enough, and this is causing you to miss out on fun and adventure. So, the next time you are worried about something going wrong, just go with it. Embrace change with an open heart and welcome new opportunities. You never know what amazing experiences could be around the corner.

Set Achievable Goals 

Many people struggle to make changes because they think too big and become disheartened when they don't work out how they had hoped. The best way to avoid this is to be realistic at work or in your personal life. Setting goals that are ambitious but still achievable gives you something to work towards and will show you that you are much more capable than you think you are. Setting small, easy actionable to-do’s that build upon each other day by day will make it easier for you to accomplish a bigger goal rather than setting a huge goal with no actionable steps to back it up.

Make Yourself a Priority 

You have to make yourself your number one priority. Right now, you should start making changes to make sure you are taking care of your mental, emotional, and physical well-being. Personal evolution and improvement is something that everyone should consider in life, whether it’s their career, lifestyle, or their dreams, and these ideas can help you decide what you want from life and not feel pressured by those around you.

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Why the Best Way to Improve Your Life Is Often through Small Steps

The self-improvement industry has taken the world by storm and continues to grow. It’s understandable, we all fall short of expressing our full potential in different ways at various points of our lives, the desire to be better, achieve more, be more reliable, have healthy relationships, and so on, is a very powerful thing.

.When people commit to transforming their lives for the better, they often begin by looking for a great calling or purpose or setting themselves ambitious goals.

Here are some examples of why the best way to start improving your life is through small steps:

Identify at Least One or Two Small Things that You Can Improve

Coming up with a comprehensive plan for a total life transformation is a difficult thing. Even if you do create a great set of goals that you are motivated to achieve, there’s a good chance that you will become disheartened by the sheer amount of work needed to achieve those goals.

Everyone can identify at least one thing in their life that they can improve upon that doesn't need a long timeline or require a massive amount of willpower.

Organizing your office desk, making your bed, or calling a loved one to catch up has more of a positive effect than you may think.

Focusing on Small Steps Reduces the Risk of Procrastination and Analysis Paralysis

We tend to neglect big tasks and projects around the home, and putting them on hold for a prolonged period of time.

For example, your air conditioning unit breaks down but you are in the depths of winter, so you may end up putting it off and forgetting about it, even though a 24 Hour AC Repair service could resolve the issue quickly.

A reason for this kind of procrastination may be because we believe these tasks are too complex and the effort involved in taking action here and now is overwhelming.

Focusing on small steps, in general, helps reduce the risk of procrastination and analysis paralysis.

Because Small Steps Build Momentum

Momentum is one of your best friends when it comes to making a transformation and creating new habits.

The more positive momentum you generate, the more likely you are to experience a cascade effect of positive change that begin to have truly transformative effects.

Of course, that momentum doesn’t come from just anywhere.

Taking small steps to begin to improve your life can generate positive momentum, increase your motivation, and heighten your enthusiasm and insight in exponentially! Just don’t give up. You got this.

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10 Simple Steps to Develop Self-Love

We spend so much time working on our relationships, body, career, social life, and other priorities. Caught up in the act of juggling all this, we overlook the importance of doing work on the inside.  Well, you are nothing short of a one-of-a-kind unprecedented individual. So, you might as well reignite the inner love for yourself and cherish what makes you unique. If you cannot come to love yourself, you will not be able to project the warmth of love onto the world and soak it back in when others send it your way.

Photo by Alisa Anton on Unsplash

Forge a mindset

Photo by Simon Rae on Unsplash

It all starts with the shift in a mindset and your self-perception. These two aspects have a lot to do with how others define us through titles, roles, labels, relationship statuses, net worth, achievements, etc. Alas, even when combined, they are utterly inaccurate and incomplete accounts of who you are. Your true identity stems from something deeper and more eternal than the changing life circumstances.

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Embrace your quirks and things that make you unique. Society is an extremely poor judge of individual qualities and character, as it tries to standardize and generalize. Therefore, instead of trying so hard to meet other people’s expectations, uncover your true nature and do not be afraid to be authentic. Let your freak flag fly— it is one of the most empowering and liberating things you can do.

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Practice self-care

Furthermore, you have to take care of yourself. Make sure to get a good night’s sleep whenever possible to revitalize your mind and body. Engage in regular physical activity, be it a yoga class, cycling to work, gym or running sessions. Start eating healthier— put together a nutrient-packed, balanced diet and stay hydrated. Leave some time in the schedule for pure pastime relaxation.

Photo by Michael Nunes on Unsplash

Do what you love

Speaking of which, you need to start doing what you love in order to reestablish inner calm and peace.  Take a break and reconnect with your innate drives and passions. Find time for the hobby you have been putting away for a long time. You will be able to melt away the stress and then tackle various life challenges with new winds in your sails.

Write it down

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Many people have discovered the therapeutic and other benefits of putting the thought into writing. Did you also know that writing every day is associated with success in life? You might think that social media statuses already fit the bill, but why not write without thinking about how others will react to it. In other words, you might want to start keeping a personal diary.  Pour your soul onto its pages.

Listen to yourself

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Learn to carefully listen to your inner voice. Nobody is more qualified to decide what is good for you in terms of long-term happiness and fulfillment. If that voice is full of resentment, anxiety, fear, and other negative emotions, you need to stop being so harsh on yourself. We are all vulnerable and insecure, but think about your qualities and celebrate the best moments life has in store.

Manage emotions better

Emotional stability is a fickle thing. Sooner or later, we are thrown off balance wrestling with anger and pain. You should never beat yourself up for it. Trying to suffocate your feelings never really works and brings only temporary relief in the best case scenario. Often, it is better to hoist a white flag and cling to it. Examine where do you feel the pain in your body— it can be a really telling sign.

Take care of your looks

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Although appearances do not make a human, they can certainly help one increase self-worth and satisfaction. Feel free to buy new clothes, self-care products, and look at yourself in the mirror. Rest assured that there is no such thing as being perfect and we should abandon that futile pursuit. Accept your flaws as an integral part of who you are and boost your self-confidence.

Treat yourself

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Material things cannot buy happiness and love, but they are stepping stones to it. Namely, it is perfectly fine to pamper yourself a bit. Treat yourself to a delicious meal or take a weekend off. You also do not have to wait for others to buy you something nice. Shop around for adorable and unique gifts, trigger feel-good hormones in the brain, and put a smile back on your face.

Set boundaries

Saying that simple word “no” often comes hard for people, yet is crucial for cultivating self-love. Draw some lines between what you love and enjoy and things that only deplete your energy and willpower. It can be anything from extra work obligations to activities that strain you mentally, etc. Take the pressure off yourself and pivot to things that fill you physically, emotionally, and spiritually.

Fostering a positive change

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Self-love is not a state of feeling good that comes and goes. It must be actively nurtured and built. So, mute the noise of the outside world and change the negative mental tape. Enrich your relationship with yourself and build healthy everyday habits. Shift your focus to positive attributes and look at the bright side of life. All the small changes add up and spill over from one area of your life to another. It is time to make yourself feel whole and worthy again.

- Gust post by Stella Van Lan -

Stella van Lane is a passionate writer in love with coffee, chocolate, music, books, and good vibes. Her top interests are health, yoga, meditation, and interior design.

Leave a comment below telling us at least one step you can take to further develop self-love!