Lead a healthier lifestyle 

It is never too late to turn your life around, and one of the best ways you can do this is by leading a healthier lifestyle. Whether you are struggling with stress, or your mental health, or just don’t have the energy, changing your habits into healthier ones will make a huge difference to how you feel, and how motivated you are to take control of your life and live happier. Food plays a huge role in how you feel. Your mental health, energy levels, physical health and so much more can all change when you eat good, nutritious food. Try to make food fresh at home and eat less processed foods. Include more fruit and vegetables in your diet. In addition to food, you should try and move your body more. If you exercise regularly, you will feel so much happier and more in control of your life. 

Care for your wellbeing

In addition to supporting your well-being with food and exercise, it is also important that you regularly take time for self-care activities. It is a vital factor when it comes to helping yourself feel happier about your life and taking control. When you fill-up your own cup, you will have a lot more energy and motivation to do more in your life. Self-care looks different for everyone, so it is important that you find what works for you. Consider your core needs and what needs to be met. Consider how you feel on a day-to-day basis and what you need to turn that around. Maybe you need some downtime, with a short meditation or a yoga class, or a Swedish Massage in Bellevue, WA – or perhaps more time outside in nature will be helpful.

Make time for adventures 

Life can get too serious at times. You might find that you spend way too much time working and running around. If this is the case, you must make time for fun and adventures. Fun might look different to you than it does to someone else – so make sure you consider what your idea of fun is. It might be sitting down in a cozy room with your book and a coffee, going on a night out, or trying a new activity such as minigolf. This shouldn’t just be a one-off thing either, you should ensure that you include time for yourself and time for fun regularly. You might do some on your own, and other times you can call on family and friends to do things with you. You can create a bucket list full of ideas, that include things you can do on a small time frame and budget, and a larger scale, so you always have something you can add to your week. 

Get rid of toxic things and people 

Toxic things and people in your life might be holding you back, leaving you feeling frustrated and unhappy, and you might even feel like you are not sure what to do. When you can be brave and get rid of toxic things and people in your life, you will feel free and more in control, not to mention a lot happier. This might be habits and behaviors, or it might be friendships, or finally filing for that divorce. 

Create a support system 

To support you in building a happier life and more control, you should consider creating a support system. Human beings are social creatures and thrive from social interactions, community, and connection. It is therefore important that you build good relationships and keep people close to you. This can be trusted by friends and family members. You might also seek support in different areas, such as a therapist. You can also try new activities and make friends by participating in activities and hobbies. This will make you feel great. 

Plan your future 

The future is often very uncertain, and you never know what is around the corner. You must take some time to consider the serious side of life. This will ensure that you have as much control as possible over what you do and how you can respond to things. You just need to consider these once, and then you can continue with the fun activities. The activities and items that you should consider when you plan your future should involve securing your finances, retirement plan, investments, wills, funeral wishes, and more. This is something you should do, and if you have a spouse, they should do it as well. You might even want to speak to your parents to ensure they have also made a plan for their future, as what happens to them will impact you. There are so many things to think about and choose from, and it can be a difficult process to go through. If you can get this done, then you don’t have to worry for a while. This might include your funeral arrangements, what happens to your affairs after your passing, whether you want details such as a beautiful urn, or perhaps some amazing cremation jewelry from Memorials.com for your family to treasure.

Creating more control and happiness in your life will be a journey. Follow these top tips to help you get started. 

The post How to Take Control of Your Life and Live Happier appeared first on InstantELLA.

I’m not sure how many of you reading this, like me, have often thought about whether to even make resolutions at all. We make resolutions, sometimes grand ones – losing weight, going vegan, pursuing a different hobby or learning a new skill, getting a passport, travelling the world (you get the drift) – only to break them or worse still not even give them a go before giving up all together. And that’s ok.

This year, I told myself, I’d take my time formulating resolutions.  Instead of a time bound, tangible resolution (like  the ones mentioned above), I’d concentrate on improving my mindset, daily – as means to an end – which will assist me in achieving those time bound, tangible, resolutions. Here are some of my practical New Year 2020 Daily Resolutions:

Patience & Perseverance

The Unconventional Ways You Can Relax The Mind And The Body

In this generation of instant gratification, having patience is a rare commodity. As a mother, wife & professional I get impatient & frustrated easily & on a daily basis when things don’t go my way or when tasks are not completed in the time, I consider appropriate. My anxiety doesn’t help either. So, I’ve decided to be more patient with myself for starters. I’ve decided to do my best, be less judgmental of people & situations and persevere.

Obedience, Without Question or Grumbling

5 Resolutions You Can Actually Keep In The New Year

Someone asks you to do something that you know sounds like a good idea. But you don’t think too hard about it, you don’t obsess over what could potentially go wrong or how you’d look doing it. You just say ‘Yes’ (with a smile). Oh! How liberating to not worry for once & just go with the flow. For me, it’s so far helped saved time, precious time I am no using to focus on creativity & execution.

Generosity of Time, Words  & Actions

A Healthy Office Environment

Easy to understand, difficult to execute. Being generous with my deeds & an attitude of service to others has always come naturally to me. It’s the generosity of my words & time that I have a tough time with. I’m naturally feisty & sarcastic. And as for time, it’s the one thing none of us have control over, so I am very stingy with mine. But though we can never control – shorten or lengthen – real time, we can also choose how & who to spend time with it and therein lies the generosity. I’ve been more generous with my time lately & it’s brough blessings on my family, friends & me!

Avoiding Acedia

Mood, Anxiety, and Design

Acedia, often linked to sloth and the 7 Deadly Sins is “a state of (mental) restlessness and inability either to work or to pray”. Whereas Sloth is physical laziness, Acedia is more of a metal indifference, intrusive thinking & purposefully distracting yourself with other thoughts or actions, to avoid dealing with a priority. Controlling the mind is harder than controller the body.  I’ve been guilty of this several times, knowingly or unknowingly, throughout the day. But now that I know what Acedia is, I’m more aware & guarded in my thoughts. It’s given me more clarity to prioritize my tasks throughout the day & directly helped me complete the right kind of work in the right time.

Withdraw from Social Media

Self-Motivation: How To Ensure Productivity While You Work From Home

I cringe at this one as I’m sure most of us do. Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, YouTube & the rest have taken over our lives! Wrong. We’ve let them. Locking up phones, temporarily deactivating Social media accounts & taking technology detox breaks are good ways to break the habit. Recently however, someone suggested another solution & probably the best one I’ve heard so far. Every time I think of reaching for my phone, I look at the person next to me instead & engage with that person, instead of a lifeless phone!

An Attitude of Gratitude

The Neuroscience of Gratitude and How It Affects Anxiety & Grief

Toughie! Many scientific studies have show than being more grateful has a physical impact on a person’s brain and is directly linked to increased calm and a sense of happiness. That said most of us are ungrateful throughout the day, when we complain about our jobs, problems with co-workers, the never-ending chores at home, even simple things like not enjoying our meals, or the way we spend our relaxation time. Complaining & being dissatisfied are symptoms of an ungrateful attitude. But everyday is a new day and an opportunity for me to be more grateful!

Open-Mindedness

How Great Leaders Align Their Company With Their Vision

Simply put, this involves being receptive to a wide variety of ideas, arguments, and information. For me being open minded means, giving up the impulse to react immediately and instead listen & assess a person or situation. It was hard at first, because my natural habit to interject kicked in. But I realized open-mindedness  is a necessary ability in order to think critically and rationally. It’s a habit that needs to be cultivated and we’re never too old to develop good habits

Daily examination of Conscience

4 Ways To Practice Self-Care Today

This practice is common as a spiritual exercise among Christians and Catholics and involves a ‘review of one’s past thoughts, words, actions, and omissions for the purpose of ascertaining their conformity with, or deviation from, the moral law’. I don’t see why this practice cannot be applied to our secular, everyday lives. It would be similar to a year end job review – what are the things we did well, how can we improve on our weaknesses and what would the outcome look like? I believe a daily examination of conscience will eventually make me a better version of myself. This doesn’t only have to be for adults, so I’ve also begun to help my kids adopt this positive practice.

If you enjoyed reading this or agree that some of these are areas of concern for you that could use a bit of improvement, feel free to adopt some or all of my New Year 2020 Daily Resolutions for yourself. Remember to be kind to yourself. I for one, am rooting for you. Good Luck!

The post 2020 Unconventional New Year’s Resolution for a New Decade appeared first on InstantELLA.