Finding new ways to make life a little more manageable is never a bad thing. So I asked the BuzzFeed Community: "Aside from exercising, what is the best thing you've done that has improved your life," and people provided really thoughtful answers. Here's what they had to say below:
1. "I shower immediately after I get home at night. I used to sit on my couch or bed and procrastinate for hours, and I would go to bed so late just because I was too lazy to get up and do my evening routine. I built the habit of getting it done as soon as I got home, and it's improved my productivity at night and my sleep schedule like magic."
2. "Random acts of kindness and compliments. You would not believe what an impact buying someone’s coffee has or telling the cashier how nice her shirt is. I make sure not to come at things negatively all the time during live conversations (unless it’s a moral/ethical issue, and then all bets are off). I count how long people go in between saying nice things. It's shocking how much bad shit people spew without even realizing it. Throw out some good vibes, and you’ll get it back tenfold. Let people find out you talked about them behind their backs, and it was all a good thing."
"I love giving compliments, but I try to be very careful not to make them about someone’s body. Your hair looks great is fine, but wow, you look great since losing weight is not."
3. "I started listening to my digestive system. Cheeseburgers, ice cream, and fried mushrooms are all delicious, but I finally got tired of having to run to the bathroom. And yeah, there are general health benefits to not eating any of those things in the first place, but I'm 'knocking on 40's door,' and I figured it was time I started listening when my body was telling me what it liked versus what I liked."
4. "One tiny habit that has changed my life is never leaving a room empty-handed. There is ALWAYS something in the room I’m in that belongs in a room near or where I’m going. Shoes from the living room to the bedroom, an empty cup from the bedroom to the kitchen, junk mail from the entryway table to the trash, or dirty clothes from the bathroom to the laundry. It just takes one or two things every time you leave a room, and your living space stays consistently tidy with minimal effort."
—Amanda, 43, Illinois
5. "Being a busy mom and wife, I struggled to find time for myself when life was quiet. So I now wake up one hour before everyone else. I give myself one hour of quiet. If you truly need your rest, then yes, please sleep — but for me, I needed my alone time. I go to bed early and wake up before the kids and my husband. I am able to sit in silence and have my coffee alone. Do my morning routine at my own pace. I can go outside when the weather is nice and have some air. I can stretch, do my skincare, listen to music, read, or journal. Whatever I need in that hour for me. And by the time my kids need me, I have already given myself my time, and I am ready to take on the chaos of the kids, pets, hubby, and life! It’s really helped my mental health to have a little time for self-care and time for me each morning!"
6. "Asking for help before I’m at the brink of burnout. Childhood neglect has conscious and subconscious hooks. If my parents didn’t care to feed me, why would my boss care if I’m overwhelmed or my partner care if I’m sad? I only started asking for help after having my children, and I only did it for their benefit for 13 years. I’m happy to report with intensive trauma therapy and my fungi friends that I now ask early and for me."
7. "I started leaving my phone in other rooms for hours at a time. If I am in the living room, it's on the kitchen table. If I am cleaning my bedroom, it's in the living room. If I am expecting a call or something is going on, it's on volume, so I can go get it. I've decreased the need to constantly be on it doing this way, and it's helped me accomplish more tasks, read more at night, and just be in the moment."
8. "I left my abusive ex. It was hard and scary, but I’m finally free!! If you’re able to get out, please take this as a sign that it’s ok to leave. But if it’s not safe yet, we see you, we love you, and best of luck saving up because YOU CAN DO THIS!"
9. "I made it a New Year's resolution to get in touch with a friend every day. It makes me feel less lonely and improves friendships."
10. "Stop beating myself up constantly and being so damn hard on myself all the time. But ALSO, allow myself to feel good about my accomplishments and the good things I do. I should be my biggest cheerleader. I should be always rooting for me to win. Instead, one little mistake or mishap, and I'm legitimately cussing myself out and calling myself all sorts of names. I think it's just so ingrained in us not to be proud of ourselves anymore, and if we are, we're supposedly a narcissist and full of ourselves, so we do the opposite instead. Now, I just say, 'Oopsie,' and move the hell on. Breathe in, breathe out, and repeat, 'It's ok, you did your best, and it just wasn't it this time, sis.' This is so much better for your mental health, people. DO IT."
11. "I blocked my ex on social media, so I'd quit peeking at his profile. Not seeing his life updates has really improved my life."
12. "I started saying no to the closest people in my life. Once I did, I realized how much I was doing for everyone else and how little time I had. It also made me realize how tired I was taking care of everyone else. Now, if someone asks me for help, and I have other plans, I just say, 'I'm not available,' and if they want to go from there, we do."
—Anonymous
13. "I started unplugging the Wi-Fi at night, starting at 11 p.m., so I can't stay up late on my computer. I used to just mindlessly stare at the screen, and before I knew it, it was 3 a.m. Now, I'm 'forced' to get off my device and go to sleep at a healthier time."
14. "Sometimes it's better to half-ass something than not do it at all. I actually picked this up from a post like this and thought it was stupid at first, but then it changed my life. I have six pets, so the chores pile up in my house. I used to have a hard time wanting to dust or sweep because it would always feel like an impossible goal. It's still impossible to dust my house completely, but I can take 10 minutes to half-ass dust surfaces, and it is still so much better! I still struggle with perfectionist tendencies, but I have to do a lot less work when a deep-clean frenzy hits."
—Anonymous
15. "A few years ago, I stopped looking at my phone when I woke up in the mornings. I switch off my alarm and lie there or sit up for a couple of minutes before getting out of bed and going to the bathroom. I would only allow myself to look at my phone once I was ready for the day and drinking my first cup of tea (British girl here). After I got an Alexa, this progressed to setting the alarm on my Alexa for weekday mornings, which, when switched off, plays my ‘routine’ of what’s in my calendar that day: the news headlines and a random fact of the day. I don’t always take it all in, but it’s a nice way to wake up. I also set my alarm for when I needed to be out of bed. I was a serial snooze buttoner, and then I would give myself time to scroll through social media before I got out of bed. The result? I get better quality sleep and feel less tired during the day. Most mornings now, I don’t even look at my phone until lunchtime, or when I get a phone call or message."
