Enjoy Your Life

As we head off on Spring Break, the article summary below (from a Time magazine article entitled What 10 Things You Should Do Every Day to Improve Your Life) is not about education but about things we all should do to make our lives better. 

See how many you can do over Spring Break and beyond. (Please note than binge watching on Netflix is not one of the 10 Items on the list.)

Enjoy Spring Break!

Joe

Get out in nature: You probably seriously underestimate how important this is. (Actually, there’s research that says you do.) Being in nature reduces stress, makes you more creative, improves your memory and may even make you a better person.

Exercise: We all know how important this is, but few people do it consistently. Other than health benefits too numerous to mention, exercise makes you smarter, happier, improves sleep, and makes you feel better about your body. A Harvard study that has tracked a group of men for more than 70 years identified it as one of the secrets to a good life.

Spend time with friends and family: Harvard happiness expert Daniel Gilbert identified this as one of the biggest sources of happiness in our lives. The longest lived people on the planet all place a strong emphasis on social engagement and good relationships are more important to a long life than even exercise. Share good news and enthusiastically respond when others share good news with you to improve your relationships. Want to instantly be happier? Do something kind for them. 

Express gratitude: It will make you happier. It will improve your relationships. It can make you a better person. It can make life better for everyone around you. 

Meditate: Meditation can increase happiness, meaning in life, social support and attention span while reducing anger, anxiety, depression and fatigue. 

Get enough sleep: You can’t cheat yourself on sleep and not have it affect you. “Sleeping on it” does improve decision making. Lack of sleep can make you more likely to behave unethically. There is such a thing as beauty sleep. 

Challenge yourself: Learning another language can keep your mind sharp. Music lessons increase intelligence. Challenging your beliefs strengthens your mind. Increasing willpower just takes a little effort each day and it’s more responsible for your success than IQ. Not getting an education or taking advantage of opportunities are two of the things people look back on their lives and regret the most. 

Laugh: People who use humor to cope with stress have better immune systems, reduced risk of heart attack and stroke, experience less pain during dental work and live longer. Laughter should be like a daily vitamin. Just reminiscing about funny moments can improve your relationship. Humor has many benefits. 

Touch someone: Touching can reduce stress, improve team performance, and help you be persuasive. Hugs make you happier. 

Be optimistic: Optimism can make you healthier, happier and extend your life. The Army teaches it in order to increase mental toughness in soldiers. Being overconfident improves performance.