“Life is not a problem to be solved, but a reality to be experienced.”
Soren Kierkegaard said this lovely quote about the truth of life and our misinterpretations of it. Often, we find ourselves approaching life like a puzzle. We can solve it if we could just figure out the right combination. All I need is a little more time and a little less stress. Liberally apply as much money as possible, bake in the oven at 350° for eighty years and voilà, we have the recipe for a perfect life. Or do we? I hate to break it to you, kiddo, but there is no recipe for a perfect life. Instead, it’s more of a smattering of ingredients thrown together everyday, and each day you find out what works and what doesn’t (more often than not you find out what doesn’t work). Here are a few things a wise person once told me to make my life recipe a little easier:
Wake up two hours earlier
People always say, “there’s never enough hours in the day.” To those who feel this way I say, “that’s because you’re sleeping the extra hours away.” Waking up early is awful for the first 15 minutes, and as soon as you shower it becomes immensely better. Then, you have two whole hours to do whatever you want. I use it to take a walk to get my coffee and read/write. Sometimes, I’ll use it to get a jump on my work for the day, but using those two hours for myself is immensely better than devoting them to work.
Drink more water
This is actually one of the most underrated beauty secrets in the industry (probably because beauty companies can’t make any money from it). It keeps your skin hydrated and healthy, and aids the digestive system. Water also helps sick bodies heal faster and contributes to weight loss. (and since I’ve started drinking more water, my hands have never been softer).
Detox from technology daily
It’s no secret we’re too “plugged in.” The average American spends 7.4 hours a day staring at a screen. We work in front of them, entertain ourselves with them, ignore our children for them, socialize with them, and even turn to them for sex when nobody else is around. Surely, this can’t be healthy. Take an hour each day to consciously focus on the real world, and I assure you your life will improve.
Detox from people daily
Before I got hired as a full-time writer, I used to spending morning, noon, and night surrounded by people. I’d be in class all day, work in the afternoon, and then hang out with friends or roommates at night. On average, I didn’t spend more than 20 minutes a day alone. When you start prioritizing your time so you can be alone with yourself, you grow to love yourself, enjoy yourself, and you strive to improve yourself. You will never spend more time with somebody in this life than you do with yourself, so you might as well learn to enjoy that person.
Clean things up before they get out of control
I try exercising this in my home, but also my life. Being an adult means you take responsibility for your actions and clean up your mess before it gets out of control. If you do the dishes immediately, that’s a stress you don’t have to worry about later. Likewise, your home is immediately cleaner. Likewise, when your social life or relationships get messy, clean up any altercations or confrontations immediately. Waiting until New Years months to discuss an issue that happened in July will certainly do more harm than good.
[Featured Image Credit: lolla li via Flickr]