Have you ever experienced that feeling like you’re floating through each day? You respond to each challenge as if it were child’s play and trust you can handle whatever comes next. Your skills are honed and are used in a way that benefits everyone around you. You feel love for your life and the people in it. You smile at the beauty of the sky, trees, flowers, and the birds singing. When you lay your head down on your pillow at night, you feel fulfilled and can’t wait to do it again! That’s how you live your best life!
Can’t remember having a day like that? Perhaps you can only recall brief moments of flow and bliss, or it’s been so long since you’ve felt like that version of yourself you just plain forgot what it was like. Days like that are possible. In fact, days like that can outnumber the days of frustration and disappointment. Here are 33 ways to embrace and live your best life today!
1. Meditate
Give yourself a break from overthinking; access the superconscious mind and all the universe’s knowledge! Stillness is a powerful gift to yourself that will help you reach new levels of possibility.
2. Use a mantra
Choose a traditional or modern mantra (meaningful word, phrase or sound you repeat repeatedly) during meditation or whenever you need to calm your mind and tune to your higher self.
3. Connect with your heart
Slow down and tune into your heart through meditation; your heart holds the keys to loving yourself and your life. Enjoy a guided meditation from Ram Doss to get you there.
4. Find a routine that works for you.
Finding and sticking to a routine that puts you in the best physical, mental and emotional state is the recipe for making the most of your day and life. What are your essential ingredients? Exercise, meditation, social connection and learning are all powerful options.
5. Monitor and adjust your thinking
Our thinking creates our reality; learn to monitor each thought and ask yourself if the thought is true and if it is the type of thought you want to create your future with; if not, change it to a productive, supportive or positive thought.
6. Use your imagination
Your imagination is a force that can create your future; as you lay down to bed each night, imagine the life you want to live as if you are already living it. Let yourself feel and experience the future of your dreams and watch it become your reality.
7. Plan your day
What will a successful day look like for you? Create a simple plan of what will make you feel successful each day. Keep it to five or fewer tasks and enjoy the feeling of accomplishment.
8. Set goals
Humans are naturally drawn to making improvements and problem-solving. Having a goal, you are working toward provides a north star and an opportunity to grow as you take steps each day to achieve it.
9. Challenge yourself
Playing it safe may seem like a good idea but it leads to stagnation and boredom. Even small daily challenges like walking for ten more minutes, writing 50 more words or drinking one more glass of water will develop your confidence, allowing you to achieve more.
10. Know your values
Living your life authentically means knowing what principles are most important to you in the areas of relationships, career, finance, health, spirituality and community. Decide on your top five values and put them somewhere visible to remind you daily of what is important to you!
11. Make time for fun
Playing has been proven to be beneficial for our well-being and increases productivity by 20%. Fun is not frivolous! There is a reason we are drawn to fun; make time for it and reap the benefits.
12. Use the golden rule
This age-old principle will work wonders; what you put out is what you get back. How would you want to be treated? Transform the energy around you, and watch your life change!
13. Make time to move
Exercise has numerous benefits and reduces disease, and increases energy. Choose any exercise that you enjoy and squeeze in multiple bouts throughout the day. This is a key practice for living your best life.
14. Forgive yourself
Making mistakes is part of the human experience! Forgive yourself and ask what you can do differently next time.
15. Believe you deserve your best life
If you don’t believe you deserve the best life, you will not be able to live it. You are part of the universe and are here for a reason; what you seek in your life is what you deserve, so believe you are worth it.
16. Sleep well
Good sleep hygiene is essential for optimal mental and physical functioning; get a bedtime routine and remember the bedroom is for two activities, sleep and love! (no TVs or laptops allowed) Value your sleep like gold!
17. 80/20 rule
According to the Pareto Principle, 20% of your activities give you 80% of your results; what 20% can you focus on today that will make the biggest difference in your best life?
18. Happiness islands
All work and no play make this existence a boring slog. Plan out happiness island each week, little moments in your calendar that give joy and happiness like catching up with friends, dancing, reading or getting a massage!
19. Seek adventure
See your life as a story, where you are the main character who loves adventure! Main characters encounter obstacles and challenges but always find a way to overcome them! Instead of avoiding challenges, seek them out and enjoy the adventure!
20. Have a Growth mindset
Being open and seeking to grow and learn is one of the keys to living your best life. Choose to believe that your intelligence and talents can be improved through effort and learning.
21. Walk in nature
Forest bathing or shinrin-yoku has been proven to reduce stress and fill you up with relaxing energy! Make time for nature every day. Can’t get outdoors? Keep plants around your house.
22. Maintain your environment
Keep your home, office and car tidy and clutter-free to keep a calm and open mind. Spend ten minutes each night tidying up and enjoy a relaxed mind.
23. Check-in with yourself
Throughout the day, check in with yourself about how you are feeling, what you need right now, and what is important for you now. Listen to the guidance and take steps to meet your own needs.
24. Follow your interest
If you feel pulled into something that interests you, allow yourself to explore hobbies, books, places, art or anything that tickles your fancy; who knows where it will lead, and you will enjoy it too.
25. Journal
Keep a journal to document and express your thoughts, questions, and feelings free from judgement. Seeing your thoughts written on the page brings clarity and insights.
26. Know your talents
When you know your talents and make an effort to develop them, you will find yourself in a state of flow more consistently. Staying focused on your talents is crucial to help you live your best life. What is it you do well, love to do and are valuable?
27. Review and revise your day
At the end of the day, write down everything that happened in your journal. Review and rewrite the day as if each situation was ideal. Rewrite when the times you wanted to be kinder, more prepared, or more productive. As you read your revised version, see yourself making the improvements.
28. Love your inner child
Your inner child can express itself as a subtle need that hasn’t been met. Take time to connect to your inner child and ask what they need. Ask the little you if they need more fun, rest, or a chance to explore. Meet that need with love.
29. Ask for help
We can become stressed and anxious by trying to take on too much by ourselves. Asking for help is not a sign of weakness; it’s a sign of maturity and self-love. Who could you reach out to today for a little help?
30. Watch for synchronicities
Carl Jung describes synchronicities as “a coincidence in time of two or more causally unrelated events which have the same or similar meaning” Only you can interpret the magical events in your life. Watch for these seemingly random yet meaningful events and see the link between your thoughts, dreams, and reality.
31. Remember how small we all are
As Michael Singer points out, we’re all just standing on one little ball of dirt and spinning around one of the hundreds of billions of stars in our galaxy alone! From that perspective, do you really care what people think about your clothes or your car?
32. Let go of anything that doesn’t serve you.
To live your best life, you must decide what no longer serves you in your transformed life. Friends, work, ideas, and beliefs may no longer serve your highest good. Thank them for their part in your life up until this point, and decide to release them!
33. Who are you when you’re in your best life?
Ask yourself this empowering and impactful question. Allow your imagination to run with the possibilities of who you TRULY are and see yourself with the qualities, attributes and habits of that version of you!
Changing your life from where it is now to your best life will be challenging; you may subconsciously hang onto old habits and thoughts as you are hard-wired to “remain comfortable”, and you will inevitably slip back into the old way of being. Don’t judge yourself for this; keep your vision of the future and give yourself permission to GROW!
“And the day came when the risk to remain tight in a bud was more painful than the risk it took to blossom.
Anais Nin
