I had every intention of getting this post up last week, but I got my second dose of the vaccine last Monday, and by Monday night, I was down for the count. Thankfully, I was feeling better by Tuesday afternoon, albeit unmotivated. Then my birthday was Wednesday, so I pushed this post until this week.
I turned 25 last week, and as I go into this next year, I’ve been thinking about how we are all responsible for creating a life we love. It happens to even the best of us—our day-to-day routine starts to stagnate and drag. So when you’re not feeling enamored with your everyday routine, here are 13 simple little ways to create joy in your life:
- Travel often. Designate one weekend a month to get a change of scenery to keep you inspired and reminded that there’s much more to the world than your everyday routine. Also, according to some studies, anticipation is the happiest part of the trip. Planning a trip to look forward to and enjoy is a great way to add motivation and joy to your life.
- Make a list. I love the Notes app on my iPhone because I make lists for everything. If I don’t write things down, my brain feels like a computer with too many tabs open. Plus, it’s always satisfying to cross things off my lists.
- Declutter. Okay, I don’t enjoy cleaning, but I love tidy spaces. Having a clean, organized apartment has decreased my stress, increased my mood, and improved my productivity.
- Stop procrastinating. Procrastination makes you feel rushed, which makes you stressed. Make an effort to get things done before the last-minute deadlines.
- Call your mom. Even though I haven’t seen my mom since January 2020, it doesn’t feel like it because we talk on the phone or FaceTime almost daily.
- Cozy up with a good book. I’ve always enjoyed reading, and I’m glad I’m spending less time on my phone and picking up books this year. You can read all my book reviews here.
- Listen to a podcast. It makes mundane tasks more enjoyable. I love true crime podcasts, and Crime Junkie is one of my favorites.
- Remember that being done is better than perfect. Don’t let opportunities pass by, waiting for the perfect moment. Just take baby steps to gain momentum in the right direction.
- Treat yourself. Sometimes it’s the little things, so indulge occasionally in your guilty pleasure.
- Make plans for the weekend. It gives you something to look forward to throughout the week. For instance, we’re going camping with friends this weekend.
- Unfollow people on social media who don’t serve you. Cutting down the amount of time I’ve spent on social media has done wonders for my mental health.
- Try a new recipe. I’m always looking for new recipes because I like variety. Last week I made Mushroom Carbonara With Pancetta, and it was delicious.
- Burn a candle. I’m currently obsessed with this one and this one — both of which are perfect for spring.
We can start loving our lives exactly as they are right now by finding joy in the simple little things. I’m endlessly grateful for you all who take time out of your day to stop by my little blog. Thank you for reading, commenting, and sharing. Cheers to 25! xo
Thank you for sharing all of this! Needed this so much!
Life is a Shoe
Recently spent time with my mom after more than a year.
Thanks for a great post. Sometimes its the simple things that matter.
Happy belated birthday and I am glad you are feeling better after your second vaccine. I really enjoyed this post and couldn’t agree more with making lists and what it could do for your life. This morning I would up in a funk so I made a list of what I hope to accomplish today and as I cross items off I find I am feeling significantly better. Thank you for sharing!
Ever since my husband and I decided that we were going to live in a tiny house with a baby I’ve been all about decluttering! So glad you included it in the list!
This is great advice! The more we appreciate the little things, the better our lives can be!!!
Love these tips! These are all such little things that are easy to do but have a big impact.
I was lucky because my quarantine included my mother. It was such a hard year for so many that I count my blessings to have been able to be near her and love on her. What a great post!
These are all great tips. I live for travel! I also like the one about unfollowing people. Unnecessary toxicity adds so much stress.
Love these little reminders of what’s important in life! We all need to simply be reminded at times. 🙂 Hope you had a wonderful birthday!!
Happy Birthday! I love all of these. I’m definitely someone who likes to make plans and have things to look forward – big or small. And reading is one of my ultimate enjoyments.
Lauren
Thank you for such a beautiful post. Such simple and great reminders!
I agree that it’s up to us to create our dream life. I also agree with all of these tips and I’m really sorry you haven’t seen your mom for such a long time.
Such a good point about unfollowing people on social media who aren’t good for you (Exes in particular have a way of negatively impacting us!)
I also LOVE the point about making lists – I do that all the time. The feeling of checking something off your ‘To do’ list really does satisfy!
Happy belated birthday! I hope you had an amazing day. This is a great list and I love to declutter any chance I get. I am a minimalist at heart and need to know that I am not hoarding any unnecessary baggage’s and that goes for people as well. I also don’t spend a lot of time on social media. It does wonders for my psyche!
Maureen | http://www.littlemisscasual.com
I feel like if we would meet in real life we would totally get along, all of these things seems wonderful to me 🙂
Great ideas to promote self happiness. I, too, love the notes app on my phone. I am double your age and have found another great idea for those is to jot down names of people in there after I meet them. As you get older, you tend to forget more 😉. I also love the podcast idea…there are so many great ones out there and I am still trying to find new ones to enjoy!
Call your mom❤️❤️ Love that little snippet. My mom is my favorite human in the world!
Treating ourselves is so important. It doesn’t have to be something huge, but I find it so silly when people say “Cut out Starbucks if you want to save money.” Like, a frappuccino on a Friday is fine! It’s the little things, like you say.
I love trying new recipes! It’s always an adventure.
Nice list and reminder how to stay happy and positive!
Lovely post! I greatly follow this point, call your mum 😊 if I don’t, it feels a big chunk of life being missed by me.
Planning a trip definitely helps!! As we’ve planned one in August. I think I will start saving some time to read more often as well. Thanks for the tips!
I really love this list!!!!! Such a bunch of great suggestions!
All of this is such great advice and I will definitely be implementing a lot of these into my life.
Happy 25th Kelly! I just love the list you have put together and especially what you decided to put first. Travel is a favorite of mine as well and I guess with the vaccines happening, it’s a perfect time to think about planning future trips! Another way to get excited and stay happy with your life!
I love this post, mostly because your suggestions are simple things that aren’t too hard to accomplish. This is been a hard year for us because we love to travel, and with COVID we had to cancel our international trips. This is a good reminder that even though we can’t take big trips, we can plan fun things to do and places to go on the weekend.
Yes, finding ways to love your life is so important. Making comparisons from who you are to another is not positive. This list is great to be thankful with who you are!
So many great recommendations to enjoy and love life. Everyone is so unique so a simple activity like enjoying the beautiful scent of a candle can make all the difference. Thank you for these suggestions for loving your life.
“Done is better than perfect” is such an important concept to keep in mind no matter what we’re doing. This list has a lot of great advice, so thanks for sharing them!
I feel like I would have written pretty much the same list! It’s all about the little things 🙂
I love #1 Travel often. With Covid, I am pretty much homesick for travel and can’t wait for the world to open up!
Unfollowing people that don’t serve you is SO IMPORTANT! Still working through that!
I love the traveling idea, all the tips were great. Thank you!
I love all your suggestions on how to be happier with your life now! Especially your #1! Traveling helps you in so many ways, broaden your perspective, try new things, see beautiful places, etc. Oh and my favorite part is the planning too 🙂
Nice!!! Speaking of True Crime, you may appreciate the podcast “Serial” Season 1 and 3 are my favorites though. Nice post. I definitely need to incorporate more travel time. I took a staycation but couldn’t think of a place I wanted to go due to covid. But it would be nice to travel so im looking forward to doing that more towards this summer as we move closer towards herd immunity (HOPEFULLY)
Happy birthday! I 100% agree that we can all choose joy in our lives and find it in the tiniest of places. You share a fun list!
Simple, and succinct. I love “Call your mom”. Thinking of posting this list on my wall as a reminder.
This is a beautiful post, thank you so much!
Yes, yes, yes! This post is everything. I’m the same way with my Notes app…lists keep me sane. I think my fave tip is ‘make plans for the weekend’. It could be something small, but just having that something to look forward to is brilliant! Sorry you haven’t hugged your mom in sooo long and happy belated birthday!
You hit the nail right on the head in your final paragraph: “We can choose to start loving our lives exactly as they are right now by finding joy in the simple little things.” Amen to that! You’re so right. Regardless of our circumstances, we can love our lives when we choose to focus on our blessings. Thank you for posting!
These are really great tips! I need to travel more. I don’t travel at all actually, but I would really like to start.
“Done is better than perfect” – I love this! And you’re spot on about how we all have the power to make small tweaks in our lives to make it joyful. It’s something we tend to forget sometimes, this was a great reminder!
So true! Definitely need to put these into place! 💕👍🏼
I love the tip about unfollowing people who don’t serve you. I found there were not just pages, but even acquaintances/friends/neighbors that, whenever I’d see their inflammatory posts, I’d feel irritated or even angry. Unfollowing them has been great for my frustration levels!
“Done is better than Perfect” is going to be my life motto from now on! haha
I love this list! I’m 35, and even with the ten year difference, I bet you’ll still agree with a lot of these when you’re older. So many of these things are things I need to do now.
I do love my life, but good advice to love it even more! 🙂