Five Easy Ways to Make Your Life Better for 10/20/20
14 More Incredibly Easy Ways to Sleep Better
(Steven Ray Marks | Self Helping Yourself | 2150 words)
Sleeping better will improve your life in every way.
It will make you happier, more productive, improve your relationships, and allow you to get more done.
Here are some methods to sleep better that don’t take any effort, willpower, time-commitment, or sacrifice.
Related: 15 Incredibly Easy Ways to Improve Your Sleep
5 Subconscious Behaviors Guaranteed to Kill Your Creativity
(Tuseet Jha | tuseetjha.com | 1325 words | Subscribe)
Everyone can be creative. But you may be sabotaging yourself by doing the following:
- You don’t think you can be creative.
- You refuse to try new experiences.
- You assume you are the expert in what you know.
- You don’t challenge your assumptions.
- You wait for inspiration to strike.
Also, thank you to Tuseet Jha for recommending my Incredibly Easy series in his newsletter.
How to Be Happy in Hard Times
(Melissa Burkley PhD | Psychology Today | 1050 words)
A lot of people are going through difficult times these days. But there are still things you can do to increase your happiness:
- Listen to music.
- Focus on values.
- Connect with others in new ways.
- Get outside.
- Be grateful.
A 5-Step Road Map for Saying ‘No’
(Erin Zammett Ruddy | Forge | 350 words)
To avoid overcommitting yourself, you need to learn how to politely say “no.” Remember, every time you say “yes” to something, you’re also saying “no” to whatever you would have used that time for.
- Remind yourself time is valuable and you can’t get it back.
- Ask yourself if you’d be willing to do it tomorrow.
- Respond quickly.
- Own your “no” if it’s not a priority.
- Reframe your “no” if it’s something you wish you had time for.
I found this article in the Recomendo newsletter.
Getting Things Done
(Julia Evans | jvns.ca | 1075 words)
I generally don’t include productivity systems in Five Boosts, because I don’t believe there’s One True Method of Doing Things. Different strategies work for different people.
However this article is more about mindset, and I think it will be helpful to most people.
Evans suggests you:
- Have a vision
- Focus by doing one or two things at a time
- Learn how to break things down
- Get something done every day
- Talk to someone when you get stuck
- Don’t be scared of small problems
- Do whatever’s necessary
- Have deadlines
- Believe in yourself
- Know you can do a lot
Note that this article is unrelated to the David Allen “Getting Things Done” productivity system.
I found this in Trevor McKendrick’s How it Actually Works newsletter.
Bonus Boost
Don’t Let a Slip Up Make You Give Up
(Steven Ray Marks | Self Helping Yourself | 825 words)
Everyone makes mistakes.
This is true when trying to lose weight, and it’s true in any other life improvement.
Making a mistake shouldn’t be an excuse to quit.
You should simply learn from it, forgive yourself, and do your best going forward.
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