“An easy life is achievable” ~ Anonymous
Life always comes with hassles and if not properly handled, it can get overwhelming. A lot of things have happened lately around the world and survival seems to be like a never-ending circus of stress.
The struggle and unrest seem to be endless and knowing how to make life easier is what we all desire to create a fulfilling and satisfying future.
2020 was one of the most challenging and difficult years of my life and I have never wanted to journey through life with an easier lease than I longed for in 2020.
I assume survival has also been very tough for many of us; emotionally, financially, mentally, and socially. I know it can be tough to see things from a positive light of growth but what’s your journey through change and growth showing you?. Do not be in a rush to see the light of growth rather take your time as you grow.
The challenges and difficulties have personally taught me that even in darkness your light can be seen, that rock bottom is always the perfect place for rebuilding, that through the hard times survival sharpens you to shine even brighter, that, the things that make life better and easier are not so far-fetched you only need to find out what happiness and comfort mean to you and key into it. And knowing these things I have been able to simplify my life better.
Before we go on I want you to know that you are so much more than your pain, struggle, and challenges. I know it may feel hard to push through, to heal from the things that have broken you down or threatened your joy but I hope you trust yourself to put yourself together when you’re ready.
You are capable, you are much braver than you think and so much more powerful even when you feel like your peace is missing and life is complex. You are a force. You’ve walked through many storms. You’ve been knocked down countless times and you’re still here growing through it. Give yourself permission to grow and fully take charge through the tough times.
Before coming up with clever ideas to make life easier, there are certain deep questions you need to ask yourself. These questions are;
- What are the challenges I’m currently faced with?
- How do I easily solve these challenges?
- What are the resources at my disposal?
- What have the challenges/storms in your life taught you?
- How are you growing through them?
- What positive changes are you making?
15 Things To Make Your Life Easier
Having an easy life seems vague or unrealistic. People have normalized stress as part of life but this shouldn’t be so.
Hence, I’ll be sharing with you 15 things to make your life easier. I discovered these strategies over the years and it has been working for me.
I know this sounds a lot but you don’t have to feel overwhelmed by these 15 steps. At the end of this article, I have attached a 30 day challenge you can embark on that is guaranteed to massively improve the quality of your life
1. Identify The Source Of Your Stress
Every individual has varying pain points, even though it comes in varying degrees. This includes things that overwork you and cause stress. It could be a collection of small things but when put together, can complicate your life. A way out of this is to write down the things that stress you out.
This is the first step to learn about how to make life simpler. Some people find doing the dishes manually very exhausting or even doing laundry. Your job can also be a big part of what stresses you out.
If you want to learn about the things to make your life easier, identifying your pain points is the first step. Once you identify, you can now find a new and easier way to reduce stress. For example, instead of doing your dishes manually, you can get a dishwasher or get disposable plates.
2. Slow Down, Pause, And Breathe
Don’t always be in a hurry to get things done. Doing this would eventually overwork you and this can be harmful to your health. Instead of constantly jumping from one activity straight to another, try the Pomodoro technique.
The Pomodoro break technique suggests that for every 20 minutes of work, you should take a 5 minutes break. This is necessary to recharge your mind and give you a bit of time to breathe.
Asides from the Pomodoro technique, you should also clear out your schedule to allow yourself a little time to rest. Imagine always using your device without laying it to rest once in a while for a few hours.
The resultant effect is that it might end up crashing. It is similar to how the human body works, we need rest every now and then so we do not end up breaking down.
3. Utilize Your Most Productive Hours
Everyone has a period that they are twice as active and produce better results. For some people it is the early hours of the morning, for some, it is late at night. Identifying your most productive time is one of the major tips to make life easier. I’m a morning person.
I am most productive in the early hours of the day so I always take advantage of it. This is something that has helped me for a very long time. The moment I discovered this; my life has been a lot easier.
What you need to do is find out what time of the day you’re most productive. If you already know, you only have to leverage it. Nevertheless, if you don’t know you can use these steps to find out.
- Experiment working at different times of the day.
- Record the experience in a journal
- Compare and discover after a while.
Once you find your most productive hours, stick to it. This is one of the clever ideas to make life easier.
4. Count One To Ten Before You Respond When You’re Angry
During an argument or misunderstanding, do not respond immediately. There are so many things which don’t need to be said. This can be easily avoided when you are slow to speak. Avoiding misunderstanding is one of the things to make your life easier.
Whenever you feel like you need to yell back at someone, just count one to ten. The whole point of counting is to help you calm down and process your words before speaking.
It not only works when you are provoked. I also count when I feel nervous and it helps me breathe, relax, and always respond intelligently.
5. Find Your Happy Place
Everyone has a source of strength or happiness. It can be derived from a person, a thing, a place, or even an activity. Doing anything exciting helps you trigger your endorphins (happy chemicals in your body) which serves as a natural pain reliever.
6. Practice Self-Care
Self-care can best be described as a set of activities or continuous process which is carried out to build and maintain a happy and conducive living.
The whole point of self-care is to boost happiness. Nothing says no stress like a good self-care routine. Regular Self-care practices help you shred off the accumulated stress.
There are so many self-care ideas you can adopt to treat yourself and make yourself feel better. Some suggestions you can find useful are;
- Visit the spa
- Go swimming
- Go on a picnic or road trip
- Visit the gym
- Practice yoga
- Take yourself on a treat to your favorite restaurant
- Visit the beach
- Play video games
- Take a bubble bath
- Find out other things you love to do and do the
7. Learn To Say No
So many people struggle to say no, fearing rejection, anger or just the uncertainty of what the other person’s response will be. Sometimes, we end up displeasing ourselves or doing things that are not convenient for us because we feel the need to please everyone or so that we do not appear rude.
It is important to note that saying ‘NO’ does not make you a weak person. Instead, it shows you are in control and can make the right decisions.
Saying ‘No’ when you need to is easy when you do the following;
1. Take Some Time to Answer; Taking some time before answering a question helps you to think and prevents you from saying an unplanned ‘yes’. Better still, say you’ll think about it as this temporarily gets the person off your back and ensures you’re not under pressure when you answer.
2. Be Polite; As much as it is important to say No when necessary, it is also very important to give your response reasonably. Give a reason for saying No if you have one but do not feel obligated to explain your reasons if you don’t want to. You can also thank the person for asking.
3. Be Direct; Do not beat around the bush or sound uncertain, it is best to give a firm and direct No.
4. Do not feel guilty; No matter what your reason for saying no is, do not feel guilty or bad about your decision.
8. Purchase Things That Will Make Your Life Easier
Some things make our day to day lives easier; these things also make us comfortable. They may be gadgets, home appliances, a car, or even video games. Purchasing things to make your life easier helps you to make the most of your day and still be comfortable.
Appliances like a washing machine, dishwasher, microwave etc. were designed to take the stress off users by helping them with chores at home.
To ease workplace stress, you can get things like a personal printer, a coffee machine, and a good internet router if you are self-employed. All these devices are designed to make life easier for you. So, if you can afford it, save yourself the stress and let your money work for you.
9. Add Some Music
Music has always been known to have a soothing and calming effect. Different people have their individual preferences when it comes to music as we have various genres of music.
Some people say they have playlists for different moods, this is good because music affects our moods and emotions. When you listen to a sad song, you tend to be sad. On the other hand, listening to a happy and upbeat song lifts your spirit, makes you energetic, and most importantly makes you happy.
Making music a part of your every day helps to make your life easier. Music in this context is not limited to just playing or listening to songs. Again, if you are someone who loves singing or playing any instrument, you can do this for fun. This means that singing with a group of friends or in a choir and playing musical instruments are also included in the musical process.
10. Organise Your Stuff
Organizing your stuff means putting things in the right place. Putting your stuff where it should be is one of the things to make your life easier. Carrying out this activity saves you the stress of having to search for them when you need them.
- Organizing Your Stuff At Work: This involves organizing your files, documents, and all your work stuff. Organizing your stuff at work helps prevent clumsiness and forgetfulness. If you have a file to submit at the start of work the next morning, for instance, keeping it somewhere you would see it will help ensure you remember to submit the file as at when due. In summary, organizing your work stuff makes you more professional.
- Organizing Your Stuff At Home: Just like the workplace, certain things are best kept in particular places to help remember and also prevent home accidents. For instance, if you leave toys on the floor after your kids use them, someone can step on them or worse still trip and fall. Also, some materials or types of equipment are harmful to kids and so should be kept far from their reach.
11. Set Goals
A goal is the endpoint of an effort. In simpler terms, a goal is that which you intend to achieve in a given time frame. Goal setting can be defined as the act of setting a target or objective you plan to achieve within a particular space of time.
It is the development of a plan to motivate and guide a person or group of people towards a goal. Goal setting is important as it gives us a sense of direction. In setting goals, it is important to ensure that your target is something you can meet up with.
This is where Setting SMART goals come in. SMART is an acronym for Specific, Measurable, Attainable, Relevant, and Timely.
- Specific: Specific goals are goals that are clearly spelled out and well defined. Setting vague goals may be unhelpful because there may be no adequate direction in achieving them.
- Measurable: Setting measurable goals means stating exactly what you want to achieve. You can do this by including measurable elements or breaking your target down. For instance, instead of just saying you want to lose weight say you intend to lose 10kg. That way you’re able to track your progress and ensure you meet your target.
- Attainable: Ensure your goals are realistic and can be attained. Setting goals that are difficult or impossible to attain might be discouraging.
- Relevant: Set goals that are related or relevant to your life path. Goals that are irrelevant or unrelated to your future path may be uninteresting.
- Timely: When setting goals, be sure to include a timeline or deadline as it helps in motivating you to quickly achieve the goal. It also gives a sense of fulfilment when you set a deadline and you achieve the goal within the set time frame. So Just like our previous example, don’t just say you intend to lose 10kg but say you intend to lose 10kg by the 10th of April.
12. Declutter Your Home
Decluttering your home now and then not only helps get rid of old stuff, but it also creates space for new ones. Everyone has a few items that they have either overgrown, do not like anymore, or is even spoilt.
Sorting these items out to determine which to give out and which to throw away is not a bad idea. When you declutter your home, you can know what needs replacement and it allows you to clean and tidy those spaces.
The good part about carrying out this activity is that it can be so much fun. It is also one of the things to make your life easier. Stop procrastinating and declutter your home today!
13. Take Regular Walks
Taking walks regularly has various advantages. From helping you think better or helping take your mind off a particular thing to helping you stay fit. Walking also prevents diseases like diabetes, it strengthens your bones and improves your balance.
Whatever your reason is for taking a walk, you should keep in mind that it is a good way to stay physically and mentally fit. You can choose to walk alone, take a walk with a loved one or just plug in your earphones, and listen to your favorite songs while you walk.
14. Have A To-Do List
One of the most fundamental tools for time management is a to-do list. The importance of having a to-do list cannot be overemphasised. It is not just for the workplace as It helps you prioritise whatever tasks you may have whether at home or in the office.
A to-do-list helps you plan ahead and ensures that no task is left undone. We are all human and we may sometimes forget, but making a list of all that you need to do and sticking it on the door of your fridge, your mirror or anywhere else you always check helps to prevent forgetfulness. Also, a to-do-list can serve as a planner.
It helps you plan your activities for the day and this helps you avoid unnecessary activities that might waste your time. Some time-wasting activities include; watching too much TV, spending all day on social media, unnecessary visits or chitchats, and too much sleep.
Luckily, we are in a digital era and our mobile phones can do almost anything. So, making a to-do list is pretty fast and easy and your phone gets to remind you of each activity too just in case you forget. Before practicing about the things to make your life easier, you should note that different life chapters come with new challenges.
Each of these challenges makes life a lot more difficult. Nevertheless, once you adopt this as a way of life and continue to apply it at every stage of your life, your life becomes easier and better. Always remember that happiness is a choice and only you can make that decision for yourself.
So, there you have it! 15 simple tips that can make your life easier. I would love to know which one of these 15, you already practice, and if you think a tip is missing, do well to let me know in the comment section.
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