4 Ways to Be Happier

How to live a better life, one small step at a time.

Photo by Toa Heftiba on Unsplash

The internet is awash with wellness tips — some good, some bad, and others downright dangerous. It’s a minefield out there, but living a happier and healthier life doesn’t have to be something that confuses us.

With the implementation of a few simple habits, reaching a position of contentment and peace of mind becomes an easier task. Happiness isn’t always a simple quest to embark upon, but we have to start somewhere. So start here.

1. Solidify Your Sleeping Schedule

Like it or not, the quality and length of your sleep underpins just about everything you do. It determines how focused you are throughout the day, the speed of your metabolism and your energy levels.

And yet, regardless of its importance, we rarely put our sleep first. Late nights at the office and social media scrolling in bed take priority more often than not, leaving us feeling tired and miserable when we wake up. It follows, therefore, one of the most effective ways to improve your day-to-day wellbeing is to maintain a healthy sleeping pattern.

It’s hard to imagine going to bed and getting up at the same time every day, especially with weekdays so demanding and weekends used for recharging. But if you can reinforce a consistent rhythm that provides you with 7 full hours of sleep a night, your body will benefit tremendously.

What’s more, sleep isn’t just good for your physical health, but it’s also great for your mental health. When you sleep better, you’ll feel better. Lack of sleep makes us less alert, impairs memory and makes us more prone to negative patterns of thought.

Improving the quality and quantity of our sleep is essential. But what should you do if you struggle actually getting to sleep?

Simple Ways to Sleep Better

According to Frank Lipman M.D, author of The New Health Rules, we need four things to secure a good night’s sleep:

1. A cool room — around 60 to 68 degrees Fahrenheit. Our bodies like to cool down before sleeping and warm up before waking.
2. Total darkness. Avoid light when you’re trying to sleep…