20 Daily Habits/Life Hacks That Have Improved My Life
The older I get, the more I realize that “success” has a lot less to do with heroic efforts than with what you do consistently and persistently. Show me the patterns you repeat over and over, and I will show you WHO YOU ARE.
All of us have good patterns and bad patterns. The bad patterns? We need to work on. But those good patterns, even small ones, carried on year after year, can make a big positive difference in our lives.
These are some of those patterns, habits, and life hacks I use. Some of them you may find useful, and others may not be applicable to your life. Maybe you’ll think, “He can only do that because he’s single/has a fenced-in yard/a car/a certain amount of money, etc., etc., etc. That’s okay. If you see something that can make your life better, try adding it in. Start with small and easily done things, and once it’s locked in as a habit? Add MORE to it.
1) Every day when I wake up, the very first thing I do is some very basic stretches in bed before I get up. While it is good to loosen up your body first thing each day, hip stretches and Cat–Cows every day have paid surprisingly large dividends for me:
2) Every day when I go to bed and when I get up, I read a list of 10 “affirmations.” I DO NOT say things like, “I will get away with murder when I do it” or “I’m going to be richer than Elon Musk.” Instead, I focus on important ideas I want to embed in my subconscious as my day begins and ends, like:
“Will you do your best today? (Did you do your best today?)”
“Wait too long and life will pass you by. Don’t make the mistake of thinking everything will give you a second chance.” -- Ed Latimore
3) When I go to sleep, I lie on a grounding pillowcase and use an Aum Pulser/PEMF device under my mattress. Personally? I think they’re both good for your health and inflammation levels but do your own research and make your own judgments on that.
4) When I sit down in my office, I have a number of products that are good for my health close by. Red light, PEMF, heating pad, massage gun, tens unit, etc., etc. If I am writing, watching a movie, whatever, it makes it very easy to grab one of these things and use it. Again, this stacks up over time.
5) When I go into my office, I do repetitions of certain exercises or use certain tools on myself. I may do a quick routine with Indian clubs…
….stand on a balance board for 30 seconds, do an Asian squat, use a massage gun on tight areas, use a trigger point cane, do some ankle rotations, etc., etc., etc.:
The idea behind this is not to get a workout or to sweat, it’s to do a little bit of flexibility/recovery/balance work that will add up over time – and it does.
6) Every time I drive somewhere in my car that’s more than 5 minutes away, I do a series of very minor breathing exercises, jaw stretches, hand strengthening exercises, etc., etc., that again, are designed to address small flaws over time. For example, I used to have a very tight jaw. I no longer have one because I ended up doing a little 30-second stretch in my car. Obviously, don’t do anything that will impede your ability to drive.
7) I have several haircare and facial improvement products I use. Putting them on via some rigid schedule seems like a little much to me, so what I do instead is when I use the bathroom and wash my hands, I will often put one of them on. Over the course of a week, this leads to me hitting everything multiple times.
8) When I sit down for dinner, my supplements are sitting on the kitchen table, within reach of where I eat. That makes it very easy and very natural to just grab them with a meal during the day.
9) If I eat alone, I read a book while I eat by default.
10) I keep a small plastic container filled with floss picks in my car. This is for two reasons. The first is that you would be surprised how often you get food between your teeth after you eat out somewhere, and if you don’t address it, it’s very easy for it to sit in there and rot as you forget about it. The other is that, like most people, I don’t floss enough in the morning, and flossing is very good not just for your mouth health, but for your heart health. Having floss always just there, especially when you’re driving, can be very helpful.
11) I believe being properly hydrated has significant benefits, but I also like to drink diet soda. So, I don’t drink any diet soda until AFTER I have drunk 64 ounces of water each day.
12) I have a vacation suitcase packed with everything I need, from computer stuff to toiletries to cords. That means I basically just need to grab my clothes, any supplements, my keys, and my wallet when I leave town, and everything else is ready to go.
13) I do not keep any food in my house that I am tempted to “binge” on. Incidentally, “binging” could refer to going just a few hundred calories over what I’m targeting for the day because I ate a 250-calorie pint of N!ck’s Vanilla Ice Cream or 450 calories over because I ate a 70% dark chocolate bar. If I am not 100% confident of my ability to pass on a food even when it’s late at night and I’m sleepy, I’d rather just buy it the day I eat it.
14) I’ve always allowed my dog to sleep in the same bedroom I do, but if you do that, it can get a little annoying if they need to get up early and use the bathroom, right? Well, not for me because I have a doggie door on my porch going into my fenced-in backyard, a doggie door into my kitchen going on to the porch, and a doggie door from my bedroom that allows the dog to go into the kitchen. In other words, my dog can and does get out of bed and go pee on her own.
15) Christmas cards might seem like an odd life habit, but as fewer people send them out, paradoxically, they’ve taken on greater importance. Christmas cards are one of those small, intimate things, like a meaningful compliment or inviting someone to dinner, that have an outsized level of impact to people. Getting a Christmas card from someone isn’t the end-all and be-all, but it means SOMETHING, and increasingly, it makes you stand out in a good way.
16) I used to be EXTREMELY messy, but there was one piece of advice on that front that changed my life. That was, “Don’t leave any dishes in your sink, any laundry on top of your washer and dryer, and make sure you always take out your trash when it gets full.” Those three little things? They have mostly fixed my problem with being messy, although I do bring someone in to clean my house once per month as well.
17) If I have a good idea or need to make a note to myself, I text myself on my phone. This helps a lot with forgetting ideas and decreasing the clutter in my brain.
18) I have a spot on my computer for to-dos, story ideas, online subscriptions, phone numbers, monthly budget, etc., etc., etc. This might seem like a minor thing, but it’s not because once you write things down that you need to remember, it allows your brain to more fully relax and not feel like there’s, “something you’re forgetting” or “need to remember” in the background.
19) I have a dream board in my office that I see every day. It has big goals and dreams I want to hit on one side, and things that were on my dream board previously that I achieved on the other side. It’s good to know the things you want most in life and have those percolating in your subconscious all day long.
20) On the wall in my office, I also have quotes that change periodically over time. Again, these are messages I want to embed deeply in my subconscious:
Great post, John. Here are just a few of mine:
1. Workout as many days a week as you can. Even if only for 20 minutes. Stay ahead of the curve, because getting old ain’t for sissies.
2. If I’m alone in the car, I almost always listen to books. Sometimes simple novels but usually deeper books or history. Most people waste a ton of good learning time listening to music or talk shows.
3. Always clean up before bed and before leaving the house. You can’t get the big things in life right until you’ve mastered the little things.
4. Stay in touch with friends, old and new, and family.
5. Think positive. It’s easier than most people realize and you are the master of your mind. Don’t start with trying to be the richest or the best at something, start by trying to be better off and better than you are. Over time, that could make you rich and the best.
6. Work hard and play hard. We all get one chance at life on this earth. Don’t waste it. Make the most of it.
7. Find a reason every day to laugh.
8. Find your passion at work. If you can manage this, you’ll never have a
reason to hate Sunday because it’s followed by Monday.
9. Find your passion(s) outside of work. All work and no play is a recipe for misery.
10. Be chivalrous. I always say chivalry won’t be dead as long as I’m alive. You’ll be surprised how a little chivalry can make others feel happy, and that will make you feel good about yourself.
Just started doing stretches as you referenced in #1 and am now considering doing something like DDP Yoga after seeing the lives he has helped change. He seems to be doing pretty well for someone about to turn 70.