During the summer I became very focused on living in a way that made me happy, and made me feel excited about getting up in the morning and seize the day.
PLAN
One of the things I realized worked really well when it comes to living well (making me feel less tressed and feel a sense of accomplishment) was to plan my days. This way I didn't get annoyed at myself when I hadn't really done anything all day or just wasted time trying to figure out that same day what I should focus on and actually get done that day. I mentioned here before a thing from an audio book; that you are productive when you achieve what you planned to do that day (or in a certain amount of time) no matter what that is (watching Netflix all day maybe?). This is what I mean with feeling a sense of accomplishment; just feeling that you did exactly what you planned to do! I was really good at this last summer, but then I kinda forgot.. I need to go back to planning my days ahead of time! It makes a ton of difference in both mood and getting things done :)
EAT HEALTHY & EXERCISE
Being active and eating healthy is alpha and omega for living well! I wanna live till I'm 100 years old so that I'll get a letter from the Norwegian king haha (kidding, but not really..). My exercise goals right now are 1) walking 5+ km per day, and 2) doing strength exercises on Fridays. And now I'm planning with a couple classmates to go swimming before school a few times a week. I've also started to eat healthier (wasn't super unhealthy to begin with, but made some important changes). For example, I eat way more vegetables, less red meat (horrible for the environment anyway..), and eat and drink less dairy products. Over the summer I was getting some of my food from the farmers market - local, short-traveled, and organic food. When I finally get a place of my own in Oslo I'll get all (at least most of) my vegetables and fruit from the farmers markets there. This way one supports the local community, and it's good for the environment and you as well!
BE SOCIAL
Being around people that make you happy is another super important factor of living well! I'm an ambivert (mix of introvert and extrovert) but when it comes to how I get energy I'm for sure an extrovert. I get so much energy from being around other people! Especially good old friends, but I also love making new friends! I'm definitely happier when I'm doing something fun with friends and/or family. Either it's going on a retreat somewhere nice and quiet or staying out partying till the wee hours of the morning!
THE LITTLE THINGS
Now it probably looks like I'm contradicting what I just said about eating healthy, but this is about enjoying the little things in life, and that could be a delicious yellow macaroon from time to time. It is important to award yourself, and if being super healthy doesn't make you happy, then f**k it! I love a quote I read once: "eat salad, die anyway." I eat healthier because it makes me feel better. Physically and mentally. I LOVE honey in my tea, a huge scoop of sour cream on almost everything edible, and I almost never eat bread without mayo. A little cute jar of honey from the local farmers market; the small pretty earrings I bought the other day; or a big and grateful thank you from the person selling =Oslo, which I buy more often than I read it; those are the little things that make me a little bit happier :)
Thanks for reading! Have a good week everyone <3