As a writer of life advice, I don’t see it as my job to develop completely novel ideas. By this point, all the best ideas have been taken, and anything original would most likely be wrong.
Instead, I aim to repeat the best ideas I’ve heard and those that have worked for me. Because I process the ideas through my brain and put them into words, they will come out with my unique twist. I hope that by repeating these good ideas, I’m doing the vital work of keeping them prominent in our society. Good advice is only helpful if you remember it. We need to hear it a few times and from a few perspectives for it to stick.
That said, the advice I’m about to give will sound obvious. I know you know it, and I know you can do it. And there’s only one reason I will repeat it: Not everyone applies it.
Well, here it is:
You have the power to brighten your day. And in doing so, you will brighten the day of those around you, too.
A Fresh Start
Each new day begins with you waking up. When you awake, you are effectively a new person—free to choose how you’ll approach the day. What happened yesterday matters only in that it lays out the pieces on your playing board—how you actually play the game and how you choose to move the pieces is up to you today.Two of the most critical options before you are to either:
- Passively wait to see what kind of mood you’ll inherit based on what happens around you.
- Consciously make choices that will brighten your day.
My best evidence for this effect is my experience and observations of the people around me. It’s almost unbelievable how minor progress or the tiniest action can begin a positive spiral in someone’s day. You can try this out for yourself with minimal effort and nothing to lose.
5 Actions You Can Take to Brighten Any Day
1. Get Something Done
Human energy isn’t like fuel in a car—you don’t use it up as you go. When we get something done, no matter how small, we feel a massive rush of motivation (energy) to continue on that path. Accomplishing a task instantly improves our mood and builds our confidence. For this reason, starting your morning with a few quick wins is one of the easiest ways to brighten your day.2. Meet Up With a Friend
Among the various activities humans were made for, spending time with others is at the top. A 2020 article in the American Journal of Psychiatry concluded that people who have close friends are more satisfied with their lives and less likely to suffer from depression. One way that friendship is believed to lift our moods is by changing how we respond to stress. The support of close confidants buffers us from the toll that stress can take on our health and mental well-being.3. Exercise Your Body
I’m just one person giving advice, but my experience with exercise has been nothing short of miraculous. As a competitive distance runner in high school and college, I’ve gone on countless runs, and every single time, I finished in a happier mood than I began.4. Spend Time Outside
An article published by the American Psychological Association in 2020 highlights a growing body of research pointing to how essential nature is for human well-being. A simple walk in nature is enough to boost your mood.5. Perform an Act of Kindness
Another tried and true way to brighten your day is to do something kind for someone. Because the human mind is a complicated system, it’s not always easy to get yourself in a better mood simply by wishing it were so. Sometimes, introspection can make it worse. A better approach is to replace those negative emotions with more powerful ones that will lift your spirits. Being kind to another human is nearly sure to take your mind off your problems and remind you that people matter most.It’s not always possible to brighten your mood. I don’t want to downplay the complexity of the human mind or the genuine suffering that can occur in life. But I do think it’s a helpful and reasonable default to believe that, in most cases, a few small steps can brighten your day.
