Boredom

Boredom is an opening of possibilities to personal growth, transformation and true joy/fun/pay…one of the saddest things about our tech dependent world is that too few people, and not often enough, let themselves go there

9 Evidence-Based Happiness Practices/Ideas and A Bonus

Guess which is the bonus!!!

1. Self-talk — Awareness, Disruption, Challenge, Reprogram
2. Comparisons — Your brain naturally compares you to whoever's doing better at something. Be a good scientist about it:
   • If you're measuring yourself against that freak faculty member with 100+ pubs, consider ALL faculty — the average publication rate is eight over a career. Really.
   • Intentionally feel good about the process
   • Focus on gratitude
   • Ask if this comparison will matter to the you that is dead
3. Gratitude — Two minutes, huge.
4. Do good for others
5. Social connections
   • Call a friend
   • Enter a third space — club, coffee house, salsa social, smile at strangers in public
6. Decreasing social media and technology use — your brain and your happiness will thank you
   • Always be signed out of email
   • Delete email and social media apps. Make sign-in hard.
7. Smile
8. Spend time every day with nature — even if it's the one tree on your block
9. Dogs (and cats, and rabbits)
10. Salsa dance — the most essential🦄🦄🦄🦄🦄💃💃💃

Not writing will not fix your problems

Not writing, not exercising, not salsa dancing, not ukulele playing: denying yourself any of these will not fix a problem. Not writing or dancing will not bring back my dog who died last month. Not writing or dancing or anything good for me will not heal my life in any way. Doing those things will not bring back my dog, but since she is gone anyhow, I might as well just write, I might as well show up to the non-negotiables that make my life better. Even if I can't feel them now.