75 Tips for Well-Being and Happiness in Life and at Work
This article discusses 75 simple tips for well-being and happiness in life and at work to help boost productivity, morale, life-balance and a positive outlook.
The tips are divided into two major categories namely: 40 well-being tips for happiness in life, and 35 tips for happiness and success at work.
These tips are aimed at living a better quality of life, being more productive and enjoying each day.
You can quickly skim all the 75 tips on the table of contents below then click on any tip to read further details. Please enjoy reading. Thank you.
TABLE OF CONTENTS
A. TIPS FOR HAPPINESS IN LIFE
1. Sleep early and wake up early
2. Reduce watching TV as much as you can
3. Stay hydrated throughout the day
4. Practice being grateful for what is going well in your life
5. Listen to inspirational and motivational materials regularly
6. Read enriching articles and books
7. Re-read good books
8. Look for the good in others
9. Wrap yourself with a glowing smile
10. Choose to be happy
11. Look at and enjoy nature
12. Write down your personal goals
13. Look at your goals frequently
14. Sing badly just for fun
15. Learn a new recipe
16. Enjoy cooking for others
17. Write down your ideas
18. Share useful information with others
19. Compliment others genuinely
20. Love deeply
21. Overcome doubts and fear
22. Dream big
23. Avoid negative energy as much as you can
24. Practice eating breakfast daily
25. Exercise
26. Make time for self-reflection
27. Learn from your failures
28. Learn from other people’s failures
29. Track your accomplishments
30. Don’t be afraid of starting small
31. Be conscious of your self-talk
32. Have a supportive ecosystem
33. Persevere
34. Delay gratification
35. Avoid sitting on the fence
36. Avoid procrastination
37. Track your spending
38. Taking smart risks is part of growth
39. Take the high road
40. Help others/Volunteer
B. TIPS FOR HAPPINESS AND SUCCESS AT WORK
41. Take a few small breaks during the day as you work
42. Practice advance preparation
43. Plan your day the night before
44. Keep your work area neat, tidy and organized
45. Keep your desktop uncluttered
46. Have a photo or two of your loved ones on your desk
47. Communicate well
48. Practice being calm
49. Say Good Morning to others
50. Listen to motivational music and audio when commuting
51. Write a to-do list
52. Do small things in a big way
53. Look for opportunities to exceed expectations
54. Become a great listener
55. Practice the art of taking down good notes
56. Look for solutions
57. Identify your strengths and weaknesses
58. Support your boss and help them shine in their job
59. Support your work colleagues
60. When you need help ask for it
61. Accept compliments graciously
62. Actively seek feedback on areas to improve
63. Keep growing
64. Be known for doing one key skill exceptionally well
65. Learn a new skill
66. Know your productivity cycle
67. See possibilities in problems
68. Respond appropriately to challenges
69. Be open to learning from others
70. Value your contributions
71. Laugh at yourself
72. Work well with others
73. Be open minded
74. Look sharp
75. Develop a pleasant personality
A. TIPS FOR HAPPINESS IN LIFE
1. Sleep early and wake up early
When you sleep early and wake up early, you get more rest, wake up more rested, refreshed and energized and are able to do more productive work during the day.
2. Reduce watching TV as much as you can
Instead channel the time saved to do other activities that have significant impact on your life.
For example working on your personal and professional goals, studying, listening to audiobooks, learning a new skill and spending time with loved ones.
You can also do mental workouts like puzzles, brain teasers, word associations, connecting the dots, crossword, play games, scrabble, chess etc.
3. Stay hydrated throughout the day
Drink plenty of water frequently.
Have a bottle of water or a glass of water near you at all times during the day.
4. Practice being grateful for what is going well in your life
When you dig deep there are actually many things to be grateful for everyday even during those days when nothing seems to be going as we would wish.
Simply being alive is a great blessing on its own. Implement an attitude of gratitude in your life.
5. Listen to inspirational and motivational materials regularly
Nourish and feed your mind frequently with materials that uplift and encourage you.
This helps to keep your enthusiasm levels up and maintain a good attitude and outlook towards life.
6. Read enriching articles and books
Find and read good books and articles that add value to your life. Books and articles that teach you new things that enrich your life.
Get into the habit of reading regularly to expand your mind, thoughts and knowledge.
7. Re-read good books
Shortlist a few books that deeply inspire you and read them over and over again until the material really sinks in your mind.
I personally love this tip and have practiced it over the years. My shortlist of favorite books includes 3 books by John Mason – The Impossible Is Possible; Imitation is Limitation and Conquering an Enemy Called Average.
I have had these 3 books for 10 years and I still keep re-reading them especially the sections that I had previously highlighted in colored markers.
8. Look for the good in others
Everyone has a unique and positive quality about them when we take time to listen to and understand others.
Look for the beautiful qualities in people such as something that they do really well.
This helps in controlling negative patterns of thinking, encouraging others and enables you to give others a chance.
Speak well of others. Praise people behind their backs.
9. Wrap yourself with a glowing smile
Adorn yourself with a contagious smile, a heartfelt smile and smile back at others.
When you make an effort to genuinely smile it makes you happier and it makes you look friendly and approachable.
Smiling also makes the other person happier and it will help you build relationships with others.
10. Choose to be happy
One of the most important and impactful choices that you can make in life is deciding to be happy.
Look for happiness within, surround yourself with happy people, laugh deeply, do good things for yourself and others, do things that you love, apologize to others, forgive others and have empathy.
Unhappiness slows you down. Great happiness is also found in helping others.
11. Look at and enjoy nature
Look at green trees, green grass and flowers. If possible also look at bodies of water – rivers, lakes or oceans.
Looking at nature has a peaceful and calming effect on the senses.
Enjoy the sunshine. There is something magical about the sunshine especially early morning sunshine warmth, the glow of sunrise and lovely colors of sunset.
12. Write down your personal goals
Take time to write down what you want to accomplish in life. Include images next to your top goals, images that show how the end goal will look like – picture the finish line.
13. Look at your goals frequently
Display your personal goals somewhere and look at them frequently – ideally every morning when you wake and just before you sleep.
Remind yourself of what you want to accomplish in life and meditate on what steps you have taken so far and what steps you plan on taking.
14. Sing badly just for fun
Sing badly just for fun. It doesn’t matter if you sing out of tune. It will make you happy and help to relieve stress.
If you have access to a Karaoke machine by all means sing your heart out. If you dance as well while singing you get twice the benefit.
15. Learn a new recipe
Challenge yourself to cook a new recipe at your own pace until you can make a decent meal out of it.
Put creativity into your cooking and try different methods of preparing meals. Cooking opens up doors for endless creativity possibilities.
16. Enjoy cooking for others
Cooking is an experience in sharing. It is very fulfilling to design and prepare a meal, serve others and watch them enjoy the experience.
17. Write down your ideas
Whenever you have a great idea, write it down immediately in as much detail as you can and also write down the date when the idea occurred to you. Later on review your ideas and flesh them out further.
18. Share useful information with others
When you come across useful information that can benefit others, feel free to share it with others who you think might like it.
19. Compliment others genuinely
Give others honest and sincere compliments.
20. Love deeply
If you have kids, hug them often, tell them often how much you love them and spend time with them. Love all your loved ones deeply.
21. Overcome doubts and fear
A little fear and anxiety is ok, it keeps you sharp and focused.
Acknowledge your fear and try out something new even if you are scared and strengthen your courage muscles.
Believe in yourself, believe that you can do it, overcome self-doubts, don’t sell yourself short and do not underestimate your potential.
22. Dream big
Take time to dream big, immerse yourself into the dream and see what your aspirational future would look like.
23. Avoid negative energy as much as you can
Avoid spreading negativity and in turn avoid those who spread negativity or intentionally choose not to get caught up in or participate in the negativity.
Choose to make peace with yourself and others – don’t worry about what other people think when you decide to stay quiet, you cannot please everyone.
24. Practice eating breakfast daily
Make it a habit to eat breakfast before starting your day. Also practice eating well for other meals.
25. Exercise
Stay active, take a walk, jog, go to the gym, walk up and down the stairs, stretch, swim, ride a bicycle etc.
26. Make time for self-reflection
Set aside some quiet me-time to think. Thinking time should be a regular continuous habit; the good thing about thinking is that you can do it anywhere.
The best ideas, insights and light bulb moments can occur during deep thinking episodes.
Think about your life’s direction, think about what you have done and what you want to do in the future.
27. Learn from your failures
Each time you try and fail, learn from your failure and mistakes. Reflect on and analyze where you went wrong and use this knowledge and insight to keep improving as you move forward and onward.
Failure is the bridge that you cross on your way to success.
Failing should strengthen your tenacity and determination to inch towards your goal.
28. Learn from other people’s failures
Read about people who have failed and then succeeded in life. Learn from them.
Read about others who have made it despite facing limitations, struggles and hardships. Learn their stories and their struggles.
Hang around other achievers, it is infectious, propel each other, support each other and feed each other with success.
29. Track your accomplishments
Write down your accomplishments, review them against your goals, and keep a running log of your achievements.
A record of past accomplishments is a confidence booster and a pick me up especially for the times when someone is going through a difficult challenge.
Knowing that you have faced obstacles in the past and have emerged victorious will give you the confidence to persevere and keep trying.
30. Don’t be afraid of starting small
Humble and small beginnings are great laboratories where we can develop our inventions and experiments.
Break down big tasks into smaller components and handle one small piece at a time. Believe that small beginnings are the keys to bigger things in the future.
Don’t wait for everything to fall into place, start where you are and start with what you’ve got. Take baby steps.
31. Be conscious of your self-talk
See and think of yourself as a valuable person who has something to offer the world.
Change the way you talk to yourself so that you regularly feed your mind with encouraging and empowering thoughts.
Avoid negative thoughts and negative self-talk that pulls you down. Use positive and uplifting words. Identify the good things that are happening in your life and be thankful.
32. Have a supportive ecosystem
Surround yourself with family, friends and acquaintances who desire the best for you, encourage you, support you in achieving your goals and are with you during your ups and downs.
Reach out, connect and communicate with friends and loved ones, and hang out and have fun together.
33. Persevere
Have tenacity of a river pushing against rocks to forge its own path.
Nothing good comes easy. There will be challenges and disappointments along the way.
There will be times when you will make the wrong turn or loose direction or momentum. Sometimes the strategies that you had thought would work might not work.
Learn from failures and mistakes and be flexible to change your strategies when needed.
34. Delay gratification
Forego immediate or short-term rewards in favor of future or long-term rewards that are sustainable.
Work on being more patient and let go of the idea of instant results.
Take pride and have fun in the process of working towards achieving what you desire in life.
35. Avoid sitting on the fence
Acknowledge that you won’t always have all the information you need to make a decision.
When it is time to decide make the best decisions that you can based on the circumstances, information available, your experience and your gut feeling.
You can also consult with others prior to decision making.
36. Avoid procrastination
Never-ending postponing of work that needs to be done is a vicious cycle that causes anxiety and wastes energy.
Deliberately implement a solution to curb procrastination.
Prioritize the things that you have been avoiding and start to work on them purposefully one at a time.
Break down the tasks into smaller pieces and attack each small piece one at a time.
37. Track your spending
Make an effort to know where your paycheck goes to have a good handle at managing it.
Track literally every single expense for one month and compare the results with what you thought your actual expenses were or against your budget.
The results of this exercise can be surprising.
38. Taking smart risks is part of growth
Smart risks are taken in the hope of bettering one’s life, to stretch us, to make us grow and become better than our former selves.
A knife has to undergo friction during sharpening for it to perform at its best. Iron has to undergo extreme heat to be shaped into different useful tools.
A cake has to endure a hot oven to come out and dazzle us with its sweetness and splendor. Take one small risk at a time.
39. Take the high road
Conflicts, disagreements, arguments and misunderstandings are an inevitable part of life and can be energy-drainers and sources of stress.
When faced with arguments decide to the bigger person, do the right thing, resist arguments, be diplomatic, have empathy, walk away from arguments and forgive others.
40. Help others/Volunteer
Lift others up. Offer a helping hand whenever you can.
It feels good each time we make an effort to do something that will assist someone else without expecting anything in return.
The more people you help, the better you will feel about yourself.
Volunteer your time, make a donation, teach someone a new skill, comfort someone and even just taking time to listen to someone can do wonders.
Volunteering means being a selfless steward serving with pride without expectation of reward.
B. TIPS FOR HAPPINESS AND SUCCESS AT WORK
41. Take a few small breaks during the day as you work
Whenever possible, briefly step away from your desk for a few minutes after working for a two hour stretch or more.
At a minimum simply stand-up, stretch and take a deep breath.
42. Practice advance preparation
When you have a meeting, presentation, interview, or any other important event, it pays off to plan, prepare and do your research ahead of time.
Read and be conversant with the subject matter at hand. Rehearse as needed.
43. Plan your day the night before
When the day ends take a few minutes before you head out to write down the major activities that you want to do the following day.
At the same time take a moment to review what you had planned to do on that particular day versus what you actually did.
44. Keep your work area neat, tidy and organized
An organized work area keeps you peaceful and motivated.
It also helps to accomplish more tasks since you know where everything is and the neatness reflects well on your brand image.
If possible, eat lunch away from your desk. Eat at the office kitchen, eat outside or anywhere else you prefer. Let your desk be your work area only.
45. Keep your desktop uncluttered
A clean well laid out desktop is also important.
This is achieved by having minimal items on your desktop, have a few folders for important documents that really need to be on the desktop and the rest of the documents can be saved on other drives.
Additionally keep a beautiful and inspiring image as wallpaper for your computer or desktop background.
46. Have a photo or two of your loved ones on your desk
Surround yourself with your loved ones in your work area. A photo or two would do the trick.
Glancing at the photos occasionally during your work day fills your heart with a warm glow.
47. Communicate well
Talk at a pace that you are comfortable with, project your voice well, manage the tone of your voice and maintain eye contact.
Listen attentively, use nonverbal signals to show attentiveness such as nodding and paraphrase where necessary to ensure that you have correctly understood the message.
Write well, clearly and with confidence.
48. Practice being calm
When things are chaotic and out of control, make a deliberate choice to be cool and calm.
Objectively assess situations to figure the viable course of action.
Practice having a composed demeanor even when things are not chaotic.
49. Say Good Morning to others
Always greet others in the morning even if they don’t greet you back.
50. Listen to motivational music and audio when commuting
Be inspired during your commute. Turn your car, the bus or train into a classroom on wheels.
Listen to good teachings when going to and coming back from work.
A substantial amount of information can be consumed during the time spent in one year on just commuting.
51. Write a to-do list
There are many tasks and activities that need to be done on a daily basis that one can easily get overwhelmed and overloaded.
Write down the activities that you plan to do on a particular day to help you stay organized.
The to-do list can be taken a step further and activities can be ranked or listed in order of priority or importance.
Enjoy the moment when you check off an item that is completed.
52. Do small things in a big way
When working on small tasks, activities and assignments you have the opportunity to let loose your creativity and imagination.
Since the down side risk is relatively low, run wild and give your best effort to small things.
53. Look for opportunities to exceed expectations
Do much more than is required and make this your signature style. Always do your best at all times.
Take initiative to accomplish great things and take action to make things better for yourself and others.
54. Become a great listener
Listen keenly to others, listen intently and understand what others are saying.
Give the gift of listening.
55. Practice the art of taking down good notes
Take good and detailed notes and review them to refresh your memory.
Take down good minutes of important deliberations.
56. Look for solutions
Instead of complaining, take the other side of the coin and think of solutions to problems. Think through and evaluate alternatives.
If one method is not working, reassess, reconfigure and try a different approach.
Present solutions to your boss and team members.
57. Identify your strengths and weaknesses
Have a strong sense of self-awareness.
Know what your strengths are and use them as best as you can also identify your weaknesses and deliberate work on improving them.
58. Support your boss and help them shine in their job
Learn and study your boss, their preferred work style and patterns and support them as best as you can.
Always keep your boss informed and updated.
When you make a critical mistake ensure that your boss hears it from you first.
59. Support your work colleagues
Help your colleagues to shine in their jobs.
You can offer your support in many ways such as training others, stepping-in for someone during their absence, representing someone in a meeting or event, chipping in on a project and helping out in meeting time sensitive deadlines.
60. When you need help ask for it
There will be times when you are overwhelmed by work demands; in these situations confidently ask for help from colleagues and bosses especially if a big deadline is at stake.
Be clear and specific regarding which area you need help. Thank the person after they have helped you.
61. Accept compliments graciously
It is important to accept compliments the right way especially when someone has gone out of their way to offer a sincere compliment.
At a minimum say “Thank you” and you can also say something extra to express your appreciation.
62. Actively seek feedback on areas to improve
Feedback is a key component for continuous growth and improvement.
Feedback lets you know when and where you are making progress and when and where you need to make adjustments including areas where you need to make corrections and resolve problems.
63. Keep growing
Set for yourself goals, objectives, targets and deadlines then compete with yourself to beat and exceed your own targets, in short get more work done.
Over deliver on work that you have promised others; aim to give accurate work that shows you have paid attention to details.
64. Be known for doing one key skill exceptionally well
What is one unique thing which you do that sets you apart from everyone else?
Do one thing really well and become a specialist in something.
Nurture this gift and talent, cultivate it, perfect it, harness its strength and use it to propel you forward in your life and career.
65. Learn a new skill
Always be hungry for knowledge, have an appetite to learn new and useful information.
Learn new skills in areas related to your work, passions and in unrelated areas.
You never know you could just discover new ways to combine different skills to make processes more efficient or develop new systems to help both yourself and others.
66. Know your productivity cycle
When are you most productive – in the morning, afternoon or at night?
Identify the time of day when you are at your peak and do your most creative and productive work at those times.
67. See possibilities in problems
Find out how many angles can be approached to break down a problem.
Break through your own barriers and limitations, ask good probing questions, and look for opportunities within problems.
68. Respond appropriately to challenges
Life will throw you curveballs; there will be hardships and struggles.
Expect the unexpected and react well to challenges.
Don’t beat yourself up, practice thinking on your feet and being spontaneous.
In life challenges will come and go like the waves in an ocean.
69. Be open to learning from others
You can learn from anyone. Nobody knows all the answers. Learn from others.
Most people are fortunate enough to work with colleagues who are smart, talented and skilled in various professional areas.
One way to increase your knowledge base and skills in areas where you are weak is by identifying a work colleague who has great skills in a certain area and learning from them.
70. Value your contributions
See and think of yourself as a valuable and self-confident person who has something important to offer and contribute to the world. Get out of your comfort zone.
Dare to do things differently, challenge the status quo and think in a different way.
Mentally stretch yourself and look for different opportunities where you can offer ideas, suggestions, recommendations, opinions and input.
71. Laugh at yourself
Have a sense of humor. Don’t take yourself too seriously and don’t be scared to laugh at yourself when you mess up.
72. Work well with others
We are stronger together and will accomplish more working with others in a team. Listen to and see other people’s point of view.
Nurture strong working relationships and get along better with others.
73. Be open minded
It is a good idea not to get permanently married to your own ways of thinking and doing things.
There is usually a better way of doing things out there, or a better way of solving a problem, or a different way of looking at a situation or a challenge.
Try out something that you haven’t done before.
Entertain and encourage new ideas, opinions and thoughts from others.
74. Look sharp
You have total control over how you dress. This is one area where you can really shine and boost your self-confidence and self-image.
Dress nicely, groom yourself well, stand up tall, smile, speak clearly, and practice a good firm handshake.
75. Develop a pleasant personality
The first rule to developing and maintaining a pleasant personality is to always act according to the Golden Rule of treating others the same way that we would expect others to treat us.
The easiest way to change others is by changing ourselves.
Be slow to anger, be kind and gentle to yourself, forgive yourself and others, know how to express your opinion in a respectful way and be friendly and easy to talk with.
Additional Resources on Tips for Well-Being and Happiness in Life and at Work
- 15 Tips to Boost Your Well-Being and Happiness
- 10 Easy Tips for a Healthier Life
- 5 Tips For Living a Well Balanced Life
- 25 Easy Tips to Enhance Your Well-being at Work
- 6 Tips for Improving Wellbeing in the Workplace
- 9 Tips to Increase Your Wellbeing in the Workplace
- 10 Practical Ways to Live a Happier Life Today
- 15 Simple Ways to Live a Happy Life
- 16 Tips for Living a Happy Life Starting Right Now
- 10 Scientifically Proven Ways to Be Incredibly Happy
